Clipping mask, knockout text effect [affinity publisher]

[ivanozzo]

Hi all,

I'm trying to use a clipping mask to erase some parts of the cased roads layer (line) in order to make the text more readable, but without success...

This is the part of the road i want to knock out:

This is my workflow: 

I copy/paste the letter L (Curve) and increase the stroke (1 pt):

Finally, I use the L as a clipping mask:

the result:

The result i would like to achieve (https://somethingaboutmaps.wordpress.com/2015/05/08/type-knockouts-in-illustrator/):

Could someone help me? thanks!!! :)

[thatGuy]

I'd duplicate the letter/s, apply a stroke to the lower copy and set blend mode to erase, if you group it with the road layer only the road will get knocked out

 

[ivanozzo]

2 hours ago, thatGuy said:

I'd duplicate the letter/s, apply a stroke to the lower copy and set blend mode to erase, if you group it with the road layer only the road will get knocked out

 

Thanks!! It works!!!

[alx_Serif]

This solution doesn't have the flexibility offered by the solution offered on that cartography blog (linked in the original question). The issue here is that the text becomes anchored to the object it's place above. As a result, moving the text after grouping it with the object becomes a problem -- not to mention when there are multiple objects beneath the text. Still, this is a nice workaround.

[thatGuy]

@alx_Serif you can put it all (except your background and anything you don't want to be affected) in one group or layer, moving the text around independently is not a problem

[alx_Serif]

Thank you for this. Yes, it does work well. However, my comment still holds -- although I now realize it wasn't clear enough.

The issue with this solution is that the text or label needs to be grouped with the object or objects it's going to partially hide. This goes against most map creation workflows though. When producing maps, as you surely know, it's indeed a very good idea to keep similar elements together. So, all roads are put together, and all coast lines are grouped with other similar coast lines. The same is done with text labels, and other elements. This lets one change the appearance of all of those elements at once, easily and quickly. The work is thus more consistent and the chances of making mistakes is vastly reduced.

The workaround suggested above forces map creators to do away with this long established workflow, as it forces them to isolate certain labels and group them with the objects they need to partially cover. It's fine for one or two labels, sort of, but it becomes a real issue when one has to deal with tens of labels, all having to be grouped with other elements of the map, like, parts of a coast line, or a river, or a road, or a building and a road, etc. The project's organization takes a real beating, which makes mistakes more likely.

It would be better to achieve the effect seen above *without* having to group the text with the object(s) it's hiding.

[thomaso]

1 hour ago, alx_Serif said:

It would be better to achieve the effect seen above *without* having to group the text with the object(s) it's hiding.

In your preferred or current mapping workflow, how do you define up to what background layer the text stroke transparency should be applied?

1 hour ago, alx_Serif said:

When producing maps, as you surely know, it's indeed a very good idea to keep similar elements together. So, all roads are put together, and all coast lines are grouped with other similar coast lines. The same is done with text labels, and other elements. This lets one change the appearance of all of those elements at once, easily and quickly. The work is thus more consistent and the chances of making mistakes is vastly reduced.

The workaround suggested above forces map creators to do away with this long established workflow, as it forces them to isolate certain labels and group them with the objects they need to partially cover. It's fine for one or two labels, sort of, but it becomes a real issue when one has to deal with tens of labels, all having to be grouped with other elements of the map, like, parts of a coast line, or a river, or a road, or a building and a road, etc. The project's organization takes a real beating, which makes mistakes more likely.

I guess you wouldn't necessarily need to isolate certain layers (and remove them this way from their desired layer hierarchy). What if you maintain their layer order but combine them all on one layer, excluding the layer(s) which of the content you want to see around the text? Like so:

Main Layer TOP
• Text layers Layer
– text
– text
– (...)
• Illustration layers Layer
– buildings
– street
– street
– (...)
– railway
– river / lake / sea
– plants

Main Layer BOTTOM
– topography
– color / photo / (...)

[alx_Serif]

I'm still experimenting and seeing what works best for my needs, so this is indeed a good option.

Thank you for the suggestion.