Online Blender Tutorials for Beginners
There are many tutorials on the Internet and even books you can and will want to
use to expand your knowledge of Blender. The Blender Foundation is an
independent non-profit corporation dedicated to maintaining and developing
Blender. Blender’s new User's manual can be found under the Support tab. This is
an indispensable reference source that you will eventually want to become
familiar with.
In addition to text and video tutorials on the Blender Foundation website, a
search of the Internet will reveal an array of independent websites providing
forums, blogs, news and tutorial dedicated to Blender. A search of YouTube or
Vimeo will also reveal a plethora of video tutorials. But very few of these are
dedicated to using Blender to make Trainz assets. In some of theses tutorials
Blender will look different. That is because they were made before Blender
underwent a major change in its interface with version 2.50.
The following is a list of online courses, video tutorials and books that the
beginner may find helpful. This is not an exhaustive list but rather ones (except
where noted) that I have used and have some familiarity with.
Online Courses
by James Chronister (2011)
By Neil Hirsig (2013)
Video Tutorials
by CG Cookie
by vscorpianc (2013)
Books
by Jason Van Gumster (2011)
(not personally acquainted with)
An Introduction to Blender 3D – A Book for Beginners
By John M Blain (2011)
(Freely downloadable .pdf)
The Complete Guide to Blender Graphics 2nd Edition
by John M. Blain (2015)
(Not personally acquainted with but appears to be an update or
extension of the freely available An Introduction to
Blender 3D – A Book for Beginners)
Blender Foundations The Essential Guide to Learning Blender 2.6
by Roland Hess (2010)
(not personally acquainted with)
Learning Blender: A Hands-On Guide to Creating 3D
Animated Characters 1st Edition
By Olliver Villar (2014)
By Gordon C. Fisher (2012)
(not personally acquainted with)
I started with James Chronister’s Blender Basics, Classroom Tutorial Book because
it has a tutorial that builds as you go from chapter to chapter. Hands-on, I think,
is the best way of learning and having one project to work on keeps you focused.
Proceeding as far as the end of chapter 4 will give what you the basics of what
need to use Blender to make Trainz assets.
When I got a little ways into reading about Blender I found John Blain’s An
Introduction to Blender 3D, A Book for Beginners a clear introduction to follow.
Next, I focused on some of the features of Blender’s interface using Neal Hirsig’s
Blender Websites for Trainz
There are few sources of Blender tutorials specifically aimed a using Blender to
make Trainz assets.
Trainz/Tutorials for Blender WikiBook
This is an indispensable source of information for creating different
types of Trainz assets.
This site provides the Blender exporter file and Trainz importer file
and instruction on how to install them
Paul Hobbs has recently ungraded his tutorials on using Blender to
make locomotive for Trainz to Blender version 2.49b with the
new interface.
N3V Games Content Creation website
This is a valuable website for “How to” information on a number
of topic specific to Trainz.
Material types specific for Trainz are described along with the
mandatory identifying suffixes.