From Maya To 3ds Max & V-Ray

[firestarter109]

Hello,

 

I have been working with Maya for a little over 5 years now doing modeling, texturing and lighting. I am really comfortable with Maya though I am seeing more and more the 3ds Max & V-Ray is the standard for the architectural rendering business which I am currently trying to transfer into.

 

I have done rendering and a few things in 3ds Max & V-Ray but over all it is something I am feeling pretty lost in.

 

Does anyone know of a good line of movies (for example I know the "gnomon workshop" DVD's are great for getting to know Maya better.) to help me out here. Any good books with tutorials would be good too.

 

Thanks for your time and thought!

 

-Margaret Brown

[John Dollus]

sounds like this book would be a good resource for you:

http://shop.cgarchitect.com/books-and-magazines/3ds-max-2011-one-project-from-start-to-finish.html

[firestarter109]

Thank you so much for that link, looks really detailed.

 

I also found that there are indeed Gnomon Workshop DVD's for 3dsMax too!

 

Good things to know. Now here is another question that someone may know, are the two ever used together or am I dreaming? Say I want to still do all my modeling in Maya, then import the .obj's into 3ds Max?

 

Thank you again!!!

[FreakyDroid]

Modeling in Max is very similar to Maya, quite a lot of tools are exactly the same. The only thing you'll need to get used to is the workflow part, which imo is very different.

 

I've successfully exported a few scenes from 3ds Max and imported them in Maya via the FBX plugin. I haven't tried the other way around though, but I think it will work.

 

There is V-Ray for Maya, wouldn't it be better to stick with Maya and just learn V-Ray?

 

Regards,

Dimitar

[firestarter109]

Interesting point indeed Dimitar, that is something to think about I think the only reason why I jumped to just learning Max is that mostly all job postings I have found say:

 

Software:

3ds Max & V-Ray

After Affects

Photoshop

 

Maybe I just need to look harder for people that are open to just having the work done and done well, because really that is what I am into. But yes, if I can stay in Maya and just run V-Ray that would be wonderful!

 

=) thank you so much for your time and thought, really helps to hear from others on this!

[Scott Schroeder]

Maya and Max are often used together, but just not all too often in architecture. I know a few people at some games companies and they'll use Max for certain things and Maya for characters or what not. Many times these studios are Max or Maya heavy, meaning they primarily work in one, but are not afraid to use the other for it's strengths. I know Blur Studios uses Max for the environments and XSI for characters and dynamics.

 

Jumping from Max to Maya, or reverse, doesn't mean you need to learn how to model all over again. The core modeling practices stands. What you need to learn, and is often the most annoying part, is learning the new user interface. Learning what the different labels are. Autodesk put out a handy side by side chart of hotkeys in Max and Maya. Let me see if I can dig that up for you.

 

Many companies, at least the larger ones, will tend to give you some slack on the software. Again, either you know how to model or you don't. The software you use isn't the key. It's the artist. The same for Vray. Either you know how to light or not. Vray won't make the render for you. It all depends on if the company has the time to let you learn the new user interfaces.

 

EDIT: Found it! Here you go. It's not all of them, but it's a start...

http://images.autodesk.com/adsk/files/3dmax_to_maya.pdf

Edited September 7, 2011 by VelvetElvis

[firestarter109]

Thanks a ton Scott,

 

That makes a lot of sense and makes this all a lot less daunting!

I will look into that and the little work I have done in Max seemed pretty much just that, another 3D program with different buttons.

 

Thanks for your time!