Jump to content
You must now use your email address to sign in [click for more info] ×

Dodge and Burn with Overlay Neutral Color 50% Grey?


Recommended Posts

Hello and Greetings from Germany.

I bought Affinity Photo and it is great. Love it.

 

But one question:

with photoshop I use the dodge and burn technique with adding a new layer with overlay mode and "fill with overlay neutral color 50% grey" option, than I painted the light and shadows with white and black brush. This was the best technique for me. Is there a similar way to work with affinity photo with this technique?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 9 months later...

I've tried this and it doesn't work. I've got a pixel layer, exactly 50%, overlay (also tried soft light) and even if I don't do any dodge or burn effects the layers beneath clearly get influenced by the gray layer. In photoshop this doesn't happen since the 50% gray get discarded. Is there a problem with the blending mode? I'm working in CMYK and I have Live Effects on the layer and some adjustment layers but the 50% gray is at the absolute top of the layer structure.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

mikaelcedergren,

 

If you place your pixel layer at the top of the layers, it will affect everything below it. If you want it not to affect some 'upper' layers, place it below them in the layers panel.

All 3 1.10.8, & all 3 V2.4.1 Mac apps; 2020 iMac 27"; 3.8GHz i7, Radeon Pro 5700, 32GB RAM; macOS 10.15.7
Affinity Photo 
1.10.8; Affinity Designer 1.108; & all 3 V2 apps for iPad; 6th Generation iPad 32 GB; Apple Pencil; iPadOS 15.7

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks R C-R. I get that, but the issue is that a 50% gray overlayed pixel layer shouldn't affect any layers at all, at least no visible affect. It doesn't in photoshop, but in Affinity it does therefore I cannot use the non-destructive dodge/burn technique. Maybe I missed pointing out one thing - I haven't dodged or burned anything on the 50% gray pixel layer. It's just flat and still affects all layers visibly.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Staff

Hi mikaelcedergren,

Welcome to Affinity Forums :)

Drag the grey overlay layer over the right part of the main image layer in the Layers panel (not over its thumbnail) until a blue horizontal line appears, then release the mouse. The grey overlay layer will now only affect its parent (the main image layer).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...
  • 2 months later...

can someone look at this again and tell if there is any way in AP to get a neutral grey layer in CMYK?

I am way out of my depth here but I thought "neutral grey" in CMYK color space was multivalued, & picking the "right" one depended on the printing conditions, ICC profiles in use, etc.

 

Like is mentioned here, "K" isn't black, it is the key color, so (as I understand it) its "blackness" can vary depending on the ink, the printing process, & the whiteness of the page. The article also discusses the methods used to calculate grey values (like UCR & GCR) for black replacement thresholds when the choice is between mixing CMY & K for reasons of economy or whatever. I do not pretend to understand this very well -- only the basic idea that mixing CMY inks don't produce the full range of grays & the K ink can compensate for that to a greater or lesser degree.

All 3 1.10.8, & all 3 V2.4.1 Mac apps; 2020 iMac 27"; 3.8GHz i7, Radeon Pro 5700, 32GB RAM; macOS 10.15.7
Affinity Photo 
1.10.8; Affinity Designer 1.108; & all 3 V2 apps for iPad; 6th Generation iPad 32 GB; Apple Pencil; iPadOS 15.7

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I wonder if the neutral grey in CMYK in PS is dependent on the printer profile in use, & if so do the CMYK values change if you change profiles? I also wonder if the same thing applies to AP, but I am too lazy otherwise occupied to check that for myself.  ^_^

All 3 1.10.8, & all 3 V2.4.1 Mac apps; 2020 iMac 27"; 3.8GHz i7, Radeon Pro 5700, 32GB RAM; macOS 10.15.7
Affinity Photo 
1.10.8; Affinity Designer 1.108; & all 3 V2 apps for iPad; 6th Generation iPad 32 GB; Apple Pencil; iPadOS 15.7

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 year later...

I've been trying to do non-destructive dodge/burn in CMYK mode, too, and the grey fill + overlay technique doesn't work. Has anyone found a way to do non-destructive dodge-burn in CMYK? It seems like this should be doable somehow. Affinity is pretty good at making things possible, if sometimes a bit obscure.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The opacity of the Dodge Brush and Burn Brush tools is set to 25% by default, so (depending on the image you're working on) the effect may be quite subtle. To convince yourself that something is really happening, try increasing the opacity setting to 50% or more.

Alfred spacer.png
Affinity Designer/Photo/Publisher 2 for Windows • Windows 10 Home/Pro
Affinity Designer/Photo/Publisher 2 for iPad • iPadOS 17.4.1 (iPad 7th gen)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi Applewood!

 

In RGB mode, the 50% gray plus overlay works perfectly. In RGB, adding the new pixel layer produces no visible changes in my image until I dodge/burn. In CMYK, however, just adding the 50%-gray layer immediately changes the tone of the entire image. Does that not happen for you?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Guidelines | We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.