I have a mate who has a Mussel(shellfish) Farm for which I put together a promo for. He is wanting me to incorporate an animation showing how a new idea he has had might work. I'm thinking along the lines of a autocad type image that you could tilt/pan zoom in/out of. My problem is I do not have the slightest clue as to where to start. Is this something I am better subing out and if so, any recommendations?

I'd go for something made on 3D Studio Max. I have some compositor friends who work wonders with this superb software. The results really are impressive.

For this kind of thing I'd tend to stay away from a CAD program (unless you really like to draw in CAD) as their animation capabilities tend to be mostly what you would use for fly throughs of architectural drawings, etc

Some do have reasonably extensive animation tools, but I've never been comfortable with using CAD programs unless there was a real need for dimensionally accurate 3D models. Autocad is around $4k and all CAD programs have a learning curve which redefines the meaning of "steep".

For the more or less "artistic" stuff there are a zillion good choices.

Cinema 4D is excellent as are Lightwave, Maya, 3D Studio Max, etc. These packages are also pricey. Not sure about the others, but the full version of CInema 4D is around $3400, although you can do a great deal with just the basic package (Which is still $895 or so). Others are priced in the same ballpark, with Lightwave 9 being a good choice as well. Maya is really popular among the CG crowd, and priced accordingly. Cinema 4D is coming on strong and tech support is extremely helpful and easy to deal with. Game developers like 3D Studio Max and there are a LOT of good rigged character models available for it at TurboSquid.com

Something to consider which is a tremendous value for the money is Carrara Basics 2, which Amazon is selling for $49. It has a lot of capability including lots of lighting and animation in addition to reasonable modeling tools. Don't be put off by the low price tag, it is a really quite capable package.

For even less money, Caligari still makes version 3.2 of TrueSpace available as a free unlimited download. I've never gotten used to the rather unique interface, but it is capable of some very nice work in the right hands.

Maybe even in the left hands! (Sorry!)

I think we also need to ask Alistair how complex the diagram is likely to be as that may have a bearing on whether he can do it himself or not and whether he wants to spend 000's on a new software package (and the time needed to learn it).

If it's a relatively simple diagram you may be better off using (for example) the free SketchUp app from Google. I have had a little play around with it and for certain things it's great - coupled with the fact that it's a piece of cake to use. It has avi animation export and while it doesn't have anything like the sophistication of Cinema4d etc, it does a pretty good job, in my opinion.

I am also a Cinema4D user (beyond a beginner but still at a basic skill level) but to be honest, for my requirements, it's waaaaay overkill.

Check it out!

Cheers . . . Ian . . .

I have a mate who has a Mussel(shellfish) Farm for which I put together a promo for. He is wanting me to incorporate an animation showing how a new idea he has had might work. I'm thinking along the lines of a autocad type image that you could tilt/pan zoom in/out of. My problem is I do not have the slightest clue as to where to start. Is this something I am better subing out and if so, any recommendations?

Subcontract?

.........and should you wish to sub it out I can put in touch with someone in the UK who will be able to help you. As he's a freelancer, he won't charge big 3d animation prices!

Good luck!

.........and should you wish to sub it out I can put in touch with someone in the UK who will be able to help you. As he's a freelancer, he won't charge big 3d animation prices!

Good luck!


Stuart, does your dude do logo design in 3d?

yes, he sure does. He is a very talented Graphic Designer.

yes, he sure does. He is a very talented Graphic Designer.

K, feel free to have him go by my website and see if a logo is something he could do.