Blender – 3D Modeling, Rendering, Animation, Video
Blender is the free open source 3D content creation suite, available for all major operating systems under the GNU General Public License. Its interface is tough to learn at first. But, after some hours with video tutorial instruction or books it becomes a very valuable asset to your personal production pipeline.

Daz Studio – 3D Figure Poser
Daz Studio is a very powerful 3D figure poser, and the best part about it is that it’s free. You can pose, light, and animate your figures in 3D space. Then, you can render detailed images or video right on your desktop computer. Daz also offers a variety of downloadable 3D models and other content in their store.

Bryce 5.5 – Free 3D Landscape Design
Bryce is a powerful piece of software that is capable of generating natural looking landscapes in 3d formats. Daz offers version 5.5 for download at Download.com. Upgrades to the latest version are usually inexpensive. Visit the Mac download page, or visit the Windows download page.