AutoCAD
AutoCAD is mostly used
for 2D drawings by architects, designers, draughtspersons, etc. It is used to
create floor plans, blue prints, etc.
Advantages: It makes very precise drawings. It gives the advantage that you don’t
need any measuring tools such as compasses, rulers, protractors, pencils,
erasers, etc. It is more time consuming than traditional drawing. The drawings
you make can be edited along the process. AutoCAD gives the ability to create
3D drawing as well, which could be rotated. With traditional media any of the
mentioned advantages aren’t possible.
Disadvantages: It is expensive to buy individually. Every
update might make it a bit difficult for the user as he/she needs to learn
again the new updates.
Autodesk 3D S
Max
It is mainly used by professional designers
for animation, product/interior design and animation. It could also render the
3D object created.
Advantages:The software has realistic results. It
could be used for virtual character modeling and animation. It is very
efficient because you could create the reflections for the created product and
has also camera. The camera is to take images and also for videos of the
finished product. It could also do rendering. 3Ds max is also known for the
gaming industry. It is also used to created visual 3D prototypes.
Compared to Maya software 3Ds Max is the
best to work with for interior and architecture. It is also much easier to use
than Maya.
Disadvantages:
It is slower than Cinema 4D. It has no effective
tools as Cinema 4D. It is more expensive than other software. It requires a
good strength computer not like Cinema 4D.
Maya
Maya is 3D design software which is used mostly by professionals. It is used to created film animation, TV programmes, visual effects, video games, architecture design, etc. it is very similar to 3Ds Max.
Advantages
It is used in many industries for design making. It offers the ability to create realistic simulation. It has the advantage of creating a render in real time.
Using traditional media won’t create effective 3D designs. Also it is better to use than trying to construct designs with materials, as you could edit or change whatever you want. Therefore designers will be more creative when modelling, animate etc by having the opportunity to create 3D design using shadow and light. Maya provide camera management, mostly used for animation.
Disadvantages
As any other 3D software Maya takes a large size of memory on the computer and that might make the computer slower.
Inventor
Inventor is a CAD software for 3D
creations. It is normally used by professional mechanical engineers. It is used
for creating parts and gives specific details about the part created.
Advantages
It is mostly used to create simulation of
3D mechanical designs. It can make the 3D product very realistic that gives you
the ability to present the form, fit and function of the product. From the 3D
drawings you can create its sketch in 2D. Inventor has also the advantage to
make the product work as it will be in real life for prototype purposes. The 3D
products could also be rendered from the same software.
Disadvantages
Takes a lot of space on the computer and it
is very expensive to buy.
Cinema 4D
Cinema 4D is used for the film making
industry, for product design and industrial animation. It is able to create
realistic scenes.
Advantages
Compared to 3Ds Max, Cinema 4D is much
easier to learn and use, can create In motion graphics, it is faster to render
and can integrate with After Effects. It can also create 3D products and creates
very realistic scenes.
Disadvantages
Takes a large amount of space on the memory.
Rhino
Rhino is a CAD 3D software, which gives the
possibility to create products, etc.
Its geometry is based on NURBS (Non-uniform
rational basis spline)
which is a mathematical model.
Advantages
It is very accurate when making 3d models
for prototyping design. It is much faster than 3Ds Max and there’s no need of
special powerful features/specs for your computer. Basically is it can be used
on any laptop or computer. It is also easier to learn than 3Ds Max. It is also
cheaper to buy than other softwares but still can be used professionally. It
has the feature to render any object you produced.
Photoshop
Adobe Photoshop is image manipulation
software it is mostly used by photographers, graphic
designers, etc. It is used
to edit any kind of image and can make the image look better or with a higher
quality. It is the most known software for image editing from around the world.
Advantages
Available for both Windows and Mac. The
more you learn the more you can improve skills and practice and experimentation
are the key to learn. The tools are very easy to find because they are on all
sides of the work area. It is easy to just simply adjust colours, hue &
saturation, etc.
Disadvantages
Expensive to buy. It is designed to be used
by professionals so it’s a bit challenging to use for the first time. It takes
a lot of space on your computer.
Illustrator
It is vector based drawing program. It is
mostly used for creating illustrations, cartoons, posters and logos. Illustrator
is mostly used by Graphic Designers.
Advantages
No pixels will be seen. Creates very
precise sharp lines. Creates artworks perfect to print at high resolution. It
takes low space in computer storage. Can be scaled up without losing quality or
resolution. It gives you the possibility to express your creativity digitally
if you’re not good on paper (free hand).
Disadvantages
Very difficult to produce realistic image.
Not designed for image editing, so if you need to edit a photo better to use
Photoshop. Might be difficult to learn as a beginner.
