Asha

I don’t do much DTP anymore, but buying and supporting Serif is a no brainer! I got it yesterday, and couldn’t be happier for having a high quality program to complete the suite! Congrats and well done!

I think AP and AD are phenomenal. Based on what I can see, and what I've seen from other users, everything is there for the majority of every day tasks. I wonder if the people complaining are the ones who didn't know Adobe when it was Illustrator 88, 8-bit PS 1.0, and no DTP solution.

Yay!!! Insta-buy!!! <3
 
Congratulations Serif team!!

Ugh it's been forever since there's been an update about this. The last time they posted an update it sounded as if it was basically working already. I'm praying that it's been ready for a while, but that Apple asked you guys to hold off on releasing it before WWDC so they could show it off or something. Ugh, I want it on my iPad Pro so badly!

Please do not make auto lens correction the only option--I sometimes need to turn it off, which is one reason I look for alternatives to Adobe.

+1 for ability to change the origin, and quickly reset back to default!

I finally had a chance to put the Affinity focus stacking tool to work today with RC1. I did a fairly modest 16-layer stack, and processed both from RAW files and from 16-bit TIFF files. Below are the results of this test, compared with output from an "other" dedicated focus stacking software.
 
For the most part, I find the processing time slightly faster for Affinity than the "other" software. In both softwares, processing from RAW was slower than from 16-bit TIFF, even though the TIFF files are several orders of magnitude larger than the RAW. Final resolution and quality of detail was roughly the same on both, however, Affinity had more artifacts. This is balanced by the fact that Affinity has high ease of editing from any one of the source images.
 
What I missed most in the Affinity tool is the capability to customize the stacking process. In the "other" software, I can select one of three algorithms, whereas Affinity has only one default algorithm. For this test, I chose depth map in the "other" software, because I think that is what Affinity is using, and I wanted a consistent comparison. In the "other" software, I can also adjust the algorithm parameters, which sometimes helps the artifacting--Affinity does not have this feature. I also did not see a way to select the RAW engine for focus stacking in Affinity, but that is something I would like to have since the different RAW engines may produce more pleasing results. Generally, the RAW processing seemed more streamlined in Affinity. The "other" software opened Adobe DNG converter for every single slice of my stack, which is somewhat laughable, however, the unretouched result was the best from RAW processing through the "other" software. One more thing that I have seen in dedicated software is the ability to process from top-down or bottom-up of the stack. This is a very helpful option since (again) it can reduce artifacting. This would be a nice improvement to the Affinity tool.
 
While my stack was rather benign, I've seen some crazy high-magnification macro stacks with several times the number of files I used. Those might not do as well with Affinity, due to the lack of adjustability. Having said that, Affinity is the most accessible and affordable software I've seen with this advanced capability, and I have nothing but the highest praise for the Serif team.
 
To summarize, here is my wish list for Affinity's new focus stacking capability based on this test:
--Ability to choose from different algorithms
--Ability to choose algorithm parameters
--Ability to choose the RAW engine that is invoked when using RAW source files
--Ability to choose the order of stack processing (top-bottom, bottom-top)
 
File legend:
Macro Roses from RAW--Affinity processed from Panasonic RAW format files
Macro Roses from RAW HF wDMap--"other" software processed from Panasonic RAW format files
Macro Roses from Tiff16--Affinity processed from 16-bit TIFF files
Macro Roses from Tiff16 HF wDMap--"other" software processed from 16-bit TIFF files

Woot, can't wait to try the focus stacking! I have some mean stacks that will put it to the test >;>

Your photo has some severe scratching, so I'm not sure this will work for all of the marks, but it does well for dust and particles:
 
Create a duplicate of the layer that contains the photo, and put it above the original
Apply a Gaussian blur to the top layer
Apply a Layer Mask to the top layer, and fill with black
Using the brush with white on the mask (not on the blurred photo), paint the individual blemishes
 
This is a non destructive method that requires some trial and error to determine the best type and amount of blurring, brush size, etc.

I am a new member and new to Affinity. I am excited about having great alternatives to Adobe's offering, and I have a request for plugins and "send-to" capability for several tools I use regularly:
 
DxO--Optics Pro, Film Pack, Viewpoint
On1--full suite
Nik--full suite
 
Other tools that I don't use, but are very popular:
 
Topaz
CaptureOne

Hi need406,
Welcome to Affinity Forums :)
I've compiled an "unofficial" list while Photoshop plug-ins support is being developed. Click on the plug-in's name for details.

Your photo has some severe scratching, so I'm not sure this will work for all of the marks, but it does well for dust and particles:
 
Create a duplicate of the layer that contains the photo, and put it above the original
Apply a Gaussian blur to the top layer
Apply a Layer Mask to the top layer, and fill with black
Using the brush with white on the mask (not on the blurred photo), paint the individual blemishes
 
This is a non destructive method that requires some trial and error to determine the best type and amount of blurring, brush size, etc.

The UI really should scale automatically based on device. Imagine with the upcoming port to iPad--there has to be a way to fit things on a screen in a useful way, regardless of size and proportion.

Google has just announced that their Google Nik Collection composed of seven Photoshop plug-ins is now free for everyone.
Click here for more details. You can download them from here.
 
Currently Analog Efex Pro 2, Color Efex Pro 4, Silver Efex Pro 2 work with Affinity Photo. HDR Efex Pro 2 only works partially.

For the selection, could you try changing the tolerance of the Magic Wand tool to get more of the selected color range, and then Refine Selection (or feather, grow, etc) from the Select menu? Or Select Tonal Range from the Select menu?

This isn't quite there in terms of the same quality of the sample you show, but it might be fun to try:
 
Filters>>Detect Edges
Layer Adjustments>>Invert
Layer Adjustments>>Black and White

Make a new pixel layer, and in the channels panel, lock each of the R, G and B composite channels by deselecting the little pencil icon to the right of the eyeball icon. Then, with your new pixel layer active, you can make a selection and use the paint bucket to fill it. If you are only painting on the alpha, it always goes to white regardless of what color you have selected (even if black or gray) because you are basically making a 100% alpha of the filled area.
 
You can also paint with black, white or any shade of gray on your pixel layer by locking the R, G or B channels you don't want to paint on. It will add color value only from the active channel.
 
This thread may also be helpful: https://forum.affinity.serif.com/index.php?/topic/17438-using-channels-as-non-destructive-way-to-color-wallcovering-patterns/?hl=channels

Apple Pencil on iPad Pro is my favorite stylus/iPad combo. Previously I had iPad Air 1 with bluetooth styluses--that combo didn't really compare. For anybody looking at the smaller form factor, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend the smaller version of iPad Pro, assuming it works similarly to the current one.

killwilly, none of the DxO products currently work with AP, but all can be used as standalone. It might help if you send a request to DxO to make their products compatible with AP. If more people do this, we will eventually get some attention!

You should be able to create a brush from a texture that you collect yourself. That way whatever you end up with will be individualized to your design.

I think this is a case where creating a pixel layer with Hue blending mode can help non-destructively remove the background color that shows through the lace

I hope this helps
 
The majority of the settings found in the Clear User Data window can be found in: 
 
For Mac:
/Users/{your username}/Library/Containers/com.seriflabs.affinityphoto/Data/Library/Application Support/user/
 
For Windows:
C:\Users\{username}\AppData\Roaming\Affinity\Photo\1.0\user\
 
Clear User Defaults This will clear any custom settings made within the Preferences panel. It will also reset any changes made to the Toolbar, Tools and Context Toolbar back to their default settings. This option is also available in Preferences > Misc > Reset User Defaults.   Don’t Restore Windows and Documents This is normally used to stop the app from trying to restore a previous document that closed unexpectedly.   Reset Studio This resets all panels in the Studio back to their default positions. This is the same as View > Studio > Reset   Reset Object Styles This will delete any custom styles added to the Styles Panel. This option is also available in Preferences > Misc > Reset Object Styles   These settings are stored in objectstyles.propcol and can also be exported from Styles Panel.   Reset File Exports This will delete any custom File Export presets made in File > Export and the Export Persona.   These settings are stored in: file_export_options.dat (  If you have no custom presets this file will not exist )   Reset Snapping Options Presets This will delete any custom presets made within Snapping.   These settings are stored in: snapping_options.dat (  If you have no custom presets this file will not exist )   Reset Fills This will delete any Application Palettes you've added to the Swatches Panel. It will also delete any colours added to the default palettes such as Grey, Colours & Gradients. This option is also available in Preferences > Misc > Reset Fills.   These settings are stored in fills.propcol and can be exported from the Swatches Panel   Reset Brushes This will delete any brushes imported into the app and will reset all brushes within the app back to their default settings. This option is also available in Preferences > Misc > Reset Brushes.   These settings are stored in raster_brushes.propcol and can be exported from the Brushes Panel   Reset Font Replacements This will delete font replacements specified when opening files that contain fonts that are not installed. Replacement fonts are automatically selected the next time you open a file missing the same font.   These settings are stored in: font_map.dat (  If you have no font replacements this file will not exist )
 
Please note: This is different from Preferences > Misc > Reset Fonts. This option forces Affinity to Reload/Repopulate fonts listed in the app. This can be useful when using 3rd Party apps to load fonts.
  Reset Adjustments This will delete any custom presets found in the Adjustment Panel. These are created from Adjustments layers.    These settings are stored in: adjustments.propcol   Reset Macro Library This will delete custom Macros.   These settings are stored in: macros.propcol   Reset Develop Presets This will delete any custom presets saved in the Basic, Lens, Details, Tones and Overlays Panels in the Develop Persona.   These settings are stored in: develop.propcol   Reset Crop Tool Presets This will delete any custom presets saved within the Crop Tool.   These settings are stored in: croppresets.propcol   Reset Keyboard Shortcuts This will delete any custom keyboard shortcuts. You will need to export these by going to Preferences > Keyboard Shortcuts > Save before resetting.

My quick and dirty way of doing this is to create a layer with an outline that I can use to "snap to" when I need to crop later. Making a mask is also a good possibility. Either way, you still have to recrop, but you have a guideline to follow so you can repeat the size and position. Recropping will also be easier if you save your crop settings.

Hi pmi,
In the Channels panel right-click on the Red channel and select Create Spare Channel, then right click on the Spare Channel you just created and select Load To Levels Adjustment Alpha.

in the low-right corner of the window, click on channels (if the channels panel is not there, make it visible from menu->view->studio), rightclick on the red channel and select "copy to mask layer".