smadell

My pleasure, sir. I actually never use that method of creating luminosity selections anymore, since I have my own luminosity macros almost always ready at hand.

Haitch... I think there are a couple of answers to your questions. First, using an image to create the mask is, in essence, the definition of a Luminosity Mask. You can create one in a number of ways. The easiest is to hold down Command and Option (on a Mac) and click on the Layer thumbnail. This creates a luminosity selection, and you can click the Mask icon on the Layers panel to create a straight luminosity mask. You can Command-Option-Click and then Invert the selection to get the reverse type of mask (the one that protects highlights). Alternately, there are a number of users (myself included) who have posted Macros to create various types of luminosity selections and masks. You might want to try these: https://forum.affinity.serif.com/index.php?/topic/27214-luminosity-masks/&tab=comments#comment-132021 https://forum.affinity.serif.com/index.php?/topic/30523-luminosity-masks-for-adjustment-filter-layers/&tab=comments#comment-149299 https://forum.affinity.serif.com/index.php?/topic/39420-luminosity-mask-visualization/&tab=comments#comment-196801 The other thing to know is that, as R C-R alluded to, you can't apply most adjustments and filters directly to a mask. While Photoshop seems to treat masks as editable greyscale images, Affinity Photo treats masks as pure Alpha Channels. As such, most of the standard adjustments can't be done to them directly. HOWEVER, you can apply a Levels adjustment or a Curves adjustment to a mask. Create a mask to be adjusted. Then create a Levels (or Curves) adjustment. Drag the new adjustment layer onto the Mask icon in the Layers panel. In the Levels (or Curves) adjustment, change the channel selection from "Master" to "Alpha." You can then apply the Levels or Curves to the Mask directly.

In my experience, you can only choose “Edit Macro...” if there is an open document.

The Appearance panel was definitely NOT showing, and would not open. I don't know why. BUT... I restarted the program and things mysteriously worked as they should. Thanks to all for trying to help. It seems like the simplest advice was all that was needed - turn it off and "reboot" and things often fix themselves! Thanks again to everyone.

Working on a Mac 10.13.6, Dark Mode, Separated Windows, testing out Designer 1.7.2.2 RC1. The Appearance Panel will not appear! No matter how many times I choose it from the View>Studio> menu, the panel will not open.

Some more strangeness. I tried the LIVE Shadows and Highlights filter in 1.7.2.149 (also in Dark, Separated mode) and got this (see below) There is extra space on the right, for no particular purpose that I can see.

I rarely use the Shadows and Highlights filter, and had not tried this when a previous beta build announced the availability of version 1.6 and version 1.7 methods. But, for some reason, I gave it a try today. I routinely use the Dark interface, in Separated mode, on a Mac. That having been said, I was surprised to see that the Shadows & Highlights… choice gave me an unusable panel. The background of the panel remains in "Light" interface mode, while everything else is in "Dark" mode. This renders the text unreadable. Switching to Light mode corrected the problems, but this ought to be a fairly easy fix, and one that should be made before RC1 becomes GM. Switching to non-Separated mode didn't change anything. This is a new bug with the v1.7.2 betas - it is not present in the MAS version of 1.7.1.

Maybe this is a solution for you. I created a macro, which I named "My Action-like Macro" and saved it into my "testing" folder in the Library. It contains all the steps you've put into your PS action. The step "document properties" does a document resize. Affinity macros will save this into a macro, but the size is fixed (number of pixels) rather than relative (e.g., 25% of original). You could also omit this step in the macro, and set the size in the Batch window. I then saved a Curves adjustment, a Brightness and Contrast adjustment, and a Vibrance adjustment. I applied an Unsharp Mask filter. When it comes time to create files for your clients to look at, run a Batch (from the File menu, choose "New Batch...") and I set it up as shown below. I chose all the files to process, saved them into a folder called "Client Output Folder" and saved them as full-sized JPEG's (the resizing was embedded in the macro - you could do the resizing in the Batch window and omit the resizing step in the macro). I then told the Batch process to apply the "My Action-like Macro" to each of the pictures. The end result is a folder filled with processed files. Each of the files closes without saving, so none of the processes within the macro alter the original files. Does this help?

You might also want to try choosing “Show Left Studio” in the Studio sub-menu, in case the Color panel is hidden on the left side without your knowing it.

Starting with a base portrait, add 1 or more pixel layers above it. Paint on those pixel layers with the desired color, and set the Blend Mode for the extra layers to "Color." This changes the color of the pixels, but keeps their luminosity intact from the layer(s) below. In the example below, I've started with a portrait (from Pixabay) and added two layers - one orange and one red. Obviously, doing a bit more tinkering (feathering the edges, desaturating the colors a bit, and so forth) would enhance the result. But what you are looking for is quite possible.

Richard... I had a very similar problem with Isolation Mode, and couldn’t figure it out. However, when I turned off Metal Compute, it went away completely.

There is no reason why. you cannot create a luminosity range using Blend Options, and also use a layer mask to narrow down the areas to which this luma range is applied. Also, remember that adjustment layers and live filter layers already have a built-in mask, and attaching a seperate mask layer, while possible, is not necessary.

XnViewMP has gotten a lot of good press on this forum. My understanding of it (and I am not a user, so this is limited) is that XnViewMP is an image browser, not an asset manager (DAM). If you are looking for a full-fledged DAM that can display Affinity Photo files (or at least the embedded previews) take a look at Photo Supreme. It is not free (as is XnViewMP) but it is a true DAM, with keywording, geotagging, portfolios, versioning, and so forth and so on. It is available for Mac and for Windows. If you add the affinity extension into the Preferences (see below) you can catalogue your Affinity Photo files and see their previews. It is a powerful tool.

Already there...

a simple fix is always a good one!