just for the heck of it Im going to throw in another option and that is Cinema 4d, I think the full package is every bit as good as lightwave, and from my perspective far easier to learn plus you dont need to buy it all at once though its cheeper if you do. wanna create models for poser? just buy the basic R8. want more? get the other modules. the best advice I can give is go download all the demos throw rhino in the mix too, that seems popular with a lot of modelers. and try every one, the one that makes the most sense, buy it