Hi m-b,
Affinity native file format(s) are compatible between all Affinity apps.
There's no need to create a document in Designer and open it in Photo. You can simply work in Designer as usual and if you need to move everything to Photo (History included) go to menu File ▸ Edit in Photo... The inverse is also true.
A more recent set of tutorials for 1.7 (and above) is available via affinity.serif.com or from Designer's Welcome screen.
The legacy tutorial set, also available on YouTube, includes:
1. Getting Started
• Discover Affinity Designer
• For Beginners
• For Beginners Too
• Using the Help System
• CMYK Setup
• Designing from a Sketch
• New from Clipboard
• Actual Size Zoom
• Editing PDF Text
• Using the Grade UI Kit
2. Artboards
• Artboards: Basics
• Artboards: Exporting and Printing
• Artboards: Colour and Opacity
• Artboards: From Content
• Artboards: Design Aids
3. Drawing Lines and Shapes
• Pen Power
• Shapes
• Convert to Curves
• Corner Tool
• Drawing Perfect Triangles
• Stylish Strokes: Textured Lines
• Stylish Strokes: Dashed Lines
4. Colour and Opacity
• Complex Gradients
• Adjusting Noise and Opacity in Fills
• Transparency Tool
• Changing Colours
• Blend Modes
• Colour Picker Tool
• Colour Palette from Document
• Colour Palette from Image
• Pantone Colours
• Global, Spot and Overprint Colours
• Quick Opacity Setting
5. Layer control
• Layers Panel
• Lock Children
6. Object control
• Selecting, Finding and Isolating Objects
• Rotation Point: Overview
• Rotation Point: Worked Example
• Vector Scaling Options
7. Symbols and Assets
• Symbols (1.5)
• Assets (1.5)
8. Painting
• Shading Using Raster Brushes
• Adding Raster Texture
9. Text
• Artistic, Frame and Shape Text
• Text on a Path: Overview
• Text on a Path: Worked Example
• OpenType Typography
10. Media
• Using Raster Images in a Composition
• Film Noir Style Illustration
11. Saving, exporting and sharing
• Save History
• Soft Proofing
• Exporting
• Exporting: Layers
• Exporting: Slices
• Exporting: Continuous
• Exporting: Automatic Directory/Folder Creation
• Exporting: Multiple Outputs from a Single Slice
• Exporting: Transparent and Coloured Backgrounds
• Exporting User Settings and Keyboard Shortcuts
12. Design Aids
• Constraints: Overview
• Constraints: Worked Example for Web Design
• Snapping and Dynamic Guides
• Snapping: Candidates
• Snapping: Object Creation
• Snapping: UI and Web Design
• View Modes and Split View
• New View
• View Points
• Grids: Icon Design
• Grids: Floor Plans
• Isometric Grid Drawings: Part 1 (Single Planes)
• Isometric Grid Drawings: Part 2 (Multiple Planes)
• Isometric Grid Drawings: Part 3 (Layers and Compounds)
• Grids: Coloured Lines
