Blender 3D is a fantastic tool available for everything in your 3D production pipeline. It has grown by leaps and bounds in the past couple of years, with the introduction of the cycles rendering engine taking point as arguably its most exciting development.
Achieving photorealism is one of the most sought after goals of any 3D production studio. It can take any 3D production pipeline and give it a run for its money. Many expensive 3D programs, such as 3DS Max, Maya and others, have been put to the test time and again in this area. For the most part, it is the specific render engines that are used that help the most in attaining photorealism for a 3D render. Engines such as Vray, MentalRay, and LuxRender are engines of choice in this area.
Fortunately for us, Blender can not only take advantage of many third-party render engines, but it comes built in with its own fantastic render engine which gives very believable photorealistic results to 3D rendering. That engine is Cycles. For most of its lifetime, Blender has used its own internal render engine, but with the addition of cycles not long ago, Blender 3D entered a new era in which competing with expensive software such as 3DS Max and Maya became a recognizable possibility.
In spite of all this, the most amazing thing about Blender, to me, is that it is a free, open-source software available for anyone to download, customize, edit, and use in almost any way imaginable. This, coupled with a steady stream of updates, bug-fixes, new additions, fresh content, and a vibrant and active user-base, makes Blender a no brainer when it comes to adding it to a 3D production pipeline, whether you’re an animation studio or a general video production company looking for a great VFX software.