Morpher

With this tutorial we worked with the Morpher tool. It was surprisingly easy to pick up.

We were provided with a face model which we then copied three times. To each of the three different faces a different effect was applied.

To do this we used the polygon selection, however, on the open mouth modification we coupled this with the Grow tool. We selected four of the polygons around the mouth, two on the bottom lip and two more within the mouth and then grew them around the mouth so the selected polygons coved the entirety of the bottom jaw. Then, using the move tool, we moved the jaw down, opening it.

A similar procedure was used to open the close the eyes and raise the eyebrows on the other two models. We were then left with three different, odd looking, faces.

Going back to the original face, the modifier tab was selected and the Morpher tool chosen. We were then presented with a list of blank channels. By right clicking on these channels we could then choose to add a morph from the scene. By repeating this process three times, one for each of the different morphs, the original face could now open its mouth, close its eyes and raise its eyebrows.

The final model was then TurboSmoothed and animated in the standard fashion. The only issue with the animation is that, on the timeline, all the channels are represented as a single line, each indistinguishable from the others. If we wanted to work with just one of the channels we could go into the curve editor and then choose just one to work on.

The morpher is very easy to use as long as proper labelling is used for each of the different morphs, just so they are easier to keep track of.

Pixar! Here we come!