Morphing from text to shape

Question

I am trying to morph text into shape. Is there a convenient way to do this in Blender? For example, how would I morph the text "CH3" into a sphere? Please help if you know how to do this. Thank you!

Answer 1

Can use shrinkwrap modifier and some transparency animation to do that:

We can keep the text as it is: just give it a little extrusion (text property panel), and convert it to mesh (menu "object/convert to") as we'll need a vertex group.

Then add a support sphere that is around the text. This sphere will not be rendered and is just here to be projected on.

Add a vertex group to the text and add it this modifiers:

• Vertex weight proximity onto the geometry of the support sphere and using the vertex group. We'll animate "global influence" parameter from 0 to 1, so that the text vertex group progressively go to 1.
• Subdivsion surface which helps to get rid of artifacts
• Shrinkwrap to the support sphere, using the same vertex group and with the parameter shown above

The text shader is directly a color to get rid of normal issues (see blend file).

Now use a second sphere, which will be visible at the end, as its alpha/transparency is animated.

This sphere is itself projected on the text using another shrinkwrap modifier, with the following parameters:

This sphere is fully shaded (see blend file) and adds the color transition.

Answer 2

Here are a basic solution and a bit more complete one, using both the Cast modifier:

• Create your text, once converted in mesh, press X > Limited Dissolve to simplify it and use a grid and the Knife Project tool to subdivide it:

• Put its origin at its geometry, create an empty somewhere behind, give it a Cast modifier with the empty as Object, play with the factor:

• Create a sphere that has the same radius as the spherical text. Keyframe the Cast factor and the material of the text and of the sphere in order to make them disappear and appear. If you use Eevee, you need to choose Alpha Mode > Alpha Blend in the Settings of the material:

You can improve if you use shapekeys:

• Create your letters, create 2 shapekeys for the object, keep the second selected, select your letters and extrude them, select the rims:

• Press AltS to inflate:

• Delete the extrusion to have a flat topology:

• This time you will animate both the shapekeys (from the shapekey 1 to 2), the Cast modifier and the material to get the animation, keep the sphere as in the first method to make the transition to a complete sphere.