3D shape and reflectance morphing

Image morphing techniques can create a smooth transition between two images. However, one of the main weaknesses of the image morphing technique is that intermediate images in the transition often have physically incorrect shading such as highlights and shadows. Moreover, we cannot alter viewing and lighting conditions when creating the intermediate images. That is because those images are obtained by simply interpolating pixel intensities of the two 2D images without knowledge of the 3D object shape and reflectance properties. In this context, 3D shape morphing techniques have a definite advantage in that arbitrary viewing and illumination conditions can be used for creating new images. Unfortunately, previous 3D morphing techniques do not account for object surface reflectance properties or reflection models when generating intermediate images. This often results in undesired shading artifacts. In this paper, we consider a new approach for 3D shape and reflectance morphing of two real 3D objects. Our morphing method consists of two components: shape and reflectance property measurement, and smooth interpolation of these measured properties. The measured shape and reflectance parameters are used to compute intermediate shape and reflectance parameters. Finally, the computed shape and reflectance parameters are used to render intermediate images that represent a smooth transition between the two objects.