"... a limited amount of time to spend at this..." Ain't that the truth! Perhaps striving to create one's own models should always be the goal, after all self reliance is the mark of an acomplished tradesman, artist or whathaveyou. I don't see any advantage to 're-inventing the wheel' every time you make one. Perhaps what a render says, and how it looks is as important as how it was done if not more so; at least for the purpose of these challenges. I'm sure we all make an effort to use the tools at our disposal to our best advantage and in the most creative way possible, whether they are purely our own or whether we stand on the shoulders of others to create something new. It is that effort that is most important of all, is it not? - TJ