Are they nice as in you can render a car pretty fast and can show it immediately to a client or as in you can render heavy scenes with moblur/dof/hair/displacements for say a movie?
In my experience (never did a render animation, only in my spar time), modo is really fast in either task you mentioned.
Other feature:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKXqU6B4XhE
I honestly don't know, but I have a feeling that I might be wrong expecting from a one-man-show software like Modo to offer the same power as a Goliath like Softimage or Maya or Houdini. Isn't Modo kind of a one-man-show software or I got this one wrong too?
I think you are right here. I don't think Luxology aim is compete with great monster in production like Softimage and Maya, but can easy replace 3dsm in archiviz studio and cinema 4d. Also, a freelance can handle it easy without great issue. IMHO a good investment for a freelance (not involved in animation or VFX production). In any case modo cost less then 1/5 softimage+subscription, and more and more less then Maya or Houdine Master, cannot be compared, at all. Repeat, modo cost is assimilable to softimage plugin.
I guess there is where they are at the moment. They started as a modeling only thing and have evolved from there to the ideal (in my humble opinion) plataform for freelancers doing still imagery and such. But, from the looks, they dont intend to stop there... Quite frankly I think it is a nice divide and conquer strategy to the top. Sure would not run a big pipeline through it at the moment, but who knows where they will be years from now?
Agree. They first goal was steal users by LightWave, I think they reach (easily) this first aim. Now I see a precise intention to take part of the Cinema 4d audience. If they continuing like they have done in the last release, 701 will consolidate all the actual feature with some upgrade here and there, and 801 will be a big release.
I dont think you guys are being objective..or you never tried Modo or seen it in action.
You realize that for 1/5 of one autodesk software it gives you a lot of things and most of them are unbelievable modern?
I can name a few: Pixar subdivision, sculping, painting, deformers, render engine + render preview, UV editor - those are really amazing in Modo.
There are a lot, and i mean a lot of things maya/max/softimage lacks, which are fast, artist friendly, modern, and time saving.
Of course it has its own problems but for 1k$ its one of the best choice for a one-man army artist for sure.
Its kinda unfair and not smart to compare Modo to other softwares thats been developed for years, cost even 9times more. Compare Modo to Houdini? come on.
I believe that what modo gives you, is amazing in all terms, its growing great and for the price is probably one of the best out there.
Totally agree. Repeat, modo cost like a softimage plugin, and offer great feature, and many of these are absent in softimage (some of these can be done with ICE, but in modo are ready to use and work really nice). Try render engine in modo, I think you will have some big surprise (I know some Softimage users who use daily modo).
Also, not fundamental, but really like it, Luxology company is really nice in all sense (marketing, customers care, attitude), a pleasure read the news and discussing directly with CEO