If your titles need a visual boost to grab attention, this article is for you. We’ll show you how to achieve striking results with our text conversion tool, introduced in VSDC 9.3. This tool lets you craft endless variations of text animations—like letter morphing, text reveals, stroke animations, light effects, and more—limited only by your creativity and command of the settings.

Make sure you have the latest version of VSDC Video Editor installed!

Getting Started

To begin, launch VSDC Video Editor and create a new project by selecting the "Blank Project" option on the start page or by choosing "New Project" from the top horizontal menu. A pop-up window will appear, allowing you to set the desired resolution and framerate. You can also rename your project if needed. Once you've configured all the settings, click on "Finish".

Next, add a text object of your preferred size to the scene.

Press the ESC key to remove the blinking text cursor, then right-click on your text either on the scene or on the timeline and navigate to "Convert the text to…". Here you'll find four conversion options:

• Free Shape
• Curve Line
• Tracking Points
• Text Blocks

Once you've selected your desired conversion mode, a settings window specific to that mode will appear. This window offers various options tailored to each conversion type, enabling you to customize your text effects further.

It's essential to finalize your text before setting the values in this window. Once you've completed the conversion, any modifications like resizing or adding new words won’t be reflected, as the conversion is strictly based on the initial text object. To solve this problem, you can undo the conversion by selecting the Undo option above the preview window and reconvert your text.

In the following sections we will explore the specific settings available for each mode, guide you through the configuration process and demonstrate how to create some simple text animations, which you can use for your projects.

Text Reveal with the "Text Blocks" mode

Let’s start with the "Text blocks" option. With this mode you can achieve a similar result as with the Typewriter effect, but much faster. You only need to add a text object to the scene and convert it to text blocks, with each block containing one letter, one word or one sentence. The selected appearance or disappearance effect will be applied simultaneously to all text blocks of the specific text object.

To start text block conversion, right-click on your text object (make sure there is no blinking cursor; press ESC if necessary), navigate to "Convert text to..." and select "Text blocks". After that the settings window appears where you can see different options. Let’s discover what result we can achieve with them.

The first option, "Split by", allows you to specify the elements into which the text object can be divided:

• Characters: Splits the text into letters.
• Words: Splits the text into words.
• Sentences: Splits the text into sentences.

In the lower-left corner of this settings window there's a "Hide text afterwards" checkbox. If checked, your original text layer will be hidden after you click on OK. If you prefer to keep it visible, simply uncheck this option. If you've already closed the settings window and want to adjust this, you can return the visibility of this layer by clicking the "eye" icon on the left side of the timeline.

Selecting "by characters", for example, will transform each character into a separate text object on the timeline, giving you the flexibility to position them and apply effects individually.

A better result can be achieved in combination with other settings. For example, with the "Fade-in" option that configures how your text blocks will appear on the scene. There are several variants:

• Don't use: No fade-in effect is applied.
• All at once: All text blocks appear simultaneously.
• One by one: Text blocks appear sequentially from the first to the last.
• One by one reversed: Text blocks appear sequentially from the last to the first.
• Random order: Text blocks appear in a random sequence.

Let’s choose the “one by one” option and see the effect it creates. We remind you that if you want to make any adjustments in the conversion settings after you’ve completed the process, you’ll need to reconvert it, as the previous conversion is finalized. Just use the Undo option above the preview window.

You see that the text objects are automatically placed on the timeline so that they appear on the scene one by one. Isn't the result similar to the Typewriter effect?

If the fade-in seems to be too fast, you can improve it with the "Fade-in duration" option that sets the time interval during which all text blocks appear. This setting can be activated when "one by one", "one by one reversed" or "random order" Fade-in values are set.

For example, if we set "Fade-in" to "one by one" and "Fade in duration" to 3000 ms (3 seconds), all text blocks should appear within three seconds one by one. The timeline will automatically shift the time of appearance of each text block and you’ll get such result:

If you want the first character not to be on the screen immediately, but to appear a little later, e.g. a second after the beginning of the video, use the option "Fade-in overlap" that allows a simultaneous shift of the beginning of displaying all text blocks on the timeline. This parameter works together with Fade-in duration.

• If we set Fade-in overlap to a value greater than 0, all text blocks shift to the left on the timeline, meaning they start appearing earlier.
• If we set Fade-in overlap to a value less than 0, all text blocks shift to the right on the timeline, meaning they start appearing later.

As we want our text to start a bit later, we need to set this parameter to a value below 0 to delay the start of the text appearance, shifting it to the right. Let’s set it to -1000 ms, so the text appears one second after the video begins.

Fade-out is similar to the Fade-in parameter but controls the disappearance (end of display) of text blocks:

• Don't use: No fade-out effect is applied.
• All at once: All text blocks disappear simultaneously.
• One by one: Text blocks disappear sequentially starting from the first one.
• One by one reversed: Text blocks disappear sequentially in reverse order.
• Random order: Text blocks disappear in a random sequence.

In the video you can see the effect of the "one by one reversed" option in combination with all the previous values for settings. All the letters of your text will disappear quickly.

If you add the value for "Fade-out duration" that is similar to "Fade-in duration", but specifies the time interval during which all text blocks should disappear from the scene, the text disappearance will be smoother.

For example, if “Fade-out” is set to “one by one reversed” and “Fade-out duration”to 2000 ms, all text blocks will disappear within two seconds by the end of the playback. The timeline will automatically shift the time of disappearance of each text block.

Let’s move to the next option in the settings window, Fade-out overlap, that is similar to Fade-in overlap, but it adjusts the simultaneous time shift of disappearance of all text blocks on the timeline. If the value of this parameter is greater than 0, the shift is performed to the right toward the end of the timeline. If the value is less than 0, the shift is performed to the left, toward the beginning of the timeline. This parameter works in combination with Fade-out duration.

The most interesting settings of the settings window are Fade-in and Fade-out effects, that allow to set a specific effect for the appearance and disappearance of text blocks. You can choose any transition from this list making your text look more eye-catching.

For example, let’s choose the “Paint brush: top-left corner” option for Fade-in effect. Now our text doesn't just appear smoothly, it's drawn out!

If we add a transition from “Fade-out effect”, your text is sure to surprise your audience! You can apply the same effect you have chosen for Fade-in by clicking on "Copy from fade-in" or apply another effect from the drop-down list.

Look at the result with the “Paint brush: top-right corner” transition. Isn’t it impressive?

Of course, you can choose any other transition for these effects.

If you don’t like that your text reveals or disappears too quickly, you can use Fade-in effect duration and Fade-out effect duration that are designed to set the time of appearance and disappearance of your text accordingly. Let’s set both of them to the value of 3000 ms and see that our animation is much smoother now.

In this example, we achieve an impressive reveal effect where the text is displayed with a brush stroke that also fades away in the same manner. However, feel free to experiment with other variations!

Text Morphing with the “Free shape” mode

When for the "Convert text to" option the "Free shape" mode is activated, the text object you add to the scene is transformed into a group of free shapes. This type of conversion is especially useful for creating animations where letter shapes morph from arbitrary forms. It also allows you to work in greater detail with the color of each letter — as individual freeform objects — so you can adjust color gradients or set color changes using keyframes.

We start the same way we do in other modes: right-click on your text object and navigate to "Convert text to...". Select "Free Shape" here. The settings window that appears afterward has the same settings we discussed for text blocks. Let’s choose here such values:

In the result we have Burning Text Reveal with the same disappearing effect.

But as we convert our text in Free shapes, we can do lots of other things. For example, we can create the Morph Text animation. Let’s set the "split by" parameter to "by character", "Fade-in" to "one by one" and choose the desired fade-in duration and fade-in overlap (we set them to 3000 ms and -1000 ms accordingly).

To achieve morphing letter animations, create duplicates of each free shape and adjust them gradually so that the shape transforms into a recognizable letter over time. It means that for each character you need to create several free shapes differently located on the timeline so that it gradually turns from a shape into a letter. In this way you’ll get frame-by-frame animation of your letters appearing from shapes.

Moreover, with free shapes, you can design impressive animated gradient logos and texts. For a detailed guide on creating them and exploring the various settings in the properties window to experiment with your text, watch our tutorial video.

Stroke Text with the “Curve Line” mode

When for "Convert text to" the "Curve line" mode is activated, the text object you add to the scene is transformed into a group of curves. This conversion is ideal for creating animations that outline the appearance of letters.

In the conversion settings window you'll find parameters that differ from those we discussed previously. Before analyzing these settings, note that each character may consist of multiple curves and the number of them can vary depending on the font and is determined by the font creator, not the video editor.

Let's move to the settings window for this type of conversion and start with the Mode parameter, which specifies which curves to edit:

• Both: Manipulate all curves of each letter in the source text object.
• Even: Work with all even-numbered curves of each letter.
• Odd: Focus on all odd-numbered curves of each letter.

If you want to work with the entire text, the best option is "Both," as it allows you to see all the curves of your characters. Choosing "Even" or "Odd" will only display some curves, which do not fully represent your letters.

In result we have our text outlined:

You can add to it a smooth animation, making each letter appear one by one on the screen. To achieve this, set "Fade in" to "one by one" and choose "Duration" for the Fade-in effect. The timing of the Fade-in and effect duration parameters will depend on how long you want the full text to take to appear.

We set them both to 3000 ms.

Just look at this! After adjusting three settings your Stroke Text animation is ready!

As shown in our previous examples, you can also add a Fade-out animation.

Note: the transitions for Fade-in and Fade-out effects are unavailable in this mode.

Light Text Animations with the “Tracking points” Mode

The fourth type of conversion, Tracking points, is used to create animations that highlight letters along their contours, such as a running light effect.

Before we show you the effect, please note that, unlike other conversion types, conversion objects of this mode are created within the original text on the timeline and don’t make the text object itself invisible.

The settings differ slightly as well. Parameters related to object fade-out, including fade-out, fade-out duration, fade-out effect, and fade-out effect duration, are disabled. Similarly, fade-in effect and fade-in effect duration are inactive, and the "All at once" option is not available for fade-in.

Only in this conversion type the Effect parameter becomes active and determines the effect used to highlight the outlines of letters. The available options in it are:

• None: No effect is applied.
• LensFlare: Applies a sun glare effect to highlight the letter outlines.
• BokehGlare: Uses a bokeh glare effect to highlight the letter outlines.

Here, as in the previous section, curve lines are essential because the number of curves determines the number of effects applied to the text. Any glares you add will follow the curve lines defined by your font’s shape. So it is important to set the Mode parameter, which, as in the previous section, includes the following options:

• Both: All curves of each letter in the original text object are used to create the highlighting effect.
• Even: Only the even-numbered curves of each letter are highlighted.
• Odd: Only the odd-numbered curves of each letter are highlighted.

By adjusting all these settings, you will already get a perfect Light animation.

For example, let’s set "Mode" to "Both", "Effect" to "LensFlare", "Fade-in" to "One by one" and "Fade-in duration" to 10000 ms. This high value for the duration is necessary because the example phrase below is quite long, and the animation needs enough time to play out. Setting it to a lower value would make it too fast.

As a result, we have the following:

A more mysterious animation can be achieved if we change some parameters in the properties window for LensFlare effects we have inside our text object. To do this, select all of them on your timeline and go to its properties window. Here you can adjust the flare intensity, light ray strength, color tone of your flares, visible area, etc. to enhance the visual impact.

By decreasing the value for the "Visible area" option, we create text that is highlighted with a glow in the dark.

That's only a small honor of what can be done with this tool!

Don’t hesitate to explore these modes and their properties window to uncover a variety of additional animations and effects.

We hope you found this article helpful and that you've explored all the linked resources to fully understand this new tool. To discover more possibilities, be sure to check out our tutorial video on our YouTube channel.

Do you still have questions?

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