Something I am having difficulty understanding is, I notice a big quality difference between models in blender, zbrush, and maya, for example. I am wondering, if I create a model in blender, can I then import it over to maya and get it to look just as good as any other maya-made model? Or any other combination of programs? I'm wondering if there is a simpler program for quickly generating basic models, that can then be transported over to one of the higher end programs to be refined. Would this ever make any sense or is it easier just to do it all in the same program in the first place?

Part b of why I'm asking this is that I'm afraid of investing a lot of time in one of the cheaper programs then wanting to move up later on and losing all that invested time. So I'm trying to understand, basically, can you "upgrade" the quality of work done in another program by importing it into a better one, and how difficult that is to accomplish I guess.

Because, it is enticing to get started in one of the simpler programs, the higher end ones are intimidating. But if I one day want to be able to start producing better results, I don't want to have to be starting all over again.