Cutting out an Image in Affinity Photo

[CH Trippe]

So I want to cut out/extract an image --- a figure -- from a document so that I can place it on another background. I looked at two online tutorials, and it seemed pretty simple. I opened an image (a drawing) and used the selection brush to "isolate " it. I didn't do much refining/smooth of edges at this point, because I just wanted to see how this would work. One tutorial suggested using Refine, the other simply said to select Mask. On the tutorial, that worked like a charm --- there was the figure on the transparent background. But, when I chose mask --the whole figure was blanked out. At first I thought, well this was a drawing,  but when I tried a full color image, the same thing happened. Instead of a solid figure on a transparent ground, I had a transparent figure with selection lines around it on a transparent ground!  So clearly I did something wrong, but can't figure out what it was.  Any suggestions?Thank you! 

[IanSG]

1 minute ago, CH Trippe said:

I looked at two online tutorials

Could you provide a link to the one that's giving you problems, please?

[markw]

Like IanSG says if you could point us at the tutorials you were trying to follow that would help greatly in seeing where you may have gone wrong.
My first thought though is that if you ended up with something looking like the attached screenshot, then after selecting the figure in your image then maybe you hit ‘New Empty Mask Layer’ by mistake rather than choosing ‘New Mask Layer’.

[CH Trippe]

Thanks to both of you, Ian and Mark.  Mark, The image that you posted  above is, in fact, what I ended up with. But I am  certain that I did in fact  select New Mask, Layer not Empty Mask. In fact, I repeated this procedure several times, trying to figure out what I'd done wrong.   Below is the link to the tutorial I used this morning. The other one , which I found yesterday, was not a video, just a pictorial sequence with written directions, but it followed the same procedure.  After I had my image selected, I went to the MASK  icon at the bottom of the screen.  I am wondering if there is something wrong with the way I "selected' my figure. Do I need to drag the brush over the entire image, or just around it?  Seems like this video showed a larger brush going over the whole image, in circles --- but the one I looked at yesterday only made a selection AROUND the figure.   The last time I did anything like this, I was using the old Photoshop (Lite),  and it worked --- but I can't remember how it was done --- and this is the first time I've tried cutting out an image with Affinity.

li

[smadell]

Is there any chance that you had the Option key pressed when you clicked on the "New Mask" button? If you did, you would get the results you've shown. (Choosing New Mask with the Option key pressed is the equivalent of choosing "New Empty Mask" from the menu.) If not, I too am at a lost to explain what's happening here.

[MEB]

Hi CH Trippe,
Any chance you can record a clip performing the whole process (no need to create a detailed selection, a rough one will suffice) so we can see what's going on?

[markw]

Just watched the video you linked to, and he did pretty much what I would do and it consistently works as expected for me.
Really not sure what’s going wrong for you now…?
If you are able to make a screen recording of it not working for you that could be useful to see.
It could just be a one time aberration perhaps. Have you tried shutting down and then trying again?

 

[CH Trippe]

1 hour ago, smadell said:

Is there any chance that you had the Option key pressed when you clicked on the "New Mask" button? If you did, you would get the results you've shown. (Choosing New Mask with the Option key pressed is the equivalent of choosing "New Empty Mask" from the menu.) If not, I too am at a lost to explain what's happening here.

I don't think so --- but  I guess what I need to do is try it all again, and, if it still doesn't work,  maybe I'll be able to make some sort of screen record to show the process. I don't think I'm hitting any buttons I'm not supposed to. Affinity has never  been flukey --- it's usually me, if I don't do something right!  Anyway, I appreciate all the suggestions. So thanks again. 

[CH Trippe]

I have figured out what I did wrong. Initially, I was using a very small pixel width of the selection brush to trace around the outside of the image. After watching the video again, I went back and used a larger brush, and pulled it OVER the entire image, push/pulling the line using the Add & Subtract modes. At this point the line was pretty crude, but when I clicked on Refine, only the background turned red; then, when I chose Mask, the image appeared on the transparent background. That was the ONE essential thing I was doing wrong --- not actually "pulling" the outline over the whole image -- so in effect, I was only selecting the OUTLINE of the image.  OK --- the "isolated" image was pretty ragged, as I didn't bother to refine the edges --- but it did work. So with some practice, I ought to be able to get a better looking image, with smooth edges. 

[smadell]

You must have been using a really small brush to select just the outline! Nevertheless, I'm glad you figured it all out.

[CH Trippe]

That's right--- I was. It was way too small, so I didn't see what it was NOT doing ---  I didn't get it at first that I  was using the selection brush as though it were a pencil, going around the outside  of the image! Won't make that mistake again!  Well, there's always a learning curve.

[smadell]

4 minutes ago, CH Trippe said:

there's always a learning curve

Ain’t that the truth!