Wilfred Hildonen

Name is Wilfred, by the way :D

And can you please tell me how I have done that? I don't like it when programmes do things I don't tell it to do. Wouldn't it be an idea with a warning for us n00bies? Something the experienced users can turn off. Sometimes I accidentally toggle the UI as well, when I am busy manipulating stuff and I hit the wrong key. Annoying.

Hello I will add two. The first one is of the entire screen and the second is a close up of the text...

I stumbled across a problem. I used the text tool in AD to create some special characters with fill and stroke, but when I wanted to go back to write some other text, I couldn't get rid of what I had added, so all the text came out garbled as it was a smaller size and the stroke just messed it up. I have chosen no stroke but to no avail. It continued even when I started a new project. What gives?

Hello! Please allow me to introduce myself. I'm a man of wealth and... no, sorry, I am definitely not a man of wealth but I hope I have some taste:) Anyways; I am an artist, editorial cartoonist and illustrator and a jack of all trades as long as they are creative. I work for a Finnish daily in the Swedish language, born in Norway with Finnish/Sami/Romani/Carelian roots, so no Viking blood in my veins and that is probably why I have moved to Portugal where I live in a safe distant from any beach as I swim like a rock, and also in safe distance from any expat-communtity (shuddering by the thought of it) and therefore I do speak Portuguese as well. OK, so where was I? Well, I have been using Photoshop since I got my first Mac in 1998, but although I have done some vector-based work I never got my head wrapped around it, more like tangled up into it, but then I stumbled across Affinity Designer and lo and behold! there was I, after a mere hours, throwing together vectorbased illustrations like it was nothing to it! That speaks a firmament for the intuitiveness of this programme, indeed! I love it and it's brilliant and it was the most well spent money I ever spent <---rather clumsily constructed sentence... Looking forward to see where it is going and waiting for updates :)

Ah, I didn't mention Anime Studio? I have that one, too and I agree that it seems to be easier, but I haven't had time to try it out that much. As for 3D, I am not interested at all, as I have mentioned earlier. I have tried out some trials of things like Bryce etc., just to see what it is about, but as the learning curve is as steep as a cliff face, I shied away:) But yes, I agree with you that seeing what there already is in Affinity, it would be a great application for creating 2D as well. Add a timeline and X-sheet and some tweeting-feature and you're already a long way towards it. I am also glad you mentioned Animation Paper which I looked at a while ago and thought it looked like The Thing, indeed, but yes, it seems to have stalled, alas. Why am I not a multi-millionaire? :D

Thanks a lot! But actually, they are not a lot of work, not with Affinity Designer. That's why I find this programme so amazing, because if I had tried to do something similar with Illustrator or any other vector based programme, I would have gone bald by now, tearing my hair out in frustration! The one which took the longest time to make is the one with the birthday cake. The others took me between one or two hours, tops. And I find that quite amazing myself, since I am a novice to vector illustration and to AD...

I have Toon Boom Express, Toon Boom Studio 8.1 and Harmony Essentials, all from ToonBoom and although I cannot say I have worked extremely hard to learn it, I have given it some serious attempts over the years. The problem is partly that I am used to dive into a programme, doing some easy stuff to begin with and then learn as I move on. With ToonBoom's offerings, I find that difficult. To my experience I need to study hard only to get the easiest things done. Essentials is a great step forward in the right direction, but as I see it it still has a way to go. The reason why I posted my comments here, is because I used to have the same problems with vector-based illustration, only not that tough, though - but with Affinity Designer all that trouble vanished into thin air like a wisp of smoke. Somehow, they have just got it right when it comes to intuition. I'd like to see that done with 2D animation, as well. I know that you can create 2D in 3D as well, but I am not interested in 3D. Adobe Photoshop is above my budget and so is TVPaint. I have tried out Synfig, Pencil2D and Blender and there are some promising steps there, but it is not quite what I am hoping for. The first item on my wishlist is that the app must give the user the possibility to create something simple right from the start. Be it stick animation or whatever, but aside from understanding the principle of animation (which in short is the same as the principle behind motion pictures or movies - successive frames), it shouldn't require much. The second item is to have a full toolkit of drawing tools. And it should be built with drawing in mind, for artists who know how to draw. The third is that in spite of the apparent simplicity and intuitive approach it should be advanced; i.e. that you learn as you go. Photoshop worked that way for me and now Affinity Designer does and I can't see why a 2D animation software couldn't do the same.

Speaking of Blender, I realised that my version had to be old but just look at that GUI. That is an engineer's GUI and not an artist's. How on earth am I supposed to work with something like this? What does it mean? Bounds? TexSpace? PassIndex 0? DupliVerts? Where are my drawing tools? So I downloaded the new version and it was a tiny improvement, but still - how do I get that 3D thing away? Just a couple of horror examples on how a creative user interface should not be. When I see something like this, I feel like storming into wherever the developers of this are working and throw a laptop at them and tell them to get real!

Yes, that is what I am doing but anyway, I just have to create more brushes to get the results I want then. What you posted here gave me an idea so thank you for that :D

So I am new to make vector-based illustrations although I have managed to get a few logos together in vector, but after just a few days with Affinity Designer, I am able to use it for my daily illustrations for a newspaper I am working for (from Finland). That isn't bad since I have a deadline to keep. Anyway, here are a few examples plus one for another publication...

I appreciate much how easy it is to create my own brushes and I am trying to create a collection of Texture Intensity Brushes to be used with my illustrations. What I am trying to achieve is "dirty" outlines. I don't like my drawings to be too clean and smooth. I am slowly getting there but I wonder why I cannot set these brushes to be tapered off in both ends like the solid brushes? Is there any reason for it or will it be added? I'll attach two screenies which may help to explain...

Thanks for the offer and I might take you up on that one fine day, but I am too busy right now:)

Yes, I am sure there are worse out there but I'd rather not see them :D Anyway, the demonstration was good, but the question is how long it would take me to understand how to do that? It is like it is with math; for some it comes natural, for the rest of us it is an occult science:D As for Zbrush it is way above my budget and the other is Windows-only. And subscription. No, I am still of the opinion that 2D animation software today is like mobile phones were before the iPhone. Serif seems to have the right approach. Hope they or someone else with the same appraoch are busy working on it. But since I already have Blender, I will take a look at it some day. So far, just the sight of it has scared me from trying anything :D

Neither Fusion nor Blender is what I am hoping for. Fusion is more like Motion directed towards motion graphics and effects and Blender is not exactly what I call intuitive and with a boring interface. I want something with which I can turn my comix ideas into animation. Well, with Affinity to create images and multilayred files, Elements+ as an addon to Photoshop Elements and Harmony Essentials, I am at least beginning to see some way out of the confusion. Made this today as a test: https://youtu.be/7jjKk5hvBck

Toon Boom doesn't recognise them and I don't have the full version of Photoshop, only Photoshop Elements, but then there is an add on which releases the hidden features called Elements+ and which those who are interested may find here: http://elementsplus.net Using that I can add those folder and lo and behold! Toon Boom recognises it.

I have one question regarding Affinity Photo; does it have the ability to organise layres into folders in a psd-file? To be able to import a psd-file into Toon Boom that has to be done and it can't be done with Photoshop Elements which I have. This is the explanation Toon Boom gives:

I second what is said and I have Motion and it is good for what it is meant for; Motion graphics, but rather clumsy for classical 2D animation, something I want to work more with as I am full of ideas, but I have struggled uphill the steep learning curve of Toon Boom's products and althouth their latest Harmony Essentials is a step forward in the right direction, it is not there. As a cartoonist and illustrator I think 2D animation will be more and more important as we are moving from print to the web. 3D may be good for film etc. but 2D has a future as one can create much lighter animations and like animated illustrations, for instance. Animated ads. There are no limits. But what I want to see is an animation app for us who actually draw. The problem with everything I have tested so far is that they feel like mobile phones before the iPhone and mp3-players before the iPod. They do the job but they are clumsy and unintuitive. I have tried to create multilayered files with Affinity Designer to import them with layers intact into Harmony, but so far I haven't succeeded. Seems like the PSD-files need to handled in Photoshop to transform the layers into folders - and then you need the full version and no thanks. And why? Why can't the software do that for you? Creative software should remove all the hoops and loops, hurdles and obstacles and tedious tasks and let us concentrate on what we can, create. I am not a developer and neither do I need an animation software which resembles old time analogue animation studios. It is difficult to put it down exactly what I am looking for but Affinity Designer is to me the iPhone of vector design, something which I have struggled with during many years as well. After a few days with Affinity I am able to throw together illustrations very fast and keep the deadlines although I am procrastinating. If the people at Serif could do the same for animation, it would be like entering heaven! You could start by adding simple timeline animation to Designer, but I think it should be developed as a standalone app. Supporting multilayered files from Designer and Photo. You would be to artists what Apple has been to computers and devices:) And it is simple. Let the software take care of the tedious tasks. Make way for creation. Can't be that difficult? :D Hahaha! Sorry. Well, good luck! Here's to hope! PS: And I have of course some ideas as to what is needed. The artist will always be in drawing mode. Perhaps skip the term "camera" since there are no cameras. Create the possibility to move around in a space. Add layers and objects (2D, of course) in that space. Snap in and out of the space and into each layer. Automatic keyframing or keyframing made easy and intuitive. Let the software guess at what you want to do and assist you in that. Automating tweening by dragging objects and layers around. Live previews. Automatic onion skinning. Fluent lip synching. Walk cycle templates to be dropped on to characters. Then you just adapt the template to fit the character. Snapping parts together to create a cut out figure, just by dragging an arm to the torso, drop and snap. Setting pivot points by clicking. Make bones relative to exact shapes. Just highlight the shape and that is what the bone will move and nothing more. And so on. Can't be that difficult, can it? :D

This is two "requests" in one - or rather suggestions and kudos as well. I've been working with digital illustration along with analogue since I bought my first Mac in 1998 and although I have done some logos etc. and during a period even had Illustrator and now have a few other vector based alternatives, I never really got into vectors. It felt slow and frustrating, especially since I work very fast and don't have the patience to read instruction manuals - and perhaps also since math is not my force, although one doesn't need to know math to work with vectors, but it shines through that it is code based instead of pixel based - or something like that. A "mathematical" approach to creativity. But this Affinity is different. I think you have nailed it. I don't know how, but to me it is just to dive in and start working and I can already work almost as fast as I am used to and that is not bad after less than a week. It would still be good to have a manual which goes into the finer details, and I hope it is in the works. I have also tried to work with animation, but it is even more frustrating than vectors used to be. I am using Toon Boom Studio Express, Toon Boom Studio and Toon Boom's Harmony Essentials and the latter is the better, but it is still not where I wish it was. I am sure you people could do it that way :D Oh well, but I guess you have your hands full, but I am hoping that there will come an animation application which makes 2D animation just as easy to get into as vector is in Affinity (you should pay me for all these nice words!) But if files made with Affinity would work well with said programmes, that would also be fine. So far, they don't :/ And yes, I am planning to get the new iPad Pro. How about a vector app for that one? With support for CMYK since some illustration still need to be ready for print... I am dreaming of a white Christmas...