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

Blur Brush After affinity Update.


Recommended Posts

After updating my Affinity Photo, I find that the blur brush no longer shows a preview when hovering over an image. Instead, there's the chequered look that comes with background erasing.

Thus, I can only tell how blurred the effect on an image is when I move the brush after hoping for the best. What can I do?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have been able to replicate this in Photo 1.9.0.932 on Windows 10.
See attached video.
Unless this is some strange new way of working I think this needs to be reported as a bug as I can’t see how this ‘helps’.
Maybe best to see what others think before actually reporting it though as we might both be using it wrong.

Edit: Just noticed that if I disable "OpenCL Compute acceleration" in Preferences then things go back to ‘normal’. I’d say it’s a bug.

 

Edited by GarryP
Added extra note.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

FWIW– I'm also using Windows 10 and  Photo1.9.0.932. The Blur Tool seems to be working the same as it always has for me. The opacity setting still doesn't do anything (it never has!), but, apart from that, it's OK.

Acer XC-895 : Core i5-10400 Hexa-core 2.90 GHz :  32GB RAM : Intel UHD Graphics 630 : Windows 10 Home
Affinity Publisher 2 : Affinity Photo 2 : Affinity Designer 2 : (latest release versions) on desktop and iPad

Link to comment
Share on other sites

PaulEC: Have you got OpenCL Compute acceleration enabled in Preferences/Performance?

Note: I’ve just checked and the problem occurs when OpenCL Compute acceleration is enabled whether my Renderer is set to my internal Intel GPU (allowed for acceleration) or my additional NVIDIA GPU (not allowed for acceleration). Switching OpenCL Compute acceleration OFF with either GPU as the Renderer makes it work again.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

29 minutes ago, GarryP said:

Have you got OpenCL Compute acceleration enabled in Preferences/Performance?

No.

Looking at a few posts, it does look like enabling OpenCL can cause a few display problems. 

Acer XC-895 : Core i5-10400 Hexa-core 2.90 GHz :  32GB RAM : Intel UHD Graphics 630 : Windows 10 Home
Affinity Publisher 2 : Affinity Photo 2 : Affinity Designer 2 : (latest release versions) on desktop and iPad

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I hate to add anything more, I really do...

But, has the blurring strength gone down with the update? I used Affinity 1.6 for the longest time, and it seems that even at maximum opacity and hardness, 1.9 doesn't have as much of a strong blur. I did switch PC's before the update, so I'm just wondering if there's something I may have overlooked.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I don’t use the Blur Brush Tool myself much, and have only used it since the update for this thread, so I can’t really say.
What I can suggest is to check the brush you are using with the tool.
If you are using a ‘weak’ brush – one with a lot of transparency, e.g. “Textures – Grunge Pattern 02” – then the effect will be weaker than if you use a ‘strong’ brush – e.g. “Basics – Round Brush” – which has less transparency.
If that’s not the cause then it will need looking into further, unless someone else has an immediate answer.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

8 hours ago, GarryP said:

I don’t use the Blur Brush Tool myself much, and have only used it since the update for this thread, so I can’t really say.
What I can suggest is to check the brush you are using with the tool.
If you are using a ‘weak’ brush – one with a lot of transparency, e.g. “Textures – Grunge Pattern 02” – then the effect will be weaker than if you use a ‘strong’ brush – e.g. “Basics – Round Brush” – which has less transparency.
If that’s not the cause then it will need looking into further, unless someone else has an immediate answer.

Yeah, I tend to use the round basic brushes for most things, anyway.

It just seems that the blurring effect comes out with an unsharpened look, rather than heavy blurring at its maximum setting and capacity.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Unfortunately I can’t really help more here as the Blur Brush Tool looks like it’s working okay for me but I haven’t used it enough to notice a difference from previous versions.
If you can supply a sample image – before and after blurring – with instructions (or a video) saying exactly what you are doing then someone else may be able to figure out if something is wrong.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A couple of things to keep in mind. The Opacity setting on the Blur Brush doesn't seem to do anything, you need to use the Flow setting to alter the strength of the effect. Also, apart from the type of brush you're using, the resolution of the image will affect how obvious the effect is, as will the magnification you are viewing it at. An alternative to using the Blur Brush, especially if you want a strong effect, is to create a blur layer, invert the mask and paint in the areas you want blurred. (You can then use the opacity setting for the blur layer to fine tune it.)

Acer XC-895 : Core i5-10400 Hexa-core 2.90 GHz :  32GB RAM : Intel UHD Graphics 630 : Windows 10 Home
Affinity Publisher 2 : Affinity Photo 2 : Affinity Designer 2 : (latest release versions) on desktop and iPad

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've attached some images below that may help illustrate what I mean. The first is the original, the second is how Affinity now blurs at maximum and the last is the closest to how it used to look.

My brush is always the round basic ones, and I keep the opacity, flow and hardness at 100%. If I go over the desired area for blurring a few times, then the blur becomes more apparent. But, I hope that this is not the only solution available?

BlakeI.jpg

0.jpg

....jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I’ve attached a video which shows how it’s working for me on your original image with one continuous application of the tool (mouse button kept down all the time).
Opacity/Flow/Hardness all 100% with a basic round brush.
If you’re not getting the same result then the only suggestion I have left is to press the More button on the Context Toolbar and press the Reset button and see if that makes a difference.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Yes, I'm getting the same affect after going over an area continuously to receive that high level of blurring. 

I usually cut out images and sometimes blur the edges, so going over the edges repeatedly seems to be the only solution? I had hoped that a stronger blur would be apparent on a single stroke of the brush, but that doesn't seem feasible now.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think the Blur Brush Tool is supposed to be a subtle way of blurring small areas and, as such, the blur effect is added slowly giving the user more control over what happens.
If you want a more ‘industrial strength’ blur then I would suggest using a Live Gaussian Blur Filter instead.
See attached video.
A live filter requires a tiny bit more initial set-up but, because it is non-destructive, you can adjust it later to fix things that aren’t quite right.

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.