The idea of creating 3ds Max (3D Studio) wasn’t primarily driven by business objectives at start, but rather the curiosity of some of its initial developers to make a more capable 3D animation software. Understanding how 3ds Max and Cinema 4D were designed and created may help us comparing their primary use cases, ease of use, and other important aspects.ģds Max’s predecessor, the 3D Studio was released in 1990.

Comparing 3ds Max’s and Cinema 4D’s context of creation and use I’m sharing my experience on the migration process, that may help you evaluate if migrating from 3ds Max to Cinema 4D was also beneficial, and effort-worthy for your business. I’m also running a Cinema 4D training for visualization with 3dhome, a Maxon-certified training institute in Budapest, Hungary. Whether I’m using 3ds Max or Cinema 4D, software puts no limit on the quality of my work. Today I’m using Cinema 4D and Corona Renderer in all projects I’m working on, and couldn’t be more satisfied I made the change. Cinema 4D recently changed its licensing having one package only, still selling one-third the price of 3ds Max.Īt the time I started migrating from 3ds Max to Cinema 4D, there weren’t many guidelines or opinions shared on the subject. Cinema 4D versions' flexibility was also very appealing, the basic, yet also powerful 'Prime' edition being roughly one-sixth the price of 3ds Max. Being already an advanced user of Corona Renderer, the next strong alternative was Cinema 4D, which also supported Corona (even though it was in beta at that time). After starting my business doing professional architectural visualization I had to revise the tools I used in my workflow from a financial perspective, since being dependent on 3ds Max – one of the most expensive 3D software of all – was a luxury I wanted to validate I can't get around. I've also run intensive arch-viz workshops for companies, teaching 3ds Max. I've worked with the software as a team player at various arch-viz studios, as well as visualised my own and other architects' designs as a student of architecture. I've been using 3ds Max for more than 12 years for architectural visualization, in different contexts.

Learning 3ds max for architecture