David Thomas

Update 1.6.1.93 fixes the previous inability to apply a supplied or custom-calibrated .icc paper profile to a print job. (Previously, the printer dialog would spontaneously revert to the image colour profile, eg. ProPhoto. This deficiency was my last tether to Photoshop, so I can now slot Affinity Photo into my colour-managed workflow. Thank you to the development team. You should really highlight this fix in the release notes. It was a show-stopper for photographers who actually print their work. I happily discovered the fix by testing the new releases.

Received this from Apple overnight. Hi David, Thanks for contacting us. I understand that the app, “Affinity Photo,” you purchased isn’t compatible with your iPad Mini 2. I know how much you’d like to enjoy this app, especially when you bought it as the developer mentioned that it will work on your device. I have taken the necessary actions to help you in this matter. I’ve reviewed your case and issued you a full refund for the purchase. Within ten business days, 29.39 CAD should be posted to the payment method used to make the purchase. If you continue to experience issues with this app, I recommend that you contact the developer: https://affinity.serif.com/forum Note: Although we mentioned third-party products in this email, Apple doesn’t recommend or endorse these products. I hope that I was able to help you with the action that I’ve taken. Should you need further assistance, please let me know and I’ll be happy to help. Take care and have a nice day. Thanks, Leo iTunes Store Customer Support http://www.apple.com/support/itunes/ww

First, thank you all for being far more courteous than I was in my original post. I am calm now. My third attempt to reach an Apple customer service human by email shows more promise than the first two tries: " We'll be in touch. An iTunes Store representative will review your request and should send you a personal response within 48 hours. " 24 hours down, 24 to go . . . Underlying my trollish behaviour was my disappointment at not having Affinity Photo for my tablet. I am a big fan of both Photo and Designer and no longer use PS at all.

I understand your frustration that Apple will not update its compatibility information on your Affinity for iPad listing. You will similarly understand my disappointment that my attempts to follow your instructions regarding a refund (I have a Mini 2) have been futile. Apple does not make it easy to report a problem and I have now given up and written off my purchase as a theft by Apple, with the complicity of Affinity. As a very early licensee of both Affinity Photo and Affinity Designer, I made the purchase of Affinity Photo for iPad to support your company and its excellent development. While I blame Apple more than Affinity for this loss of personal funds, I do think Affinity should pull the app from the Apple Store until the compatibility specifications can be corrected. Disappointed, David Thomas Crowsnest Pass, Alberta, Canada djfthomas@gmail.com

In response to Patrick Connor's request for before-and-after shots, here is the original .tif file exported from Photo Ninja after raw adjustments, followed by the result of twice applying Affinity Photo's haze removal filter with the shown settings. For this fresh demonstration, I did nothing else but apply the haze removal filter, whence the dust bunnies in the sky. The effect is similar to using a polarized filter on the lens. I can't imagine how this is done, but it works.

My Adobe dependency dates back to the mid-1980s when I was a beta tester for the first Windows version of Photoshop. I have been clean and sober for weeks. Affinity Photo and a few other best-of-class products are my methadone. Together, they do everything I need as a professional photographer, and do it considerably better than Adobe products (albeit more expensively.) My workflow: Photo Mechanic (US$150) for ingesting raw images from the camera, culling, and converting the keepers to DNG (for compatibility with subsequent steps in the workflow) Photo Ninja (US$129) plus for adjusting DNG files and exporting them as .tif files (I do not save .afphoto files because .afphoto files do not have embedded thumbnails recognized by Photo Mechanic, Photo Ninjua or IMatch). Affinity Photo raw development still has a way to go before it can match Photo Ninja, particularly in non-destructive processing. Before Affinity Photo can compete with dedicated raw editors, it needs to retain the original raw file and adjustments so that users can roll back their post processing without having to start over with the original camera file. This, in my mind, is the biggest gap remaining in Affinity Photo's repertoire of tools and techniques. Affinity Photo (US$50) for fine finishing, especially with the remarkable Haze Removal filter. I rarely resort to Nik Collection because Affinity Photo's non-destructive filters are usually better. Finally, IMatch (US$110) for unparalleled keywording and cataloging of DNG and TIF image files. Basic arithmetic shows that my motive is not frugality: Except for the bargain price of Affinity Photo, the other workflow software components are expensive alternatives to Adobe's monthly tax for Lightroom/Photoshop. My critereon for the production and management of commercial assets. I have no investor interest in nor receive any privilege or benefit from any of the software makers mentioned. My only relationship with Serif, for example, is that I paid my licence fee like everyone else. I am grateful to the Affinity developers for providing the previously missing element in an Adobe-free workflow. For the record, I currently shoot mostly with a Sony A7r camera and vintage Canon manual lenses which to my mind are superior in colour rendition and, yes, even sharpness, to the harsh lenses purportedly designed for digital sensors. The attached was done with a 28mm Canon FD scooped online for 30 bucks.