Am considering buying Bryce. Is the basic package enough to work with or are there other packages you need to get work done (rendering package, etc.)? Thanks

Attached Link: http://www.renderosity.com/gallery.ez?ByArtist=Yes&Artist=Rochr

It depends on what you want to create. I work with Bryce 5 and for me its enough. Its an all-in-one package, its easy to work with and can also create very realistic images. Theres also tons of free stuff to download. Feel free to check out my gallery for some examples. Apart from the characters (Poser), its all Bryce.

Rochr already pointed out one; Poser. If you want human ojects in your Bryce scenes, Poser is a must. I also have aquired Amapi as a modeller just to be able to create some unique shapes that I could otherwise not make, or would take forever to make, with Boolean operations. But, Like Rochr said, Depending on your needs, Bryce may be all you need.

Bryce is a stand alone landscape app, the only place Bryce falls a little short in landscapes is plants. It has a tree lab ( Bryce 5 ) but you have to be a little creative to make flowering plants and grass. ( most use models found on the web or created in other apps for this ) Bryce is one of the slowest at rendering, but it is probably the strongest rendering app in it's price range. It's rendering quality is superb, and it's ability is outstanding. Also Bryce as a stand alone, can be pushed to do more then just landscapes or spacescapes. Although Bryce has some modeling abilities, it is not a modeling app, so most who uses Bryce, also have a modeling app for making complex models, and a character app for people and animals. Although characters can be modeled in a decent modeling app, it's very difficult so most rely on Poser for this.

I would say that although Bryce is short on plants, you can make some good trees with B5 and you can download enough to get by... post-processing software such as Paint Shop Pro or Photoshop ( if you want to spend the money ) is good for extra effects - you can see these best in the mixed medium gallery I think ;) And models, well, you can download so many that unless you are really very fussy you will find what you are looking for...... And since this is my new passion, Terragen is FREE ! You do not need a registered version to get great landscapes and with a bit of work you can add objects/planets/effects with post processing.....

Yep, most people here use bryce in combination with poser and photoshop. Poser for animals and people, photoshop for texturing and post-work. Verry quik you will see that at least photoshop is really needed and poser is perfect for bryce too. Terragen is great but it lacks the possibility of 3d models since it uses a hightmap. It is great to get started in this renderworld. Hope I've been of some help

Bryce is excellent for interior scenes, and many interesting rooms can be made out of primitives and simple Booleans. For more elaborate objects, besides what you can download (tons) it's useful to have a proper 3d modeller. Anim8or and 3D Canvas are both free and good. Rhino is a good choice for a commercial program.

Thanks, everyone, for your willingness to help out. Just ordered Bryce. Seems like a great deal. Learn to do landscape modeling and get a great rendering engine for Rhino!

I use Bryce for landscapes and architectural rendering. I also use Rhino and Carrara for my 3D needs, with these apps together, I can do just about anything I want. Bryce is definately a great program, it has it's drawbacks, but for the money it's an incredible piece of software. It can do many amazing things, and at the same time there many things it can't even attempt. For anyone needing a decent mainstream modeller to go with Bryce, Amapi 4.15 is a free download, and it's definately worth picking up if you need a modeller and can't spend any money.

Rhino and Carrara: I assume each has its strengths or you wouldn't own both. In what areas is Rhino weak and you use Carrara?

zarth, For me, this is how it breaks down... Rhino is, hands down the absolute BEST precision NURBS Modeller on the planet.. At least in it's price range. It runs around $800, but there are programs that cost thousands that can't touch it. Seriuously for a real modeller Rhino is the way to go. It's expensive but it will do anything you need as far as modelling goes. Ford uses to design the interiors of cars, it's used by major companies to design intense things. For me Carrara is the poor mans 3DStudio Max. Its is very well put together program, that is useful for modelling, animation, texturing, rendering, special effects, rotoscoping, and about a zillion other things. I love the render engine in Carrara, it does a really great job, and is very fast compared to Bryce's. *As far as weaknesses in both programs> Rhino is pretty much strictly a modeller, it has plugins for modelling such as Flamingo and RMRT Rhinoman. But all of beauty is in it's modelling. And it imports and exports just about 3D & non 3D file format you could ever need. For Carrara, it does all of the things I listed, and then some. It does lack NURBS modelling, but it has an incredible Spline model tool, and Vertex Tool. The rendering and scene building is incredible, and there are numerous plugins out there for Carrara that really extend it's capabilities. It also has all the neccecary import & export file support you will need. * As for Bryce, it is what is. I pretty much use it just for landscape scenes and architecture scenes and design. It can a lot of really cool things, it will always be explored by many and pushed beyond it's limits. I start my 3D career with Bryce when it forst came out, and I loved it. I still do. It's all up your creativity and ingenuity with Bryce. Take a look at my gallery to see some of the stuff I do with all 3 of these programs. Just have fun and learn as much as you can about every piece of software you use.