Lightwave offers more bang for the buck, I don't think anyone will disagree with that. However, for the price, Cinema 4D offers a great deal of value for money and shows a new form that offers a growth potential that could rival the higher end packages. For simple user support, expansion, power and plugins out the wazoo, it's hard to beat Lightwave. But, coming up the outside real fast and starting to be taken seriously in industry is Cinema. Both have different scaled learning curves but both are steep. I'd suggest you grab a demo of both programs and try them out, choosing the one that suits best your workflow habits. From a personal perspective I'm inclined to support Cinema, but I've seen some unbelievable stuff done with Lightwave, it's just a little too expensive for me. Lightwave and Cinema both have plugins available for free download from Curious Labs that allow you to import poser scenes. However, once you've gotten into the materials areas of those apps and the lighting capabilities you won't be too fussed over importing poser data just the models. :) Dunno if that helps you any.