Clone brush tool missing circle and hardness doesn't work

[michaeldrive]

My clone brush tool is only showing the cross hair, and the hardness doesn't change anything whether I have it on 100% or 0.  Is this a bug or is it me? (Mac Desktop)

Edited October 20, 2020 by michaeldrive

[GarryP]

Welcome to the forums @michaeldrive
It sounds like your brush size is too small.
Try changing the Width of the brush by either setting a new larger size via the Context Toolbar (see attached screen-grab) or pressing the “]” key a lot.

[michaeldrive]

Thank you, but I tried that, I can go all the way up with the width and I still get no circle with my clone brush, only the cross hair; and also the "hardness" still gives the same exact result whether I have it at 100% or 0%.  Weird.

[Dan C]

@michaeldrive Could you please provide a screen recording of you attempting to use the tool for us?

If you're unsure how to take a screen recording, please check out our FAQ linked below - 

 Many thanks in advance

[michaeldrive]

Thanks for your response, and yes, here's a screen recording for you, of my problem.

[GarryP]

I don’t use OS X but the cross-hair might be persistent after you change the Width if the ‘selection circle’ only changes size after the slider pop-up is closed. (On Windows, when using the slider I have to click elsewhere to see the size of the ‘selection circle’ change, until then it shows as a standard mouse pointer.) Try using the "[" and "]" keys to change the size and see if you still get the same problem.

As for the Hardness issue, I don’t know what’s happening there. I don’t use the Clone Brush very much so I’m not the best person to diagnose tricky problems with it but I can’t see anything in your video which is unusual (apart from the result you’re getting). Have you checked to see which brush you are using? Choosing a different brush might make a difference.

[Dazmondo77]

I've had this before - a restart worked for me

[Dan C]

@michaeldrive, my sincerest apologies for the delayed response here!

It's very possible this is due to your settings within preferences. Can you please open Affinity Photo > Preferences > User Interface and make sure that Always Show Brush Crosshairs is set to Off.

Please do let me know if this helps

 

[michaeldrive]

Thank you, guys for responding.

I tried all these things that you each suggested and it did not resolve the issue. (prefs/uncheck "always show brush crosshairs" box; width change, restart etc.  I really wish I knew what to do because I really use the clone tool frequently.  (Clone Stamp Tool) when I used to use PS (which I refuse to subscribe!) Help!

[GarryP]

The only guess I have left is to select a different brush (via the Brushes Panel).
One of the brush options may be messing things up and selecting a different one (thus resetting the settings) may do something.
Try selecting the “128 Round Brush” from the Basic set and see what happens.

[michaeldrive]

GarryP - You Rock!  THAT worked!!  The moment I selected the round brush from the Basic set, I got my circle back and the brush "hardness" now works like it's supposed to!  Last, but excellent suggestion. 

Thank you!

Michael

[GarryP]

You’re welcome.
It would be interesting to know which brush/setting/whatever was causing the issue in the first place but I’m glad you’re sorted now and can get on with your work.

[GregRobsonGarth]

I had this problem and restarting Affinity Photo 2 did the trick