Attached Link: Carrara render, several items made in Carrara

Carrara is a very good value for a general use 3D software. If you want to do a little bit of everything without spending a fortune, Carara is the way to go. Some people don't like the interface/workflow, and some people love it. 

For modeling it has a very powerfull spline modeler , and a good vertex modeler (getting better all the time). Bolean modeling is much improved in C5, the metaball modeler is probably the least favorite of most Carrara users. In general, you can model just about anything you want to in Carrara, but not as quickly and easily as a dedicated modeling program (i.e. hexagon, silo, modo, etc.),  Except for Cinema 4D, Carrara has a much better learning curve than the more expensive 3D applications too (which all do very well at modeling, once you get over the learning curve).

The render engine in Carrara is awsome. I use it as my main renderer because it is very easy to get the lighting set up to make a very nice image. If you get the pro version you even get a license to run 5 render nodes (a mini render farm) which can really improve performance. For me, getting good results in Carrara is much easier than with Poser, or C4D.

I switched from C4D to Carrara when the upgrade price to go from V6 to V8 was too steep. I use Hexagon (V1) and Carrara 5Pro as my primary modelers, but still use C4D (V6) for a few things that it does better. If your just starting out in 3D, or use Poser, Carrara is a great way to expand your tool set.

As for worrying about it being a dead end product now that DAZ has it, I wouldn't be overly concerned.  DAZ seems to have made a commitment to producing 3D software, and they have the Carrara development team from Eovia on staff. I would expect some very good things in Carraras future. But even if DAZ doesn't improve Carrara, the current product is well worth the purchase price, and should be usable for many years. I'm quite happy with it.

You should download the demo and take it for a test drive.

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