Blender

Overview of Blender (Free and open source 3D creation suite)

Blender 3D is a free alternative to professional applications such as Maya and 3D Studio Max. This software is also portable which means that you can carry it on your memory stick and do your job on any PC using Windows. Blender is the open source software for 3D modelling, animation, rendering, post-production, interactive creation and playback pack and more...

Advanced users employ Blender’s API for Python scripting to customize the application and write specialized tools. Blender is cross-platform and runs equally well on Linux, Windows, and Macintosh computers. Its interface uses OpenGL to provide a consistent experience. To confirm specific compatibility, the list of supported platforms indicates those regularly tested by the development team.

Features of Blender:

Animation:

• Armature (skeleton) deformation with forward/inverse kinematics, auto skinning and interactive 3D paint for vertex weighting
• Non-linear animation mixer with automated walkcycles along paths
• Constraint system
• Vertex key framing for morphing, with controlling sliders
• Character animation pose editor
• Animatable lattice deformation
• 'Ipo' system integrates both motion curve and traditional key-frame editing
• Audio playback, mixing and editing support for sound synchronisation
• Python scripting access for custom and procedural animation effects

Realtime 3D/game creation:

• Graphical editor for defining interactive behavior without programming
• Collision detection and dynamics simulation
• Python scripting API for sophisticated control and AI, fully defined advanced game logic
• Supports all OpenGL lighting modes, including transparencies, Animated and reflection-mapped textures
• Playback of games and interactive 3D content without compiling or preprocessing
• Audio, using the fmod toolkit
• Multi-layering of Scenes for overlay interfaces

Rendering:

• Very fast inbuilt raytracer
• Integral support for the famous Yafray render engine
• Oversampling, motion blur, post-production effects, fields, non-square pixels
• Environment maps, halos, lens flares, fog
• Various surface shaders such as Lambert, Phong, Oren-nayar, Blinn, Toon
• Edge rendering for toon shading
• Procedural Textures
• Ambient Occlusion
• Radiosity solver
• Export scripts available for external renderers such as Renderman (RIB), Povray, Virtualight
• UV texture editor with various mesh unwrap modes.

System Requirements:

• Supported OS: Windows 7/8/10 and more
• Free Hard Disk Space: 500 MB or more.