Where do I start ?

Hi Im totally new to 3d computer art. Im a very good at realistic painting/drawing and sculpting and now wanting to do them in computers.

I basically want to be able to do everything ,Be able to make a 3d animated movie clip all by myself, but I am thinking i should start by learning to sculpt the figure in computer, then color the model, etc.

Please suggest me which program or software i need for that. .and where to buy etc.. Unfortunately I dont really have the time to attend classes at this time so any instructional DVDs and textbooks out there you could sugest me would be great.

and any othersuggestions or advice would greatly be appreciated.

Thanks a lot and Happy Holidays!

i would highly suggest blender

It somewhat depends on what OS you have. Like Jawerty said, Blender is a great free open source program. You can jump in and get a feel for it without putting up any money for the software. Although you can pretty much do the same with all the other programs with demos. It does have a bit of a learning curve like all 3d design programs. 3D Studio max is one I personally have never used because I only work on macs and it's native to windows, but it is extremely popular for modeling in windows and from what I hear has a more user friendly interface. The competitor mostly used by mac users is Cinema 4D which I model in. I am somewhat new to modeling and have found that this is the best choice for me. It's been the easiest for me to learn as far as a learning curve goes and from what I hear is extremely similar to 3DS just it's a bit reversed if that makes any sense. Maya which can also be used on a mac has a very in depth interface. I also have this program but I have been enjoying Cinema 4D so much I haven't jumped in to it much. It has a much bigger learning curve because of the options it gives you. It's more of a professional program for people that are serious designers but a lot of people do use it. Its used a lot in animation. There is also Carrara 8 which some people get great results from but from what I have seen from it, it looks cheaper then C4D or 3DS and you need to learn some good render settings to get it to produce like some of the other programs. Overall I would stick to one of the more popular programs because you will find more help, tutorials and models to mess around with. There are a lot of helpful places to find out how to start. So again it comes down to price, Operating system, goals for modeling and personal preference. You can get demos for most of them that way you can actually look in to them and see which interface you think fits you. I'm very visual so this was important for me. I would post the demo links but it wont let me.
Just google
Cinema 4D Studio R12 Demo
3d Studio Max 2012 Demo
Blender 3D This ones Free
and 3D Studio Max and Maya are both made by Autodesk so you should be able to find it there as well
Hope this helped and good luck.

I'd say give Truespace a whirl. It's definately not the most advanced software, but is free and was designed for novice model makers that don't have a lot free time to learn a more complex modeling software. I like Blender, but it's pretty complicated for beginners. I'd also get Blender too as once you learn to do things in 3D you can always upgrade as your modeling skills grow.

When we were taught 3d modeling in school, we used Blender. Are you familiar with the movie Big Buck Bunny? You might want to check that out first so that you will know what Blender can offer you because that was rendered through that software.

As what is pointed out, it is free and the tutorial part of it was just amazing. There are a lot of videos from the site that you could try to get familiar with the interface and some basic functions you can use.

I have used truespace since ver. 1.0 also free, I don't consider it a novice program, it can do some pretty cool stuff, especially the later versions.
In fact, Blender which is mentioned above had a similar feel to truespace when it 1st started out, if anyone remembers. If you are looking for the whole package, you can go with the others mentioned, but be prepared to spend some serious time, these programs have a deep learning curve.

I start with 3dmax modeling I will suggest you the same.

Whatever software you choose, you should check out websites like
Lynda, Digital Tutors, and Gnomon for some really professional training for reasonable prices.

Hi, I recommend you to use 3dsmax, For me 3dsmax is still the simple best one. If you use mac, you still can use 3dsmax by adding windows as the second operating system. You can be easily switch between the two operating system by press ALT. See how to do that by googling. Welcome to the world of 3d.

thanks for sharing...
this is really informative...