how long would u say it takes to learn solidworks well enough to render any idea for a product u have? thanx
I think it depends on you, if you practice a lot and have a good CAD “understanding” it could take less than a month… if you just practice when you have a chance it could take a lot!
If you want to make really cool renders I think solidworks alone will not do it, you´ll have to learn some 3d max rendering or rhino rendering…
Go for it and in one month you can make the product you want! I mean, you’ll know like 60% - 70% of solidworks, but is enough for most of the products… Just like any other software it could take years to learn 100%.
oh alright cause im taking a class on it when school starts and i was just afraid i wouldnt lhave a full understanding for solidworks by the end of the semester. i have rhino and have been messing around with it but the renderings look to basic and unrealistic from what i have seen so far. about 3d max, i heard it was very difficult to learn cuz it is more for designing characters for animations, thanks for the help
like every program, and everything in life, it will take time to learn. How much time depends on how many hours you put into it and how determined you are and your initial cad knowledge.
Often the big mistake when learning is taking on various projects with limited cad software knowledge and allowing the program to dictate your designs based on your poor uderstanding of the programme. This is a very common problem when you notice that student for example will have all very similar cad designs and rendering because their designs have been based on their limits of using the program rather than the brain.
As for rendering, I use photoworks with good results, then touchup in photoshop. Soemtimes I just use photoshop alone! you can get good results with a number of different ways, pick one and get good at it.[/img]
At the risk of sounding cocky, I learned the solid modeling basics by tearing through the tutorials on the plane ride to Hong Kong. Then I was spitting out semi-crappy renderings a week later.
I think the best renderings come from people who understand two things:
A) All of the possible adjustments available in the software.
B) Have some actual photo studio experience with lights, depth of field, highlights, shadows, surface reflections, etc. and can apply that knowledge to scene composition and lighting.
After 5 years I’m still learning…
yah DM i was looking at this one site and this guy showed how to this really really nice car renderings in photoshop. the reason im taking the class though is because my teacher said that if u learn solidworks u can be hired just doing CAD work, the ability to see what my ideas will look like before making the model, and also because my teacher said that it is really good for orthographic views, thanx for the encouragement though everyone
solidworks is not too easy to learn, but I did it with a few weeks of solid (pardon the pun) working at it. The online tutorials are brilliant, but beyond that it’s a matter of trial and error…Practice makes perfect.
Allen
if you want some really good modeling, rendering and texture mapping tutorials for 3ds Max, Maya and many others, check out
I’ve always found that site to be quite helpful in make some very realistic models and renders.
Oh, and as many of you know, you can always build something in solidworks and render it in something like Max or Rhino.
learning the CAD package to create the forms and learning the rendering software to do the renderings are two different things. good luck.
learning the CAD package to create the forms and learning the rendering software to do the renderings are two different things. good luck.