Which package? Give me wisdom, oh ye sage graphics gurus...

Hi mtucker57,
I think that the best choice is to start from a free software.

Fankly, I started with Lightwave (that it is not more expensive than Maya or Cinema 4D).
I have used also Cinema 4D for some (little) time, but I didn't find me well (due to the UI and the general logic). However, Cinema 4D is perfect for the animation.

I advice to start with Blender because it is very powerfull as modelling and rendering instrument.
You will meet the UI but this effort will be paid.

Advantage:
- it is free!;
- very good instrument for modeling;
- good software for animation;
- powerfull rendering engine. You can integrate also rendering engines realized from third parts;
- large community and a lot of tutorials are available;
- very good system for creating and managing the UV maps;

Disadvantage:
- tough User Interface;
- as a open source software, you may find some bugs from one version to the other;

I hope that my opinion will help you in your choice :)

Carrara 3d
Pros: Does everything in one package, relatively easy to learn, Works with Daz Studio models, Cheap or free (often on 3d magazines).
Cons: Unreliable import of models, dated and no longer actively developed.

If you just wanted to make something and render the result quickly and easily you should look at Moi3d and Simlab Composer. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8Trvv7wMcY

I have spent hours in the past trying to do 3d stuff with the wrong tools. I have not used Blender because of the learning curb but if I had the time and no money it would be my first choice.

Having had a look at a couple of your animations I also suggest you take a look at Filter Forge.

Almost all Poser and Daz3d materials are compatible with both. You just need to load your library. You can PM me if you need more explanation.

Which package is the best ?
I think nobody has the right answer to that.
My experience: When I started 3d (I'm self-taught) I tried multiple packages, blender, 3ds max, cinema4d and more, and all those left me with one single thought "WHAT THE F*** ?!?!" I really thought that you need to be suuuuuper smart to understand all of that, until I tried Maya.
I don't want to make it X vs Y war, 3ds max is the number 1 package used, so there must be a reason, but the "all over the place" interface, same as many other packages (Blender, I'm looking at you lol) it just didn't do it for me.
What I like about Maya is the very organized interface, I feel that is very user friendly. For example, I found that when you need like 5 steps to do something in another software, you only need 2 steps in Maya.
Now I'm certainly biased, because it worked for me, and other people may find Maya interface awful (How dare you!! :D)

So you just need to try for yourself multiple packages and see what works for you.

I'm entirely self taught as well, I started using C4d because I had access to somebody's license. And let me tell you, switching from Cinema to Blender was like learning Japanese when English was your first language. And your teacher was mute. But after learning all of the shortcuts and hot keys, I fell in love with it. It's actually so nice to just tap E to extrude or S to scale, G to grab, etc., instead of scrolling through tabs and windows. Your workflow becomes so much more fluid, I burn through my modeling projects so much more quickly now. Learning Blender was a bitch, but you'll love it in the end. Stick with, watch hours of tutorials, and soon you'll be created masterpieces.

P.s. Download Sculptris. It's the simplified, open source version of ZBrush, and great for beginner modelers. Sculpting is such an important tool to utilize.