Help for a noob

Hi everybody! This is my first time i post something in BA (sorry if this is the wrong place to post this).
As the tittle says im another noob that really needs some guidence, let me explain, i work for a publicity agency as a graphic designer and i always want to get involved in the 3D world especially in animation and motion graphics, like 4 month ago i started learning blender and just love it already. The problem start right here because in my country probably 80% of the agencies that make 3d works use maya, 3d max, cinema 4d with “pirate versions”.
I dont wanna go that way and steal to fit in the market, and to make it worse, friends that i know tell me that is much better to just get a C4D because is more easy with the mograph and all.
I dont believe that, i mean look at this place! every time i look the work of the amaizing artists here, from all types of fields, and every one do it with Blender…i wanna believe in that, but i have so many cuestions:
¿Can i work in the publicity industry with blender and compete with the people that use pirate version of C4D?
¿What is the best learning path to motion graphic and animation in blender?
¿There is something like mograph in Blender that makes animation and MG more intuitive?
I´m sorry, i know that this are classic noob questions but i really need guidences in this.
Any way thank you in advance for reading this and i really appreciate any help. :smile:

In Blender, motion graphics stuff is not grouped into a unique module.
You can animate by using drivers, parenting things to bones of an armature, by using physics effects like cloth, rigid bodies, softbodies, smoke, by using shapekeys and by use of particles.
That means a lot of concepts to assimilate to feel comfortable with animation.

And if you want to make things proceduraly, you have to pass through practice of an addon like animation nodes and learn python scripting.

Your friends are not lying to you. C4D is an easier path. On the other hand, they probably did not learn Blender if they spend their time learning C4D.
There is a project to change UI of particles and use nodes to animate them.
Then, constraints and modifiers will be managed through nodes, too. But that will take years.

Some effects that you have seen, may have been created by using special builds like the one for Fracture modifier or Mantaflow.
And ressources about motion graphics may be less numerous into Blender community.

So, currently, there is no other way in Blender to feel comfortable for Motion Graphics to try to learn as many tools and concepts as you can.
Learn basics of armature use, basics about shapekeys.
Know what modifier does what on what object type.
Learn how instancing works.
Learn what particle type produce what movement.
Know how such force field influence them.
Learn how to make dynamic paint, rigid bodies or cloth simulation.
Then, learn how you can animate things through animation nodes.
And after that, you should have sufficient knowledge to do most of things your friends are doing with C4D.

It’s like zeauro has said, blender technically has all the features you need in order to produce motion graphics, but there is no specialized workflow built into blender for it. I haven’t used c4d, but although you can do the same stuff in blender, it’s bound to take a lot more steps here.

For example take a look at this post I made concerning adding 3D text to video in blender:

I think that is an over complicated process for doing something that should be relatively simple, and it will probably be years before the video editing workflow gets revamped. That said, it’s definitely doable for free in blender, and whatever potential workflow improvements using c4d for that same stuff could bring probably isn’t worth having to pay several thousands of dollars each year as a freelancer.

Thanks for responding! really helpfull, thats the learning path I talking about, I know that in blender will need a few more steps then C4D to do something, but I don´t mind that, as long i know how to get there. Just need a list of tool to learn ( a learning path ), and as Zanzio says if its doable i prefer to learn in Blender than pay several thousans that i dont have, and for what i know is not only buy C4D and go, you have to get the render engine, and many other things…man a can barely buy just the program.
Show me the tools in Blender and I will get there eventually
Thaks for the help! I will look for those tools :+1:

Hey,
here are some resources that you may find interesting :

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCChYCkbgArLsCl5DWlxuKhQ

Try to do as much tutorial as you can even some not related to motion graphics, you don’t need to focus on the end result but try to learn as much as you can.

I’ve worked mostly with blender for more than 15 years now. From what I see, C4D is simpler to understand than blender. That’s why people comming from AE tend to work with it as a side tool to 2D motion graphics.
With blender you’ll have to understand better the basics of 3D, but you may be able to do more stuff in the end.

Thanks for the info! I will look and practice all about it, I believe blender can do a lot and and you’re right, I don´t need to focus just in motion graphics, is more about the design.
There are examples of still lifes and product visualization on behance that it can be done in blender with a good texturing and lighting, and even combine 3d with 2d with grease pencil and stuff.