i've been using photoshop since version 3.0 -- i was a freshman or sophomore in high school then , so 1994ish i guess. i've been using 3d studio max since it's DOS days, beginning with 3d studio r3.

in either case, it's just a matter of choosing a project to work on and just doing it all the time ......... and yes there's lots of great books on the programs in question.

for 3d studio, i found the INSIDE 3DS MAX by New Riders Publishing to be really good books.

for photoshop .......... no particular books stick out in my head.

3d studio max has a very peculiar learning curve, at least in my case: at first it's really really hard, especially if you've never done 3D modeling in the past. but once you learn how to do it -- in my case, over several years of messing around with it -- you reailze that it gets easier and easier at a faster and faster rate, notwithstanding the horribly designed interface.

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MARC/CROSVS | UCLA Bruin, B.A. Econ, Aug 2004 | J.D., Thomas Jefferson School of Law, May 2008 -- MEMBER: California State Bar, December 4, 2008

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