iuli

A preview of B&W strokes and their corresponding CMYK colors:

The Halftone Chart uses a traditional CMYK color palette with “absolute“ values (C:100, M:100, Y:100, K:100, everything else set to zero). Replace them with different values in the CMYK panel of each swatch, according to your needs. Set CMY to stronger values and K to lower value to avoid strong black patters.

 
A short video about setting a CMYK document plus the brushes in action:
ZIP includes Halftone Brushes, Color Palette, document setup, Color Chart folder with individual PNG pieces on transparent background (import them to document, set them to Multiply over the paper of your choice and save it yourself)
You can use and modify all the resources found here for personal and professional work. 
(About halftone dots https://legionofandy.com/2013/06/03/roy-lichtenstein-the-man-who-didnt-paint-benday-dots/ , http://the-print-guide.blogspot.com/2009/05/halftone-screen-angles.html)
 
Halftone brushes + CMYK setup + Color Chart.zip

I am trying to think where else this applies. I don't buy my car or motorcycle expecting something to change in time after I drive it off the lot. what else were you thinking that does not fall under software?

No, but at no time have they said no to the continual requests for a Lightroom or DAM type program that ties the three apps together.
We all buy the software for what it does now but recognize that software companies continually develop, usually in the direction the customers request.
Hence, a section of this forum called "feature requests"

It's truism, it don't have to be "exact" gray (128) and it's not that "in AP's" but generally this is how  single "gray" eyedropper works in PS. I suggest you just to install PS, and compare functionality of these three droppers regarding white balancing. In many situations black dropper give you better results than gray dropper (of course it depends on the type of photo).
 
So what is application in this kind of raster graphic software? I asked how you practically use x,y in your workflow... but you didnt answer.
You claim its better - so for example i have RGB pixel value 69,80,200 and now, I want to set up RGB curves lets say to exact 30,50,170 for this pixel - how can simply do that with x/y? (precisely output value in PS).

I'm not sure if you are familiar how these eyedroppers works in PS and why there are. By clicking black/white eyedroppers, you can indicate exactly where white/black should be set on the image. So i don't get your point - you insinuate these 3 droppers are needless? In regard to white balance -  you can use them (especially when "grey" area is tricky to find) just by clicking white/black dropper and point on image adequate black/white area (because of simple fact that pure blacks/whites don't contain "color") and color shifts are adjusted.
But what people. What is real, practical use of x,y in your workflow? I would be glad to know. In my case, when I want to match colors using curve in each channel, I just put input/output values from 0-255 because RGB use that - this is a well known precise, manual method to match colors in given area.  Gimp use also 0-255. What can i do with 0.999 values?
 
It's not about to be different from PS, but about the comfort of work and the availability of tools proven over the years.

Bullseye. That's Affinity in a nutshell. 
The algorithms are decades behind contemporary algorithms and expectations.
Try to carefully consider how many consecutive miracles from a single company you would need to experience for Affinity to even slightly catch up with all these excellent examples.
Then try to consider the scenario where one of your friends is waiting for just as many miracles in the same or a different context, and how much it would itch and crawl in you to say, "Don't be so naive, for heaven's sake, find a better product NOW!"

Pretty much agree with almost everything. And 99% has been discussed before.
Just to note here that Photoshop's curves aren't perfect either. Photoshop restricts moves to the current image mode only (Affinity Photo and PhotoLine are two examples of image editors that do not enforce this and allow users to work in LAB mode even when the image mode is RGB, for example). This is one reason why I left Photoshop many years ago. Photoshop is incredibly restrictive in regard to image mode and adjustments. But yeah: Affinity's curve adjustment dialog and functionality is rather half-baked.
And Photoshop's TINY curve window has become almost unusable on larger highdef screens for myself. PhotoLine and Gimp allow the curve window to be scaled as large as the user requires without limitations. This is actually a much requested GUI improvement that still isn't implemented even after years and years of PS users complaining.
But yeah, I hear you. My own experience with Affinity Photo: excellent first impressions, yet when digging a little deeper it's a case of "death by a million paper cuts".

Hi.
I'm not here to just complain. I hope that some things will (finally) be improved or implemented - Affinity Photo deserves it! AP is a very promising piece of software, but on the other hand, I don't understand all this mythology and propaganda introduced to me (in internet) as an alternative to Photoshop (PS).
Thanks Serif/Canva for 6month trial - i needed a week to say NO. And im not happy with that.
These are my first impressions after trying out Affinity Photo v2 (PC, Windows 11) and these are not encouraging at all. Im aware i didnt even scratch the surface - this list would be propably much, much longer.

[crucial] means that lack of given functionality disqualifies this software for me (please take also into account that english is not my native language).
1.       [crucial] I would say curves are statistically the most often used tools in this type of software – in Affinity Photo, this tool is one big disappointment.
a)  Well known droppers (white/gray/black)  don’t even exist (used for example for fast white balancing). Even amateur “despised” Gimp seems to offer these (in levels), but you can't find them in AP (neither in curves nor in levels).  It's also implemented in photopea.com (WWW semi-clone of PS). And no, black/white droppers are not equivalent to sliders, as commented later in this post: https://forum.affinity.serif.com/index.php?/topic/182478-white-black-and-grey-point-pickers/
b) “picker”  don’t work as supposed for me. When clicked on image, it should mark point on curve – not only  when I click AND drag. I want to see this point dynamically moving on the curve when I'm dragging mouse over the image (just like in PS). It's so helpful!
c) Big drawback. it seems there is no way to mark point on curves by clicking image and in the same time mark points on curves separately in all RGB channels. In Photoshop, it's done by clicking with CTRL+SHIFT – all RGB curves have then their own mark. It's very, very useful, and often used by me to adjust colors. Its must-have for me.
c) In my case, moving black/white sliders has large annoying slider delay if  I'm doing it fast enough.
d) Input/output X, Y fields from 0 to 1 ? (through 999). What the heck is that? In normal software, it's 0-254. How can I now input proper values from RGB data during adjusting RGB colors? It's useless for me.
e) lack of little things like resizing curve window, set grid size, effect visibility, auto… but I could live with that.
f) From what I see, it seems like GREY histogram (which I prefer) still don’t work properly after years (I compared AP histogram in my picture with others software), and this bug is not repaired? Correct me if I'm wrong.  https://forum.affinity.serif.com/index.php?/topic/115614-issue-with-curves-adjustment-histogram-master/
2.   [crucial] No overlay mask. I was shocked when I realized that such fundamental functionality just don’t exist in "professional" AP.  Found this topic (5 years - look at date):
https://forum.affinity.serif.com/index.php?/topic/39891-how-to-show-red-overlay-when-masking/
Serif... you develop this software since 2015 and no mask overlay?
BTW. “Refine Mask” as overlay is no option at all. First, it takes clicks to set up sliders, and then  – at every brush paint you have to wait a few seconds for “refine selections” pop-up info and its action. It's a nightmare and totally unusable, comparing to classical overlay mask. Refine mask Is useless for this particular task.
3. [crucial] Inability to use tools other than “brush” on masks. You want for example use many manual techniques to refine mask like burn/dodge. use levels. You can't. Serif allows you use only brush tool? My worst fears were confirmed by: 
https://forum.affinity.serif.com/index.php?/topic/18929-why-does-dodge-and-burn-tools-dont-work-on-masks/
I agree 100% with this guy " Im image processing professional for more than 20 years. And I can assure you that dodging and burning a mask is A MUST for all professionals"
https://forum.affinity.serif.com/index.php?/topic/60607-dodgeburn-mask-please/ (this "please" comes from 2018....)
4. [important] No collapsible panels in UI. This should be standard. In Affinity Photo I'm constantly forced to move, close or reopen windows/panels due to lack of space. After some time of work, this drives me to crazy. Foldable panels are a must-have in my workflow. It's implemented in PS and also in photopea.com made by one person. In my opinion, it should be the first thing Serif should change if they plan to redesign user interface.
5. [important] Making mask vs clipping  is CATASTROPHE.  This is a very poorly designed “monster” and I was sick when I needed to use this in AP. How bad it is show comments under YT like here: "Clipping vs Masking Layers (Affinity Photo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fiCvurH0is)
6. [important] Unacceptable long updates on modern PC for masks/image previews (to 15 seconds). I'm for example editing  simple mask and changes are not reflected on mask previews for 10-15 seconds!?? I have no words how this is frustrating because I have habit to wait for visual "confirmation". But maybe its on PC only (didnt try Mac).
7.  [important] Gradient Map Adjustment. I use it a lot, and how bad it is here! I have hundreds of gradients in folders. How can i access, see and manage them from THIS? Switching to inconvenient adjustments preset window? Comparing Gradient Map UI to Photoshop (which is not ideal also) is like comparing heaven to earth.  Gradient map is another example "abandoned" not finished feature like curves mentioned earlier. It just exists on paper, but with no practical functionality for me – it's „professionally” simplified to the ground.
8. [important] Adjustment window itself.  Another catastrophe. You cant collapse by one click all expanded presets. Presets previews are large, no option to change it ( imagine you have thousands of them). Chaos and mess. No option to order presets in folders (only LUT have this programmed – why?) and subfolders.  By  such „little things” i feel  i’m fighting with this software instead working with this.
9. [important] Samplers. When placed in AP, they are not numbered on picture at all! How it come ? Its annoying using 4 non numbered samplers, not mention  more, and they are tiny and not well visible.  I again checked out of curiosity Gimp – it of course also have numbered – because its obvious they should be!
10. [important]  "Hue Range" very important function implemented in v2, but it seems again - like they stopped in half way - version from PS is  just better, much more intuitive and flexible (droplets/previews/localized cluster). Color wheel is not such precise as sliders. I dont like it.
11. [important !!!!!!!!!!] Affinity Photo gives me NO visible clue if „blendif” (blend options) were used on layer. I don't know if on given layer blendif effect was used. What i did is check layer one by one. Good luck when you return to old project with 50+ layers.  Something like that shouldn't happens in this class of software.
 
Minor - its when Serif wants to make my life difficult and punish me
[minor] No FILL adjustment layer. I would also say its one of the most used type of adj. layer by me, but it doesnt exist in AP.  Even if you click here and there (from menu) you get it, but I can not easily change fill color by 2x click on Fill (damn!).
[minor] no fast „desaturate” option  https://forum.affinity.serif.com/index.php?/topic/123401-simple-quick-desaturate-layer-function/.
[minor] no auto-align layers option (this is NOT align images - stack option from File menu)
[minor] im not able to drag and drop layers/images from one opened file to another. It also should be standard functionality. I  use it quite often in Photoshop because its fast and convenient. Yes, yes i can ctrl+c/ctrl+v but what if i use tablet and keyboard is aside.
[minor] "Fill Opacity" why the heck its hidden under blend options ? I use it A LOT with 8 specials. In Photoshop its visible near opacity so its easy accesible and you see from the first glance that it was touched.
[minor] I often use blend options (who not). In my case, most often its linear light. Why every time i have to scroll down to get to it? All modes should be visible at first glance. If someone own microscopic 14” monitor then scroll bar should be automatically activated.
[minor] No „reload image” which i also often use (damn!)
Mentioned also in:  forum.affinity.serif.com/index.php?/topic/34876-how-do-you-reload-an-image-in-affinity-photo/
"I can't figure out how to do something so basic as reloading an image Comment is from… 2017.
[minor] I cant temporarly disable mask when layer is expanded. Its irritating because you need to do more clicks.
[minor] I cant resize layer thumbnails more than small/medium/large in options menu. „Large” is small actually - why is that?
[minor]Serif applied strange concept of „always” square layers icons (i dont like it) which is confusing especially when most of your images are rectangle and their previews  are additionaly squized to this square (are smaller than they could be). „Very large”  thumbnail size is very neded!
[minor] Color picker tool is  crosshair instead to be eyedropper  which is much more visible. I found i often had troubles to localize this crosshair on image in many situations. In PS i see immediately where it is.
[minor] visibility of layer (eyeball) is in AP on right side. Believe me or not but this is annoying. I quite often enable and disable layers or groups – its fundamental functionality i/we use. I want this "eye" to be as close to me as it can. Instead of this,  they placed visibility icon on right side with tiny! small white icon.  On left side they cluttered this space with weak distinguishable „image/pixel” icons. Is this software made by photographers for photographers? I dont think so.  Serif should compare how comfortable, clear and nice it is made in Photoshop.  
[minor] when you open file in AP its tab file name takes whole width of workspace. What is worse, when you open more files i have problem to recognize which tab is active!
What else drives me away from this software (for now)
- very, very slow progress of Affinity Photo. They started impressively but stopped. I've looked through all the updates since version 1.0 and its not optimistic, even more - it looks dramatic. For example It took them 6 years? to realize neccessity of background/foreground colors icons under main bar (left) tools (v2)… Can you imagine that?
- developers are not interested what community have to say. Bugs, improvements, suggestions are not addressed (my impression when looked at forum)
- bugs which a few times crashed my AP. When PS crashed to me? I don’t remember...
- Generally I have impression that, many tools they made (like curves, gradient map etc) are in most simple/cheap version and they dont improve/refine them later on, just abandoned them.
- UI matters. Its not big deal, but I don’t like AP windows/panel style where buttons are not “visible” buttons but just text blended into background. Its confusing. Even when you hover by mouse “text button” it don’t react, nothing happens (no highlights). Such UI don’t look “professional” its looks more like made by beginner designer in college in hurry.
- i dont even want to mention other functionalites which just crush Affinity Photo like Develop Persona vs Adobe Camera Raw.
 
 

Thanks for your reply. Do you think applying a tone curve would bring the image closer to its original JPG appearance? I do more editing than just 'trying to make it look like the JPG version', but I still struggle to get rid of that 'dull look' on these DNG files. I'll need to get better at editing. I obviously need to learn what options to tinker with to get the image closer to how its JPG looks. 
 
I enjoy using the 'Develop' Persona which is where the software takes you when you first open a DNG photo. I feel it provides better/more scope for editing images so I do about 80% of my editing in 'Develop' and only when satisifed bring it over in to the 'Photo' persona to do a small amount of tinkering near the end of the process. If I only edited the JPGs then I'd have less options for editing as I'd be skipping the chance to use the Develop persona. For example, enhancing the shadows and highlights in the Develop persona makes huge differences compared to altering them only in the Photo persona.    
 
Thanks for this. I will have a read. 
 

Why do you not just use the JPG if it already has appearance you want?

Well, you'll never find out.

As someone who just converted  two Windows 10 PCs to Linux Mint PCs (couldn't update to 11)  This would be GREAT! I would pay for a Linux license!

+1 for a native Linux version of the Affinity suite
As a long-time user (and fan, honestly) of Windows, the AI spyware "Recall" they're about to foist on new computers and users is likely the final straw for me. While it initially is only supposed to be on the ARM-processor version, and can theoretically be turned off, at least per application, it's not hard to foresee this being rolled out universally. Just having this "feature" (aka, huge privacy threat) forced onto any computer of mine—business, personal or family—is a nonstarter, to put it politely.
So ... I will be setting up at least one computer as a Linux daily driver. My other must haves (Firefox, Thunderbird, DaVinci Resolve, VS Code, Obsidian) are already available for Linux, so that part of the transition will be seamless.
Initially, I will test running the suite via Bottles or Wine, but obviously performance won't approach what it would be natively, even if it is "functional."
I believe a financially-sound business case can be made for porting, if you will, the Affinity apps to Linux. As others have mentioned, Linux is growing, even before the Windows Recall fiasco-to-be. Linux users, in general, like open source software but, more importantly, are as vehemently opposed to renting* software as any of us are. Currently, there is no professional design suite like Affinity or Adobe natively available. Being the first to this market could create a new and loyal user base of existing Linux users, and potentially encourage many current Windows users to jump ship to Linux, further accelerating the OS adoption. I'll admit to being an optimist, but I see substantial upside potential here.
I'm fervently hoping that the Canva team—and the influx of resources from the recent acquisition—will make this happen.
Thanks in advance for listening, and considering the idea.


* Yes, I realize that some have concerns Canva may break their promise and switch to a subscription-only model. Personally, I am taking them at their word that a one-time, per-version purchase option will always be available. If for any reason that changes, all bets are off anyway.

That is because the Linux user base is growing and we're looking for a professional solution. 
I also see a port of the Affinity suite to Linux as a chance for an untapped market. Whenever people are discussing their potential transition to Linux, I hear the same agument:
Adobe.
Affinity already is the better alternative in my opinion. And other than Gimp, Krita, Inkscape & Scribus, the Affinity suite offers a consistent workflow and all the other advantages we know and love. So this move would at the same time win over customers from Adobe who are willing to switch to Linux,  while at the same time helping to expand the Linux user base.

Canva acquisition of Affinity Suite changed the rules of the game in my opinion and a push to support Linux makes more sense than ever.

I've been using linux for 2 years now, and the only thing i have a WIndows partition for is Affinity software. There's literally nothing so advanced on Linux currently. There's a gaping hole in Linux ecosystem for professional Designer suite, and now that Affinity was bought by Canva, i hope one day, soon, there could be a linux version of Affinity software. With the relative maturity of flatpak there's no more argument of having to package the software for each different linux package manager, you can just have the one, flatpak, and honestly, i'd settle for having Affinity run through wine or proton if native version is too much to ask for.
More and more people are leaving Windows due to their anti consumer behaviour, ads, privacy concerns, and generally not being in control of the OS you have to pay for, and more and more people are choosing Linux as their new home.
There's a growing market and userbase that's just begging to pay for professional software like Affinity. Growing because of the insane decisions Windows keeps adding with each update.
Make history Affinity, be the first professional designer suite for Linux, and i'm sure a lot of people who are held hostage by an increasingly predatory OS will switch and thank you as well!
Currently, i still have my Affinity V1 licence, for my work that's enough, i still don't need what V2 has to offer. But, be it V2 or V3, please make it happen, it can't be that difficult to make it work on linux.

+1 for light mode on iPadOS.

AI noise reduction could be a boon to photographers if it surpasses traditional methods we already have. It would be interesting to see an AI attempt at auto tracing for vectorization. AI object removal available on some phones could be good as well.
An AI grammar checker for Publisher would also be a boon.
All these features should be optional and complement the traditional tools and methods. AI should be there as an assistant but not take over the creative processes.

Regular users cannot see warnings or restrictions placed on another users account - but an immediate suspension was put in place for this user, meaning any further posts anywhere on the Affinity Forums would require manual approval before being shown, for a temporary period.
They then continued to post within this thread, attacking myself and other users. These posts were not visible to regular members as they had not been approved.
Therefore the user has now been permanently banned and restricted from accessing this site at all.
Please leave moderating to the moderators, as much of what we do cannot be seen by regular users.

I am not a dude, @ronnyb and the rest of you and I merely thought that you would appreciate an even more intricate variant of your own language—not dull and colorless like on X, Instagram, or elsewhere. Where I come from, it's called a challenge, provocation, and beyond feedback, it's a kind of stimulus-response test. But the content was quite simple and serious; it was just the form that confused you.
The absurd and puzzling part is that you value and understand your own logic here, especially with PLUS ONE numbers as high as +1 or even +400,000, despite the fact that writing numbers from 1 to even several millions have given you nothing. Hundreds or maybe thousands of posts in this forum have also not yielded anything special.
But the cited post says it all, simply everything. Let me outline the problem with Serif and Affinity:
It's been the same company since 1987. 37 years in the same groove. They fundamentally make the same products they have always made. It's the same issue with bugs that were never resolved in Affinity as in Plus. 37 years in the same groove. It's the same issue with features that are thrown in, but never matured, 37 years in the same groove. It's the same corporate culture. It's the same types of deliveries. Everything is the same, Serif just started with a new product line, the style, the errors, and the problems carried over into Affinity, and after a hyped start where everyone clung to hope, we all see that it resulted in more of the same. And STILL, you believe it will be different? What can you possibly base your hope on? Miracles? That you should write +500,000 instead? That you haven't asked humbly enough? That you didn't write enough posts? 
What's interesting is that so many here stay with the faulty software, writing thousands of posts. They are practically here night and day. They doubt my professional background despite the obvious lack of their own professional background or any professional weight. But instead, they prioritize writing in a forum and point me out as a potential junior? I just have to conclude that I tread reality daily where the form, content, and format are quite different. In addition to missing the mark, statements like that doesn't change my life. You aren't changing Affinity's form or features either, other than having a marginal influence, and now Serif has indeed been bought by a huge company that isn't specialized in graphic excellence, and you are now even more ineffective in affecting the course of events. But you do the same. Serif does the same. The future really isn't created here, nor does change thrive. It's just a trip around in a circle year after year.
And so I asked: Instead of all this mess, how MUCH of your money would you bet with a bookmaker that it will be very different in the future? Shift focus away from me. How many thousand dollars/euros would you gamble on significant change? Think about it. No sullen answers to me; think about how much of your savings you would gamble on it. The amount will tell you whether you should start making other plans.
You're shooting yourselves in one foot here. When you sling mud at me, you shoot yourselves in the other foot. Two perforated feet significantly increase the odds that you can't keep up with us out here, and that you don't look up and around.
It's an absolute pleasure for me to return to reality and leave this behind. It is beyond any doubt that there are virtually no professionals here. Nor is it any coincidence that of all the companies on earth, Serif was bought by Canva, for crying out loud.

Affinity seems to have closed their eyes to all the feedback on this feature as if that makes it all go away. I've never understood their policy of "we don't talk about or acknowledge difficult issues". Significant demotivator for continuing to participate in these betas.

It's hard to say, but it seems to me like decisions are being made based on assumptions, with too little knowledge, too few inputs, and too small a network of professionals and industries worldwide. I recall Ash at one point saying, "we are struggling" (internally) to understand why a tool should be able to do something, what the use case is, and many people could quickly explain it to him in the forum. I wonder how many of the allegedly 3 million users could have confirmed that there was a use case. So, who "we" are in "we are struggling," I don't know, but I guess it's a few Serif employees in a building in Nottingham. That's not how you create software for millions of users in different industries and product contexts.
I hope Canva can elevate the development process to use large networks and more professionals. It is absolutely crucial for Serif to be lifted from the hobbyist level it occupies in too many places in the suite.

Nice. The shape they are on reminds me of that one, a geometric pattern that I created once.

Hi everyone,
I created this Star Tetrahedron sacred geometry figure in Affinity Designer. I am rather satisfied with the result.

I create a concept Sony smart phone and extended cameras, totally by Affinity Designer. Wish you enjoy.