"When I see all the ugly 3D renderings at Renderosity with no post work I get sick."

I don't get sick or anything, but nothing is finished for me until I've done the post work.

I find a lot of renders could use something I do. In traditional art, it's called underpainting. In 3D art, you can't really underpaint. But you can achieve a similar effect to a wash by slightly coloring the lights and choosing your color palette carefully. Coloring the light unifies the image similar to the way a wash does in watercolor and often in oils. Choosing a unified palette further unifies the image by complementing the color of the light.

"1) 3D models. To soften the edges make a copy of the layer with the object and give the uppermost layer some gaussian blur, about 1-2. Then set blend mode to "Darken"."

You might also try giving the top layer a gaussian blur of about 5, then a[pplying ther layer in the luminosity mode. It gives quite a lovely effect.

I also use Painter, but it's not sdomething I'd recommend to everyone. It can be quite a hard program to handle, with a learning curve just as steep as Photoshop. It does do quite a lovely job of simulating watercolors and oils, though.

To really use Photoshop effectively to paint, you have to have a tablet. I don't have one, and I wish dearly that I did. It's absolutely necessary to do a good painterly job in Photoshop.

Talent is God's gift to you. Using it is your gift to God.