3D animation and modeling have enjoyed great success in the last decade or two, as the technology has been advancing rapidly, and now even people doing design and animation for a hobby have access to astoundingly powerful and easy-to-use software. However, as we all know, not all software is created equally. You don’t want to spend money on a sub-par product, especially when there are so many choices out there, so we’ve compiled a list of some of the best tools on the market for modeling, animating and designing all manner of three-dimensional projects.
AutoDesk
Renowned in the computer-aided design community and heralded as the yardstick by which all CAD programs are measured, AutoDesk remains at the top of the list of software that not only helps you design powerful and function CAD projects but does it in style. Able to work in 2D, as well as 3D, there’s a good reason that AutoDesk is the industry standard. Its ease of use and unrivaled power of composition make it the ideal software for the high-demand design tasks students will take on in engineering training or computer-aided design courses. While it’s not free, it does offer an excellent free trial so you can navigate around the software and see if it’s for you before buying.
Solidworks
A great 3D modeling suite by software company Javelin, Solidworks is ideal for small-business scenarios and designers who are just starting out as entrepreneurs. It has the ability to share across networks, integrates seamlessly with 3D printing technology and automatically updates the bill of materials for the manufacturer when you make a change to the design. One of Solidworks’ biggest benefits is that it includes powerful analytics software that can test the efficiency and effectiveness of your 3D model, meaning that you’ll have to rely less and less on building costly prototypes to see if they work, as you’re able to easily iterate design on a purely digital plane, not having to worry about physically producing them.
Blender
Blender is some of the best 3D modeling software in the world right now – it’s powerful, easy to use for beginners and best of all, it’s free. Not only is it free, but it’s also open-source, meaning anyone can access the source code of the program and add their own little tweaks. It’s exceptionally powerful and great at what it does. Not only is it cross-platform – meaning that Mac and Windows users alike can take part in all of the three-dimensional fun, but there are thousands of YouTube tutorials out there for Blender, done by great 3D artists, that will make learning the software and create your own designs a breeze. It’s a great program to download and mess around with to gauge whether or not a CAD college is for you, and it’s also great for aspiring freelance and independent designers.
There are a lot of great 3D modeling and animating software out there, and picking the right one for you comes down to what you need it to do, and what you’re comfortable with. So dip a toe in before you take the plunge, and you should find yourself with the perfect 3D modeling software.
