Using the Morph Transition with Curve Shapes in PowerPoint

We already looked at getting started with the Morph transition in PowerPoint. In this next tutorial of the Morph transition series, we will look at using the Curve line tool to create some drawings. These drawings can be duplicated on subsequent slides, and edited slightly in each slide. The results can differ depending upon what you draw. While it will be great if you have artistic skills to draw within PowerPoint, it doesn't matter if you cannot draw.

Please view the video below, or follow the step-by-step instructions on this page. You can also download the sample file used for this tutorial.

Follow these steps for a quick walkthrough of using the Curve line tool with the Morph transition effect:

1. Open an existing presentation, and add a new slide. Alternatively, create a new presentation and work with a clean slide that has no content. In either case, change the slide layout to Blank, as shown in Figure 1, below.
2. 
   Figure 1: Start with a blank slide
2. Now, access the Insert tab of the Ribbon, and click the Shapes button to bring up the Shapes gallery, as shown in Figure 2, below. Select the Curve line tool, as shown highlighted in red within Figure 2.
3. 
   Figure 2: Shapes gallery
3. Click on the slide, let off the mouse button but continue moving your mouse (don't click any mouse button while moving) in a 135 degree direction, towards the south-east, and click once, and then continue westwards (left). You'll end up with a shape, as shown in Figure 3, below.
4. 
   Figure 3: Move cursor to the south-east, click, and move westwards
4. Without leaving your mouse cursor, move westwards in a horizontal line for the same distance as previously moved, and click again, and then continue to the north-east, so as to end up with a shape, as shown in Figure 4, below.
5. 
   Figure 4: Move cursor to the west, click, and move north-east
5. Now, move the cursor to the position from where you started drawing this shape until you see a live preview of a filled shape, as shown in Figure 5, below. Click to create a closed shape.
6. 
   Figure 5: Move cursor to close the shape
6. You will end up with a closed shape, as shown in Figure 6, below.
7. 
   Figure 6: A closed shape drawn with the Curve line tool
7. Next, select the slide within the Slides Pane, and press Ctrl + D. Alternatively, right-click the slide within Slides Pane, and choose the Duplicate Slides option from the resultant contextual menu, as shown highlighted in red within Figure 7, below. Doing so will create a duplicated slide.
8. 
   Figure 7: Duplicate slide


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8. Now, select the shape on the duplicated slide and right-click. In the resultant contextual menu, choose the Edit Points options, as shown highlighted in red within Figure 8, below.
9. 
   Figure 8: Edit Points
9. Doing so reveals the points (or vertexes) for the selected shape, as shown in Figure 9, below. Now, there are two elements you can edit here. You can either select the points, and drag them as needed. You can also click on any of the segments, which are the lines between two points, and drag them inwards or outwards as needed.
10. 
    Figure 9: Edit Points mode

Edit Points

Did you know that PowerPoint has illustration capabilities built-in? This article won't get into too many details, but if you are interested, look at these pages in our Presentation Glossary:

Edit Points for Shapes
Add or Delete Points (Vertexes) for Shapes
10. We clicked on one of the segments, as shown in Figure 10, below, and successfully dragged this segment outwards.
11. 
    Figure 10: Drag a segment outwards
11. Now access Slide Sorter view, and select both slides. Next, access the Transitions tab of the Ribbon, and select the Morph transition effect in the Transitions gallery, as shown highlighted in red within Figure 11, below.
12. 
    Figure 11: Choose the Morph transition effect
12. Save your presentation, and test the Morph transition effect by playing the slides in Slide Show view.
13. Of course, this is just the beginning. You can use the Curve line and Edit Points tools to create and edit any shape you want. In fact, you can create multiple shapes on each slide, duplicate the slide, and make edits to the shapes as needed—and then tween them all to look like they are animated using the Morph transition effect.