How Long Does It Take to Learn Blender?

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Learning 3D is universally experienced as challenging. Over the years, some form of the question “How long does it take to learn Blender?” has come up again and again, often from students suddenly realizing the size of the challenge and frustrated that their pace of progress is not as fast as they would like.
Read or listen to this episode on our website: b3d.cgcookie.com/uWo2Y9
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00:00 - Intro
1:26 - Why Blender is difficult to learn
5:28 - The challenge makes it rewarding
8:54 - Our early experiences
11:09 - When Kent almost gave up on 3D
13:21 - How long it took us to learn Blender
17:22 - How to speed up the process
20:38 - Different types of learning
23:41 - Actionable advice
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КОМЕНТАРІ: 82

@cg_cookie 7 місяців тому

How long has it taken you to learn Blender so far? 📖Read the summery or 🎧listen to the full audio episode on CG Cookie: b3d.cgcookie.com/uWo2Y9

@a3person 7 місяців тому

Somewhere between 2000 hours and 2500 hours

@jujuboohoo 7 місяців тому

2 mins the first time then quit. 2 mins of staring into infinity after unzipping and opening 2.79b.

@jonva13 7 місяців тому

I've been working with it off and on for 2-3 years, and I finally feel like I have a decent grasp of the basics. But there is so much that Blender does ...

@yusufbobat1 7 місяців тому

Hello will I be able to learn how to make 3d billboard ads with your course?

@gert-ib4dy 4 місяці тому

10000 hours of boring Kenty tuts😂

@bubbles581 7 місяців тому

Blender takes a lifetime to learn, so the later you start the shorter time it will take.

@Tertion 7 місяців тому

Nice one lol

@greebly6011 7 місяців тому

Emacs user

@DeltaNovum 7 місяців тому

So my internalised fear of failure and procrastination of finally picking up the software and getting jiggy with it, is actually a good thing :D!

@bubbles581 7 місяців тому

@@DeltaNovum absolutely! Now get busy learning! 🥰😝

@nicolaska1761 6 місяців тому

@@greebly6011Couldn't have said it better

@valleybrook 7 місяців тому

The best thing with Blender is that there is so much material on the internet to find the answers on your questions. You run into problems all the time but it's so enjoyful to find the solution to the problem. And I really think that the masters in 3D and Blender are the ones who likes the process and have the perseverance to find the solution of the problems popping up all the time

@powersprouter 7 місяців тому

Oo[

@breneworld 7 місяців тому

I just found out about Blender earlier this year and I get overwhelmed with the interface but this video gives me hope that I will learn my own way at my own pace.😊

@RandomCreationsOG 5 місяців тому

having 25 years using other 3D softwares I've actually found Blender really easy to pick up and is now my favorite.

@wodan74 7 місяців тому

I come from Cinema4D (very high skilled) and Zbrush, but Blender only clicked with me when they revamped the UI (around v2.8 I think). The old version was so confusing, selecting objects etc. Now I find it difficult to go back (especially navigation) to Cinema4D 🙂, and rather use Blender to create. I only use Cinema4D for the Arnold render nowadays.

@wodan74 7 місяців тому

@@cagalagosi Cycles is usually ok for me. I also use Radeon Render Pro and even LuxCore with Blender. Depends on the job. My 3D renders are most of the time used as a start point for Photoshop editing.

@GaryParris 7 місяців тому

i similarly came from other software and lastly Cinema 4D and it was even more enjoyable using Blender than C4D, won't use anything else except FreeCAD for 3D, blender is 99.99% used

@digitalbase9396 5 місяців тому

I finally learnt the basics of blender this year, its my favourite software now. I had difficulty in setting up textures and UV maps as a beginner but now it’s easy and powerful. I use photoshop and after effects a lot less now as I do the majority within blender. Other benefits are the ability to import sketch up files directly. I also use exports from solid works as step files via conversion in Moi 3D which creates excellent ngon mesh in obj format. Online tutorials are good. Animation is excellent.

@dashamoony 7 місяців тому

About paid vs free resourses: paid is always better (if you know for sure that quality of teaching will be same or better than with free content), because once you're paying for it, you WILL BE watching and learning 😄 Where with the free resourses you'll be "ah, I'll watch it next week, and next week" and then you never watch anything

@byAndreasEkberg 7 місяців тому

Blender is my Brain Kitchen :) Endless possibilities to make a mess 😊

@JoseORosario 7 місяців тому

I have always used Autodesk products, autocad, 3dsMax, Advance Steel, etc. naturally I went for Maya. learned it since it felt like "home". For a while friends used to tell me learn blender, and I "tried", between quotes because the will was not there and curiosity was very low, so I lacked motivation to learn it. At some point in my career, I got tired of the AutoCrash, specially in maya. That was the motivation I needed, took me around 2 months of casual "blendering" to get used to it, probably 1 hour daily sometimes less. At month 3 I was already re creating my mobile game characters, editing meshes, using armatures, etc. Blender is great

@benlu 7 місяців тому

I think to the more philosophical point, I think of the question as when would I get good enough that a company would pay me to work for them

@visuals_live 7 місяців тому

Honestly, this is the REAL question. I’m with you man. Because when people ask they’re asking in a monetary sense, most times.

@giannis7707 7 місяців тому

Blender is such a great software, im blown away with all the stuff u can make with it, i started it as a hobby because i wanted to bring out my creativity and 3 months in i am able to do so many things, it is amazing,

@paulsaulpaul 5 місяців тому

Someone popular in the Blender community that I don't recall the name of (he does environments and is very high energy on stage) said Blender is an art medium in itself. I agree. Hence the unlimited possibilities and endless new techniques. Same as different ways to paint with different types of paint, different ways to sculpt with different materials, different ways to make music with different types of instruments and synths.

@noriega211 5 місяців тому

Thanks a lot for sharing.❤❤❤ I learnt blender primarily from watching videos, but even after 3 three years I still consider myself a beginner.

@GaryParris 7 місяців тому

A lot of good points in this. There are so many variables. any complex software is going to require trial and error, troubleshooting, difficulty, setting expectations accordingly, and fun with frustration, key is to persevere without expectation beyond learning and trying things, basics and build upon knowledge. Other skillsets in photography, visual arts, cinema etc can all help with composition, framing, lighting, colour, narrative, realism etc. they can help you think in style, direction, focus and so much more and 3D helps you think in dimensions 2D through 4D, the exciting bit is Blender is a tool to help you bring it to life. Just enjoy!

@herbertwidodo96 7 місяців тому

I have installed Blender on my computer since 2016. I used to think that mastering Blender would be as easy as mastering Adobe Photoshop. Turns out, it's not. I only started learning Blender in 2021. It takes a certain level of courage to step into the world of Blender applications, which require a technical understanding of the physics laws governing objects in the real world.

@basspig 7 місяців тому

It took me 2 years just to learn how to delete the default cube. In all seriousness it's been one of the hardest programs to learn but I think it's partly because I'm so old now that dementia has cut my ability to learn new things. Whereas 25 years ago I was able to learn Maya relatively easily.

@SpencerMagnusson 7 місяців тому

I thought from the thumbnail that Kent colored his hair 😆 good episode!

@khtrammell 7 місяців тому

that's awesome 😆Maybe I should though...

@LawrenceAaronLuther 7 місяців тому

If one is project-focused, and better yet their projects are also focused in a consistent direction, then Blender isn't so daunting. I think the main issue beginners have (and I certainly went through this for years) is not having a handle on being creatively focused, so you get pulled in many directions by your own curiosity and find learning whatever software you're using almost neverending. It's a bit like thinking "I'm going to learn cars." That would be a monumentally difficult task, but if one hones in on repairing car engines, detailing car interiors, or even just driving a car on the street, the task will give the study direction. Which isn't to say following impulsive curiosity doesn't have it's merits. It just helps to delineate between: How a tool can accomplish a task vs How different tasks can be done with a tool

@greyareaRK1 7 місяців тому

I used paid software for a fair while, so it threw me when I encountered discussions of how to get around various problems in Blender that have been more or less solved in paid software for years. It felt like the bad old days, but then I'm still unclear how it all works in Blender. It looks like there are plug-ins that can more than compensate for its drawbacks, particularly in modelling, though it's unclear what the paradign underlying them is. I suppose I just have to suck it up and slog through a few courses. Any suggestions?

@Damian_h 5 місяців тому

I was using it after 2 weeks my weakest point was the interface i thought it was bad but once u get used to it things flow kinda easily. My latest work was mostly on blender a lot of z brush and a bit of max for quick UV's.

@RadarLeon 7 місяців тому

That line at the start of the video I feel is in years

@buuzilla 7 місяців тому

whatever is happening on smash in the background is set to very easy and i cant unsee it, your street cred took damage here.

@khtrammell 7 місяців тому

he also has Roy selected... 🤦‍♂️

@kaninepete 7 місяців тому

Is Johnathan on a green screen? Is his room a render??

@labandazozor 7 місяців тому

thank's from Belgium

@bUildYT 7 місяців тому

very very cool:)

@CGJackB 7 місяців тому

I love listening to this podcast and now I can watch it too!!

@chuctanundaspiderbone5407 7 місяців тому

I came to Blender through Second Life, about the time 2.6 came out, and SL got mesh uploads. But I got so involved in learning Blender, I kind of phased out of SL. How long does it take to learn Blender? Depends on how many rabbit holes you go down. It's a Swiss army knife, after all. I've gotten pretty good at modeling and materials, even making my own textures, and I've tinkered with rigging & animation and some sculpting. I've used it to edit videos for work. Haven't even begun to get into geometry nodes. The possibilities are just endless. I've probably learned more about myself, than I have about Blender. I Think if you want to get professional with it, you have to pick one thing, and set some goals. Then you need to invest in some courses early on that will help you meet those goals. If you try to learn all of Blender, you will likely be learning it for the rest of your life. What could be better?

@JaXuun 7 місяців тому

some words from a user that uses multiple DCCs: blender is shortcut focused, it has wierd twirks that others dont have. thats why its tougher to learn it. but its worth it because of the community, feature set, addons ecosystem and of course the price.

@sherkhan_5050 7 місяців тому

I finally understood the problem. Actually what we are doing wrong when learning. We forgot they are two stages when learning blender, there's bachelor's and master's. Bachelor's meant to be strictly basic but still explores all fields, like 3d modeling/animation 2d animation etc., No advance topics. Then after completing the basics, then move on to master's or advance stuff. What usually happens when learning is we tend to move towards advance first, basics later. Like in Karate kid movie, the kid didn't understand what or why he was doing it until later.

@jostasizzi818 7 місяців тому

Please put these podcast and please include chris jones and much more tech devs into it in future episodes

@kingalysterianlion5542 4 місяці тому

This question LARGLY depends on if you have any experience in any creative medium. Meaning drawing, music, film, cinematography etc. if you have not developed any creative skills whatsoever, it will take you some time because you have not developed a creative habits. But if you have a background in any other creative skillset, you already have the disciplines to learn faster. Read the book “the creative habit” by Twila Tharp.

@Hetav_Rao 7 місяців тому

Epic

@dimitristripakis7364 7 місяців тому

Blender is many things: modelling, procedural textures, image textures, lights, animation, VFX, post processing. All these are very different from each other. In my opinion you need a team of 3-4 to make a good result.

@ddontyy 5 місяців тому

True, I use Blender for hardsurface modelling, but use Substance Painter for the texturing since it's simply superior. But I do the UV Unwrapping and rendering back in Blender. I haven't even touched rigging/animation outside of simple use cases, and a bunch more features I haven't touched/learned and I've been using Blender for 3 years now.

@raoulette 7 місяців тому

"I know that I know nothing." Socrates.

@ancientclown 7 місяців тому

I had come up with an idea and thought an animation might be the best way to share it so looked at Blender as the way to go. My approach was to find tutorials that covered the things i would need to know to complete this specific project and 6 months later (many hours a day) i had completed my first short animation that was under 1 min. when i came into it knowing nothing at all. ukposts.info/have/v-deo/caZ8ZJl9pmug06c.html

@cityonthemoon36 6 місяців тому

18:36 that table is right next to me Jordan peterson: "What do you make of that?"

@graphguy 7 місяців тому

What worth doing is easy?

@MarcoCapelli74 7 місяців тому

Actually it took me more or less tree weeks. 😂 Best time investment ever made.

@better_dead_than_red 7 місяців тому

I love Trammel, great approach But Lampel is not my cup of coffee

@Eren_Yeager_is_the_GOAT 7 місяців тому

probaly somewhere between 1 second and 1,000,000 years

@cekuhnen 7 місяців тому

The term Blender is hard is misleading. It is not the app but the vast capabilities to learn. The new UI still has some workflow issues sometimes being needlessly labor intensive. The same you can find in max maya too. Only in SketchUp you won’t ;)

@arturkhaybullin5111 7 місяців тому

Blender interface is badly organized. Object's properties and global settings are on the same panel. Tools are everywhere. Many parameters are duplicated on different panels. You can't put a gradient into a gradient - big lack for procidural texturing. Messy interface is the main and first problem, though.

@daan3898 7 місяців тому

I recently found a golden tip and it did not revolve around art, the channel was about art. ❣Get good at anything and someone will pay you to do it. ❣ even made it into a short clip for future self-me to remember.

@chrystianyaxche5381 7 місяців тому

Sometimes I think that sooner or later you need to know Python to really know Blender. It is endless and simple things are linked to complex things.

@patrickclawson9622 5 місяців тому

I like to make excuses to myself for why I'm not "learning" enough, fast enough. There are 26 letters on the keyboard, and Blender has variants of them using the Alt, Ctrl, and Fn keys... plus the keypad buttons... plus the other keys. It's daunting to consider how many commands are available in Blender. The question becomes "How long will it take me to learn how to do what I want to in Blender?" and that's totally subjective. I want to supplant my thirty years of AutoCAD experience, and then animate what I design. It's going to take me some time, and I know it... 😀

@lokisinaryblender 2 місяці тому

i do not mind the learning process and time, but the time it takes to render a 5 min. the scene is just way too off.

@mikethom2119 7 місяців тому

Isn't the answer 42

@Tertion 7 місяців тому

I've used Maya, Zbrush and 3dsMax and I really don't know why people thinks Blender is harder to learn than other software...its not.

@samdavepollard 7 місяців тому

agreed; blender is free so it has way more beginners using it; and guess what, beginners have the most questions, so we end up with people thinking that blender specificially is hard; it't not - it's 3d that's hard

@GaryParris 7 місяців тому

Perceptions is paid software is better, easier and shorter to learn, more developed, better supported, more professional, worth the investment, less buggy, more bleeding edge, overall solid and community is better. oh how misguided and misinformed people can be!

@trebmaster 7 місяців тому

The question HAS to be broken down to which areas you are talking about. It's not a one-trick pony!

@aaron-dx7gz 2 дні тому

I used blender for 24 years. It took me 7 years to learn. There wasn't a lot of tutorials 24 years ago. It should take two years to learn blender now.