Free 3D Modeling and Animation With Blender

While I always find it heartening to see open source developers undermine the predatory lock-in business strategies of commercial software companies, more than a few open source applications are lacking in features and stability.


Well it's safe to say that Blender is an exception. Blender is the free open source 3D content creation suite, available for all major operating systems. It is a complete suite of 3D modeling, rendering and animation applications which all function within a well-designed user interface. But wait - that's not all. Blender.org also offers free videos and online tutorials to walk you through the entire suite of programs.

Here's a very short 3D animation I created after a couple of hours of noodling. The model or "mesh" was downloaded from Star Trek: Blender.

Click To Play

3D modeling and animation has a steep learning curve. With Blender, you have the opportunity to develop those skills without having to drop hundreds or even thousands of dollars on a comparable 3D application suite.