Displacement, displacement …

[Dr_No]

Hello again … Once more we return to Fun In The Sun, or … Questions With No Known Answer. Pick one - can't be wrong, might be right. But to the point: 

Today’s Primary Question is: Can Affinity Photo utilise displacement maps in the manner Photoshop does? If so, is it allowable to be told what is the Double-Secret Majickal Incantation spoken in hushed tones so as to appease the Gods of Displacement Map Headings? 

Our Bonus Round question: What ‘secret sauce’ is required in order to blend two images so that the lower (bottom) image is revealed by the partial concealment of the upper (top) image in the stack? I've clicked ‘The Cog’ and changed the “linear” setting to freeform for the Master and the individual colors, which does allow for a bit more customisation and ‘bleed-thru’ of layering, but it still appears to be a bit dodgy. Granted, it may be lack of skill on the part of the operator, but if there’s something that allows for a bit more precision in the blending, why, the knowledge of how to achieve that is muchly desired. 

Thanks again to all for your collective and individual insight into these (and, to be sure, other) problems in the ongoing Process of Learning the Mystical Yet Somehow Marginally Profound Secrets of Affinity Photo’s Inner Sanctum & Discreet Operations … 

[walt.farrell]

https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=tutorials+for+use+of+displacement+maps+in+affinity

[firstdefence]

Greetings fellow earther, There is a live displacement filter that can load displacement maps...

Re the bonus question lol, take a look at masks, these can be painted onto with varying tones of greyness to show or hide. Black reveals, white conceals.

[Dr_No]

Whoaaaaaaaa … ! Who’da thunk … !? I shall hie meself back into Photo after viewing the tute at Walt's link. After that, I shall endeavor muchly to deploy the Displacement Filter (izzat a HALO thing?) … as for the masks, that’s something I've used as Standard Practice since Gawd-knows-when … it’s easy, it’s effective - what’s not to like? As for the Live Displacement filter, I never realised (or noticed, really) that it had the tick-y button to select ‘Load DMap from File.’ That’s on me. See what gettin' caught up in detail will do to the ol’ Attention Spanner? Affinity Jedi, if thou art of the Corps, thank you for your service. You say ‘Urrah!’, we say ‘Hooah!’ … same deal, yes?