3D Studio can be a tough nut to crack but once you learn the software you can create images that are not possible with Poser alone. While 3D Studio 3.0 ships with a lot of docs the tutorials are not very novice friendly. Go to to the local bookstore or Amazon and pick up a copy of "Inside 3D Studio Max." I3DSM has more basics that got skipped in the Max 3 tutorials. The only catch is that many of the "Inside..." books have some sloppy editing and the tutorials sometimes don't work properly... I guess that's why it's called a learning experience. JohnH