Here are some of the best resources I’ve found for learning 3D art and specifically Blender. Some links are affiliate links which provide me with a small commission if you buy from them.
3D Assets
These sites sell assets, but they also give away free stuff. Add it all up and you can build a decent library from their freebies without paying a dime.
| Poliigon | A texture site created by the Blender Guru himself… Creating an account gives you access to a bunch of free textures. (Affiliate Commission Link) |
| Poly Haven | Entirely free library of CC-0 HDRIs, models and textures. They have a Blender Add-On too. |
| Blender Market | The go-to place for affordable Blender assets. (affiliate commissions paid from some sellers) |
| CG Trader | Another good place to buy and sell 3D models (referral link). |
| Turbosquid | Ya there’s some expensive stuff on Turbosquid, but set the filter to “free” and you’ll find some good stuff. |
| Megascans | Megascans offers a subscription asset service but they also give away great fee assets. |
| Textures.com | Tons of free/cheap textures, reference photos and all sorts of things you can use. |
| CG Axis | “The Netflix of 3D” – A lot of assets for a low monthly subscription. |
Online Tutorials
| Blender Guru | Great free tutorials for beginners and intermediate users alike. Your first tutorial should be the “Donut” series. |
| Ryan King | A wide variety of easy-to-follow Blender tutorials. Ryan is a great guy too! |
| CBaileyFilm | One of the best explainers of complicated Blender features I’ve found. |
| Flipped Normals | One of the better places to provide both paid and free tutorials and tons of quality assets for your project. They offer a lot more than just Blender stuff, so filter it for “Blender.” (Affiliate commission link) |
| CG Cookie | CG Cookie offers access to a large library of tutorials for a monthly subscription. |
| Ducky 3D | Nathan Duck provides a lot of cool stuff for abstract designs. A lot of good, quick tips. |
| Ian Hubert | An experienced artist in CG, Ian’s Patreon page is one of my favorite places to get tutorials and free stuff made by a guy who knows what he’s doing. He’s entertaining too. |
| Grant Abbitt | Grant does some quality tutorials. They are clear and concise. His beginner course is free and more advanced courses are paid. |
| Blender Institute | You can get some basic tutorials directly from the creators of Blender at the Blender Institute. |
| Default Cube | This guy knows his stuff when it comes to materials/textures and Blender |
| Daniel Krafft | Great stuff when it comes to Blender tips. Also, watch the video where he met Mr. Beast! |
Sound Assets
| YouTube Audio Library | If you need sounds or sound effects for you project, YouTube offers a ton of copyright-free music and sound effects. |
Other Resources
| Topaz Studio | Amazing filters and effects for any image (Beeple uses this!) |
| Photobash | Buy packs of high-quality photo assets to use in photobashing, as reference or as .PNG assets in your scenes. |
Envato Elements
Envato Elements has become my one-stop shop for video templates, stock images and video, photoshop plug-ins, sound effects, music and a LOT more in a single, very affordable subscription.
Get Brandon’s Newsletter
By submitting, you agree to receive periodic e-mails from me. You can unsubscribe at any time.