Selection tool not working properly since last update

[ds.johnston]

Hello, 

Have been using Affinity Photo for a while now for astrophotography. I used to be able to select and mask stars from my images so I could edit them accordingly without touching the rest of the image.

Now when I select stars, the selection always takes a semi transparent selection of the whole image plus what I have selected. This means I can no longer edit my selected areas (or use the mask tool) without editing the whole image at once. I can't even cut and paste any more as the selection won't stick to what I specifically select any more.

Screen shot attached. How do I fix this? I am pretty sure this is a bug.

 

Image 1 shows my selection (the stars)

Image 2 shows that no matter what I do, the whole image is selected in a semi transparent way PLUS my intended selection (the stars).

 

Why is this happening and how can it be fixed?

[ds.johnston]

p.s this is specifically a problem when using any of the options with the "Select Sampled Colour" function

[NotMyFault]

Hi, could you upload one example document?
If possible, simplified and reduced to the essence where the bug is still reproducible 

• RGB/32 format, single pixel layer
• could be cropped to a relevant area
• a Screen recording about your exact steps how you select colors
• if possible, activate the following panels and include them into recording 
  • layers panel
  • channels panel (showing selection thumbnail)
  • navigator panel
  • info panel. Please add some color samplers at fixed positions in RGB or HSL mode
  • parameter settings for SSC (tolerance)

some preflight checks:

• is pixel layer 100% opaque?
• which color do you sample? RGB or HSL values
• save the selection result as mask or spare channel
• save file with history
   

i reported an issue with SSC if partial transparent pixel are in the document , but your issue sounds different 

 

[ds.johnston]

 

 Not sure you have understood me correctly as I am only talking about the selection tool. In the past I used this tool to select only the stars in my image. Since the recent update the "select sampled color" tool now selects the entirely image in some weird partial transparent way. The option I used for the "select sampled color" tool is "Intensity".

My work flow is exactly the same as this youtube video (this is the video where I learnt the technique from):

 

This now does not work in Affinity photo as the selections are including the entire image. My image is 100% and the layer is rasterised. I have tried doing everything in new documents, in both 16bit and 32bit. I have attached my project for you to see if you can replicate the problem using the workflow I used (taken from the youtube video). I would upload my project but it's too large to upload.

When selecting stars, the purpose is to preserve the quality of the stars only.

 

[RichardMH]

It works OK for me on a PC. 1.10.5.1342

[R C-R]

1 hour ago, ds.johnston said:

I have attached my project for you to see if you can replicate the problem using the workflow I used (taken from the youtube video).

Maybe I just missed it but I can't see any *.afpub project file attached to any of your posts.

[ds.johnston]

Sadly, the file won't upload. It's 458mb and I can't upload it. Is there another way to get the file to you?

[NotMyFault]

32 minutes ago, ds.johnston said:

Sadly, the file won't upload. It's 458mb and I can't upload it. Is there another way to get the file to you?

1. Copy the source layer. 
2. new from clipboard
3. crop a suitable section of about 1000x1000px
4. rasterize and trim
5. Save as afphoto file.

this selection should be small enough for uploading. As you said the issue happens in RGB/16 too, use this format to save storage.

 

[ds.johnston]

CaliNeb_EDIT_13.03.22 - Copy.afphoto

[Dan C]

Hi @ds.johnston,

Thanks for the file and link to the tutorial provided - the user in the tutorial is editing a 16/bit sRGB document, if I convert the document you have provided to this colour space, the steps shown in the tutorial work as expected for me:

If you are seeing different behaviour after converting the file, can you please provide a screen recording showing the steps you're taking?

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

Many thanks

[ds.johnston]

Thanks for the suggestion. I did try this is a new document entirely and whilst the result is better, my selections are still picking up most of the image rather than what I am trying to target (the stars only - I didn't select the nebula but for some reason it is still being picked up). Here's my result following your suggestion:

 

[Dan C]

Unfortunately I'm not certain of the cause of this from a screenshot only, as requested above I'd need a screen recording showing the exact steps you're taking so that I can investigate further - as myself and RichardMH are able to use this workflow as expected currently!

[Dan C]

According to the users History Studio in the above screenshot, the mask appears to be created after the selection is made/edited - so I'm not 100% certain that this is the cause, but a screen recording from OP should help to confirm 

[ds.johnston]

I have done the screen recording for you. I can assure you that all layers are 100% opacity - there is no transparency in any of the layers.

I know the issue has nothing to do with the mask because I get the same problem even I simply copy and paste my selection. Even when I copy and paste it doesn't just copy my selection, it also copies a degree of transparency of the whole image.

 

 

[NotMyFault]

Hi, can you please activate the channels panel, and scroll so that the „pixel selction“ thumbnail is visible all the time? 
this thumbnail is the only trustful control to see what pixel get selected. The marching ants only show a line indicating the border between less than and more than half-selected pixels.

you will be able to visually see when the selection parameters (tolerance) or the selected pixel lead to a wrong selection. 

[NotMyFault]

I work on iPad and use the flood selection tool, but the same applies for select sampled color.

see when the thumbnail becomes full white, but no noticeable change in marching ants 🐜 

 

[ds.johnston]

 

 

Here is a screen recording where I have simply selected and then copied and paste my selection.

 

 

[ds.johnston]

 

 

[ds.johnston]

Here is the screenshot of the "pixel selection". The nebula is still there when it wasn't selected. The background is also still being picked up (but in a semi transparent kind of way).

[ds.johnston]

p.s I was also unable to download the mov. file you attached to this topic.

[Dan C]

Many thanks for your recording - I've been able to reproduce the mask you've been creating & it seems to simply be determined by where you are clicking to sample your selected 'colour'.

As shown in the below screen recording, if I select the pixels to the side of the star, where they are less intense and blend with the black background, then the selection/mask created will have partial transparencies due to the app trying to match the intensity of the blended pixel(s) you selected.

However if I specifically select one of the central pixels in the star, where the intensity is highest, the mask is then created as expected:

[Dan C]

55 minutes ago, ds.johnston said:

p.s I was also unable to download the mov. file you attached to this topic.

This is a known bug with the forums & MOV files currently, apologies. I've since fixed the issue for the above recording provided by NotMyFault

[ds.johnston]

Ok great, just tested out and now I am able to achieve creating a mask for my stars. Thank you for working through that with me.

Is there not a feature whereby stars can be selected and masked automatically? I can see Affinity Photo are trying to be the go to software for astrophotography processing, and creating star masks is one of the most common and crucial parts of processing astro images.

[Dan C]

No problem at all, that's great to hear!

1 hour ago, ds.johnston said:

Is there not a feature whereby stars can be selected and masked automatically?

Currently there's no built in feature for this - however James our resident Astro expert has a free macro pack created for Affinity Photo, which can automatically create star masks and remove star details, as well as many, many more options. Please find this linked below:

https://jamesritson.gumroad.com/l/jr_astrophotography_macros