Transfiguration

Transfiguration is one of the seven main branches of spellwork. It consists of those spells that change the fundamental nature of the target.

As such, there are four main fields of transfiguration, Conversion, Conjuration, Vanishment and Restorative transfiguration.

Conversion
Conversion is by far the most common and diverse branch of transfiguration, being the one that most witches and wizards begin studying when they first attend Hogwarts. It consists of taking the target and transforming it into something that is partially, or entirely, different in form than the original.

The three main types of conversion are animation, inanimation and same-state conversions.

Conjuration
Conjuration deals with the creation of something from nothing, more advanced than conversion, it is usually seen as a higher order of transfiguration. Conversions are governed by the principles outlined in Gamp's Law of Elemental Transfiguration.

Vanishment
A small branch of transfiguration, vanishment is the act of making something disappear from existence. There is some debate as to what happens to objects when they vanished, with the most likely candidate being they continue to exist on one of the dimensions outlined by the Mara theory.

Restorative transfiguration
Restorative transfiguration deals with the use of spells to restore an object to its original state, it is a complex form of magic, especially when the caster did not witness the initial transfiguration. Much of the skill in this field comes from being able to hold in one's mind the original form of the target.