Happened to go on the DAZ website today to look something up about Bryce Pro and discovered they are giving away over $800 worth of 3d software for a limited time. I did a bit of research and it would seem this offer is going to end in 10 days on 29th February 2012 [edit: looks like I was wrong about this date!].
The Software:
DAZ studio pro -I probably won't use this program personally as I've recently been teaching myself Poser, but it looks just as good.a feature rich 3D figure customization, posing, and animation tool that enables anyone to create stunning digital illustrations and 3D animations.
Bryce 7 Pro -I've been using this program for a couple of years and love it, it's great for making desktop wallpapers and I have used it for backgrounds on signatures.is an award winning, fun, feature-packed 3D modeling and animation package designed to allow new users to quickly create and render stunning 3D environments
Hexagon 2.5 -Creating 3d models is beyond my capabilities so I can't give any feedback, but I don't think it's anywhere near as good as 3DS max or Maya but it may be useful for learning and you may be able to export the models to 3ds max.delivers all the tools a graphic artist needs to create detailed 3D models ready for final render
Just to be clear these are the actual pro edition's they are giving away and not just the learning editions.
TIP: You can get 3d models for free by searching sites like Renderosity and the DAZ site (I'm sure I've seen both Michael and Victoria free in the past)
Overall as a package it looks like a good set of tools for someone wanting to learn 3d art.
The Link: http://www.daz3d.com/i/3d/free-3d-so...me_5_btn=start