Doc Ricky

That was helpful. On the iPad, you can't really use the Layer menu to Convert to Text Frame, but double tapping with the Frame Text tool on a shape does convert the shape into a custom shaped text frame. I didn't know about this. The text frame is even editable with the node tool, although doing boolean operations with other shapes makes for some weird results so far. 

That was helpful. On the iPad, you can't really use the Layer menu to Convert to Text Frame, but double tapping with the Frame Text tool on a shape does convert the shape into a custom shaped text frame. I didn't know about this. The text frame is even editable with the node tool, although doing boolean operations with other shapes makes for some weird results so far. 

Photo layers can be pixel or image layers. If you import a photo into AP an 'image' layer is created. To adjust this image at the 'pixel' level you must first 'rasterize' the image. This converts the 'image layer' to a 'Pixel Layer'. 
You can see what 'type' of layer it is in the Layer Studio. It will say either Pixel or Image (can be either type - see your pics above). It’s not that Designer and Photo use 'different' layers, it’s about what type of layer is being worked on and what you are attempting to do to the layer.
Here's how Affinity explain it.
 

Okay that did it. Thank you. So, I am a little confused, hopefully someone from Affinity can explain this. What's the difference between a Photo layer and a rasterized layer in Designer? Why can't they work the same way with regards to filters and layer options? What can you do with a Photo layer than you can't do with a rasterized layer? 

You aren’t comparing like with like. The ‘Background’ layer in APh is a Pixel layer but the ‘Photo’ Layer In AD is an Image layer: you need to rasterize the Image layer so that you can work on it at the pixel level.

Him Doc Ricky,
First, a question. Why do you want a bunch of open curves? I can think if a few reasons, one of which is related to a post from a user a few weeks ago, The user needed open curves so a laser cutter would only travel along many hundreds of open curves. From what I could learn, the cutter's RIP software couldn't handle clipping shapes. What would your use be?
And I should say that I did my work on my desktop. While I really like my iPad, I'm old enough that my fingers can't handle gestures well, or even touching the right spots. So what I did was on my desktop. I've done enough work w. the iPad that I think the same results would be possible for folks w. better tactile and visual abilities.
To get to your query, yes, there are ways to get what you want, but in this case, they are anything but quick and easy.
I've been working off and on for the last few weeks to come up w. a routine that was not too tedious to produce open lines. The base problem is that Designer works w. areas, and by default Designer's boolean operations create closed shapes. Certain shapes can be made so that booleans produce line sections that can be fairly easily separated and cleaned up, and leave the interior strokes.  But I was working at the opposite of what you are looking for. The skills I had developed for isolating the lines were much less effective for producing something like a  regular dotted stroke.
I'm attaching a image that shows various attempts I did today.
Most show very irregular dashed lines. I couldn't find a series of ad hoc shapes that would divide the letter outline evenly. Designer at this point will only propagate a vector along a path that is a font. I did a search, and found a font that was geometric shapes. Unfortunately, the simple circle was a filled shape. So while it was easy to propagate it along a "path to text path", when I subtracted those from the base letter, it produced many hundreds of fragments. Best results, but wa-a-y too much time cleaning up bits.