I've been working as a 2D artist for some time now, and whilst I've flirted with 3D, I figure it's way past time that I jumped in mouse blazing!
I'm learning Maya (the package my company uses) and to be honest, I've found the documentation supplied with Maya a little daunting and the list of tutorials in the 3D thread here a little too broad for someone who doesn't know where to start... and wants results quick!
I'm essentially looking for the quintessential 'one stop' guide, to learn Maya from scratch (if possible from the perspective of a video games artist). Whether that be a series of online tutorials or one of those 'Maya in 24 hours' type books.
I'm particularly interested in hearing suggestions from anyone who has actually used such a 'source' and found it useful in launching themselves quickly and effectively into the third dimension.
Thanks for the help!
I highly recommend downloading some 3D Buzz video tutorials on Maya. I'm a Max guy and just watching the introductory tutorial video on Maya that came with my copy of Unreal Tournament 2004 (made by 3D Buzz), I was able to get the jist of Maya pretty quickly. The beginner video tutorials will explain to you the interface and some simple concepts to get you going, and they have plenty of intermediate to advance videos as well.
http://www.3dbuzz.com/vbforum/sv_dl_tr.php
You have to register an account before you can download, and I think you'll only be able to download one or two video files to start with.
I think video tutorials are a much easier and faster way to learn 3D than reading books and web tutorials, so give it a go!