Hey Guys,

I'm new to the site and in reading some of the forums realized this is a great source for 3D rendering and what current programs have to offer. I'm an Sr Art Director for an ad agency and we are looking into bringing 3D rendering capabilities in-house. We currently outsource when the need arises but the volume of work is getting larger by the day and we feel this would be a great additional cash flow for us. Here's some insight on the type of work we do:

We are heavily involved in the Wine/Spirts/Beer industry so we need to render bottles, case stackings (corogate boxes with bottles exposed), mass displays (50-200 wine cases arranged in multiple footprints), and event booths with furniture and people. Down the road we will need to render grocery store aisles, deli & seafood cases, as well as retail products. These images will be used to pitch promos to clients, print materials, and websites so quality is vital.

I don't need animation but if it's part of the program that's fine. Rendering need to be as photo-realistic as possible and have great lighting/shading abilities. It needs to be pretty intuitive and easy to learn but powerful enough to render a final high quality product. An option with online tutorials and classes would be great. I apologize in advance for my lack of knowledge and newbee mentality but that's why I'm looking for your guidance. I've been researching online and there may be some Photoshop plug-ins that might work, what's word on Blender, Lightwave, Vray, 3D Sudio, Final Render, Maya, Autodesk_Inventor, and so on?

No limitations on budget.

Well since no one has said anything I will throw my answer down. I have seen that mental ray makes glass in maya look wonderful. If I had a PC I could have used mudbox( which comes with maya) to give it a unique look. Just my two cents. Also if your looking for a 3d artist I would love to help

Sorry I have to correct you but mudbox doesn't come with Maya.

As for the answer to your question. Almost any rendering program can end up with the same results. It all depends on the user and if he or she knows how to make the most out of it. Mentalray is a great one to use and it comes with maya or 3Ds max. Their is also V-ray that you can get for 3Ds max which also has amazing results. But if you would like pure realism I would maybe look into Maxwell render. For any realistic renders this one I believe has the best results. It does take a little longer for the renders to complete but the results are fantastic.

You could try out Blender3D as a free program. I personally work with Max and like it very much, but that may be a bit pricey for your needs.

Nathan

When you have the time, look up Zbrush.

That program was used to animate Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Man's Chest.

It is user-friendly and fun to use.

Z brush is a good program I will agree but for what he needs it's totally off. Zbrush is meant for adding detail to a model and for texturing a model. It can render but it's a very simple rending system.

As for the animation of pirates of the Carribean. Your actually wrong on this. Zbrush can't animate. You can pose a guy for one frame but not animate him.