Originally posted by Abakadoosh
A question for ezra.... im 17 and very interested in comptuer graphics (always have been), and im looking to do it for a future career. Since im new to the 3D world, what can i expect in terms of enjoyment and is it very rewarding/satisfying?
It's very rewarding, but you may have to sacrafise a lot a long the way. It's very creative and very technical, so you have to be both good in math and good in art. Art beiing the more important area, you can always learn math, art is much harder to learn, so you should focus on that intinially. I started out in art school, at Art Center, and helped set up the Computer lab in late 80's. I was a Fine Art Major, iand Illustration Minor, but emphasized on computers. I also had a other art and computer science certificatefrom a two year college before I went to art school, and I studied visual psycology after college, and still continue to study and learn new things now.Right now I'm studing the human condition. It's a never ending process, so you have to be dedicated, and you have to be OK with accepting t he things that you might miss in life. I know that sounds kind of harsh, but it true, and it also seems to work out because you have so much fun! In the end your work environment will be much funner to work in, and you'll have a lot more liberties than a regular 9-5 job. Think pool tables, and video games at work! Heck some days I don't even go in, I just send my work to the net rendering farm from home.
i hope to one day have a job at ILM 
, but will obviously take a lot of time. What kind of software am i looking at? Miya? Bryce? Infini-D? Cinema 3D?
You really only need something Animation Master to start with, it's very cheap compared to all those that you mentioned, and you learn about most of the features that are in the big packages. Take some classes few years and make sure it's what you want to do for sure, then if it is then invest in something more substantial. At that point you'll know what your interested in, and that will help pick the right application. I'm personally biased when askd which software to use because I work with Maxon in developing Cinema4D, so I naturally think it WILL be the best, but at the moment it's not. I think you would be safe with Lightewave, or 3D Studio Max as well They are a bit cheaper than Maya, and have plenty of support, as well as good well rounded tool set. I use Lightwave as well, I like it since it's been around since my early years on the Amiga. It's like a old friend to me. May has powerful tools, but I just don't like to work in it really. It's kind of unpolished as well. When the time comes you'll know what you need. Stay away from packages like Bryce though, becaue it will teach you almost nothing that you can use in the real 3D apps.
Am i looking at a lot of hardware to render everything? And if so, how, computers or computer parts? And which is the best way to go abouts all this? Class's or just learning on my own? (btw, im signed up for a computer graphics course at a nearby college, i hope it teaches me a lot) Any feedback would be great, thanks!
As far as hardware, faster is better, and the most amount of RAM you can get, you'll be needing it for what you'll be doing. You should take classes, and don't forget about art classes as well, theyare most important. If your not a good artist with natural media, you most likely won't be a good 3D artist either, so focus on this daily. Draw all that you can from life, and see if you can get in some sculpting classes as well, sculpting is very useful in what e do. On a project basis you never touch your computer until you have your ideas sketched out on papaer or story boarded, then you go to your computer then figure out how to make it a reality with your tools. You have to know your tools inside and out, so after all the art schooling, you have to dive into your computer tool and really get to know them, so when the time comes you know what to do with them.
And a question about the G5, i was wondering, where are you guys reading about this? Would be interesting to look into. Cause if Apple doesnt step up the mghz or use Altivec then they really need to give the CPU's an overhaul (say about, oh, twice as much), because thats what a lot of entry level computer buyers look at, numbers. Anyway, sorry to not be able to help you ezra and take up space on your forum, but xlr8yourmac (as someone else said) is the only thing i can think of.
For the G5, do a search on one of the bigger sreach engines for "Apple, Mac, G5" or something similar, you should find something. And, don't worry about the questions, I get them all the time, I'm glas to help, and glad to see young people interested, because it's going to be so much funner for your generations, you guys are going to have much cooler toys to play with than us old timers. Have fun with it!
