Quote - The best program is the one you feel most comfortable working with

That pretty much sums it up. If you have never done 'any' 3D modeling before, you should start with one of the freeware modelers Realmling just mentioned (Wings, Blender, Anim8or). Get to know what modeling is all about. Then if you feel you have the knack for it, you can look into buying a commercial app. But the free ones can still produce some top notch results in capable hands.

I've seen some great models built in Wings, Anim8or etc. by talented artists and some real trash done in Maya simply because the person using it didn't know squat about modeling in general.

Hey! His nose is dry! ... Someone should lick it,  just in case. - Diego