If you are beginning your journey and learning 3d or looking to swap from another 3d application you will undoubtedly have your reservations about what program to use. From personal experience, I can confidently say Blender is worth your time.
Blender is absolutely worth learning. Blender is widely used by professionals and hobbyists alike. It is capable of performing almost all 3d tasks and used in games and movies. It is a popular choice for beginners and robust enough for someone who has had experience with other 3d applications.
In this article, we will discuss what Blender is and some of the common questions you may have.
What Can Blender Do
Probably a better question to ask is what can’t Blender do. Blender is what I would refer to as an all-around program and is capable of performing most 3d tasks. Some of the broader functionality of Blender includes.
- Box Modeling
- Digital Sculpting
- UV Creation & Editing
- Texturing
- Rigging
- Animation
- VFX
- Composition
- Rendering Using Both Traditional and Real-Time
These cover almost everything you will ever need from a 3d application. Theoretically, you may never need to learn any other program.
I encourage you to check out this article I wrote on exactly what Blender can do.
Why Choose Blender
There are a lot of options available that are capable of what Blender is however there are main 2 reasons why you might choose Blender.
- It is Constantly being updated
- Its Free
Blender has seen countless updates since it was released in 1994. It has been constantly improved and refined over this time keeping up with most other programs. You can comfortably assume if you learn Blender it is not going to lose support and die out in the near future.
Blender is absolutely free and can be used for personal and commercial purposes. It is very rare to have such a program stay free and remain free for foreseeable future. This is mainly thanks to large companies sponsoring its constant development such as Intel, Nvidia, and Unity to name a few.
This is something I personally can get behind. Blender has made 3d accessible to everyone considerably lowering the bar to entry.
Is Blender Hard
Blender is not hard however because it is capable of doing a lot as a new user it can be daunting at first. This coupled with its heavy use of hotkeys takes some practice to get used to. Fortunately, there is an abundance of tutorials you can find that will answer almost any question.
Because Blender is free a simple Youtube search will result in an abundance of tutorials. If you are new I would highly encourage you to give the Blender Guru’s Donut Tutorial a try. It is one of the most popular tutorials and kept up to date as Blender has evolved. It is almost a right of passage.
How Long Does It Take To Learn Blender
How long it takes to learn Blender will mostly depend on your knowledge of 3d. If you are completely new 3 to 6 months is achievable. If you are experienced in 3d you could learn it in a month. While you can become proficient quickly mastering Blender can take years.
With at least an hour of practice each day, it does not take long to get used to Blenders hotkeys and interfaces. You may never learn all the facets of Blender so it’s important to focus on the parts of 3d that interest you. It is unlikely you will be able to learn what every menu and hotkey does.
Who Uses Blender
According to Blender’s website based on the number of downloads 1 to 3 million people use it. This is huge making Blender far from a niche piece of software.
Blender is used by beginners, hobbyists, professionals, and thousands of businesses around the world. It is a powerful and cost-effective option that a lot of people rely on.
Best of all people actually make living utilizing their Blender skills
Should You Learn Blender As Your First 3d Program
Blender is the perfect choice for your first 3d program. It is capable of almost everything 3d related. Because it is free there is nothing to lose if you decide 3d is not for you. If you enjoy it then knowledge from Blender will carry over to other 3d applications if you switch at a later date.
Personally, I started with Blender and still use it as one of my main programs. It achieves everything I need it to.
Can You Learn Blender on Your Own
There is a lot of quality paid and free tutorials available for anyone to learn Blender. If you can stay motivated to practice it is entirely possible for anyone to learn Blender on their own.
A word of warning the initial learning curve can be difficult. Without the support of someone else going through the same thing, it is difficult to stay on track. Being part of a community whether it’s through Facebook Groups or Discord can greatly help.
While learning Blender you can do everything at your own pace. If you have other commitments consistent practice in the small amount of time you may have is enough.
Finally, it’s important to remember not to compare yourself to other people who have done it for years. While it is inspiring it can also be demotivating
How Does Blender Compare to Other Software
Blender is comparable to other software such as 3ds Max or Maya. Each software has its advantages over the other. Blender is well regarded for its clean easy to follow user interface and intuitive hotkeys. It is regarded to be more stable and bug free than some of its competitors.
Can You Use Other Programs With Blender
While Blender can do most things it doesn’t necessarily mean it does everything well. This is why programs such as Zbrush who specialize in sculpting or Substance Painter who specializes in texturing exist.
You are not locked in to only using Blender. Blender import and export to all the popular file types including FBX, OBJ and STL. If you don’t like the sculpting tools in Blender it is quite common practice to take you model to a program like Zbrush sculpt and then bring it back into Blender once you are done.
Conclusion
Hopefully, I have convinced you to give Blender a go after all what have you got to lose as it’s free. It really is a great program and in my opinion, fun to use. I’ve personally used it for years and plan to use it for years to come. I promise you won’t be disappointed.