embedded layer

[Erez]

how to create embedded layer in affinity photo?

[GarryP]

You can create an embedded document or embedded image via menu “File → Place”.
You can change whether documents/images are embedded or linked in new documents via the “New Dialog” / “Image Placement Policy” setting.
I don’t know if it’s possible to change the “Image Placement Policy” for existing documents – someone else might know.

Does this help, or do you mean some other kind of “embedded layer”?

[Erez]

@GarryP

@GarryP

I wanna know how to create embedded layer like mockup one that I will be able to change the photo in it but to keeg the perspective and blend mode

[GarryP]

Use menu “File → Place” to put your image into the document (as an Image Layer).
Then add a Live Perspective Filter to the image layer (manipulate as necessary).
Then change the Blend Mode of the image layer (if necessary).

You can then select the image layer and use the “Replace image” button on the Context Toolbar.
The Live Perspective Filter will be re-applied to the new image and the Blend Mode (if used) will persist after the change of image.

Does that help?

If you do a web search for affinity live perspective you should find some useful videos.

[v_kyr]

See for example also:

• Embedded Layers explained - Affinity Photo // Smart Layers, Smart Objects

[thomaso]

44 minutes ago, v_kyr said:

Embedded Layers explained (...)

Does one have any idea why Olivio here apparently prefers an "embedded" file & emphasizes that, – rather than using a linked file?

My question is initiated by experiencing two issues when trying this in APub:

• APub crashes as soon I edit an embedded .afpub – whereas it works like a charm if the same resource is linked instead.

• APub rasterizes the placed resource into a pixel layer (regardless of embedded or linked) as soon I open the Live Perspective Filter dialog (even before applying it).

[walt.farrell]

1 minute ago, thomaso said:

Does one have any idea why Olivio here apparently prefers an "embedded" file & emphasizes that, – rather than using a linked file?

Perhaps because with a Linked file you need to have a separate copy of the file, but with it Embedded you have everything you need in one location.

 

2 minutes ago, thomaso said:

APub crashes as soon I edit an embedded .afpub – whereas it works like a charm if the same resource is linked instead.

How about if you use an embedded .afphoto file instead. Why add all the complexity of a .afpub file into it?

3 minutes ago, thomaso said:

APub rasterizes the placed resource into a pixel layer (regardless of embedded or linked) as soon I open the Live Perspective Filter dialog (even before applying it).

The Live Perspective Filter should be within the embedded file, not applied outside of it.

[v_kyr]

27 minutes ago, thomaso said:

Does one have any idea why Olivio here apparently prefers an "embedded" file & emphasizes that, – rather than using a linked file?

Look at the time that video was created (03.03.2020) and guess with which "Affinity Photo" version! - And then see that the later "Affinity Photo v1.9" introduced linked files and linked layers etc.

• Affinity Photo 1.9 New Features

So IMO that's the main reason for embedded files here!

[thomaso]

59 minutes ago, walt.farrell said:

Perhaps because with a Linked file you need to have a separate copy of the file, but with it Embedded you have everything you need in one location.

But then why creating & embedding a separate document at all – instead doing it in 1 final document? For instance:

1 hour ago, walt.farrell said:

How about if you use an embedded .afphoto file instead. Why add all the complexity of a .afpub file into it?

Seems not to work. The placed .afpub is 1 page only with 1 placed image = rather uncomplex.
After renaming it in the macOS finder from .afpub to .afphoto + replacing it in the APub document then still APub crashes as soon I edit the embedded .afphoto resource.

Update: I tried 2 more times with the same two documents. Now, oddly, on the 3rd trial APub did not crash. Strange.
– FWIW, I add the first and the last of 8 crash reports with this workflow of editing an embedded Affinity document:

Affinity Publisher_2022-05-30-142126_mbp2.crash

Affinity Publisher_2022-05-30-161550_mbp2.crash

1 hour ago, walt.farrell said:

The Live Perspective Filter should be within the embedded file, not applied outside of it.

Also this seems not to work. Instead it appears I have to choose the Live Filter without the resource layer being selected. Otherwise the image or resource layer gets rasterized:

But choosing the Live Filter without a selected layer affects the entire page size, not the placed resource only, – regardless whether the live filter layer is inside the resource or outside. – So, maybe APub is not meant by design to handle a live filter this way?

[walt.farrell]

6 minutes ago, thomaso said:

Seems not to work. The placed .afpub is 1 page only with 1 placed image = rather uncomplex.

I think it's significantly more complex to have a page than to have a canvas.

6 minutes ago, thomaso said:

After renaming it in the macOS finder from .afpub to .afphoto + replacing it in the APub document then still APub crashes as soon I edit the embedded .afphoto resource.

I would start with Photo, and make a .afphoto document with a canvas. Simply renaming from .afpub to .afphoto does not make the document format any simpler.

8 minutes ago, thomaso said:

Also this seems not to work. Instead it appears I have to choose the Live Filter without the resource layer being selected. Otherwise the image or resource layer gets rasterized:

You would double-click on the embedded document, or choose Edit Document from the Context Menu. Then you are working on the document itself. Otherwise, you're working on the container layer, and yes it will be rasterized.

Again, you need the Filter to be part of the embedded document, not outside it.

[thomaso]

7 minutes ago, walt.farrell said:

I would start with Photo, and make a .afphoto document with a canvas. Simply renaming from .afpub to .afphoto does not make the document format any simpler.

Yes, that might be the reason. I just created a new .afphoto file + opened this in APub but I can't detect any difference towards the previous renamed file, except the canvas versus page difference. (different to AD vs APub and the option to convert artboards into pages).

If you know of any source describing fundamental differences of the 3 file formats I'd appreciate reading it.

[walt.farrell]

20 minutes ago, thomaso said:

If you know of any source describing fundamental differences of the 3 file formats I'd appreciate reading it

I don't, but in terms of increasing complexity I would consider documents with:

1. A canvas 

2. One or more Artboards 

3. One or more Pages. 

But it really should not matter what Affinity application created the file, or what file extension it has.

 

 

[Old Bruce]

38 minutes ago, thomaso said:

If you know of any source describing fundamental differences of the 3 file formats I'd appreciate reading it.

Make a Publisher file While the Text > Show Special Characters turned on. Now try and turn them off when you open that file in Designer or Photo.

[walt.farrell]

9 minutes ago, Old Bruce said:

Make a Publisher file While the Text > Show Special Characters turned on. Now try and turn them off when you open that file in Designer or Photo.

That's not a difference in file format, though. It's just a difference in which tools are exposed in each application. It wouldn't really matter whether the file was created in Publisher, Designer, or Photo. You could edit it in Publisher and turn that option on.

 

[thomaso]

1 hour ago, walt.farrell said:

I think it's significantly more complex to have a page than to have a canvas.

21 minutes ago, walt.farrell said:

But it really should not matter what Affinity application created the file, or what file extension it has.

Isn't this someway contradictory, in particular for a document with only 1 layout area and since each of the 3 apps can create only one of the three types canvas | artboard | page ?

[walt.farrell]

8 minutes ago, thomaso said:

Isn't this someway contradictory, in particular for a document with only 1 layout area and since each of the 3 apps can create only one of the three types canvas | artboard | page ?

Designer can create documents with a canvas, or with Artboards.

Photo can create documents with a canvas, but via macros or assets can also create documents with Artboards.

Publisher can create documents with Pages, or from the Designer Persona one with Artboards. (Both of those using File > New.) Or in Publisher the Photo Persona and Designer Persona can create a new document with a canvas (via File > New from Clipboard).

[thomaso]

6 minutes ago, walt.farrell said:

16 minutes ago, Old Bruce said:

Make a Publisher file While the Text > Show Special Characters turned on. Now try and turn them off when you open that file in Designer or Photo.

That's not a difference in file format, though. It's just a difference in which tools are exposed in each application. It wouldn't really matter whether the file was created in Publisher, Designer, or Photo. You could edit it in Publisher and turn that option on.

No idea what was causing this, but for some time now, Special Characters are enabled in my AD for every text frame in a new .afdesign document, different to existing .afdesign files.

This hint would theoretically mean that I would have to open each new .afdesign in APub first before I create it in AD? 😶

[walt.farrell]

6 minutes ago, thomaso said:

No idea what was causing this, but for some time now, Special Characters are enabled in my AD for every text frame in a new .afdesign document, different to existing .afdesign files.

One possibility is that you edited a file in Publisher, then later edited it in Designer, and while in Designer you used Edit > Defaults > Synchronize from Selection and Edit > Defaults > Save, which changed your default Text Frame settings.

[Old Bruce]

@thomaso,

Make a Publisher file with that special character on, save it and open it in Designer,the special characters should be on. Save and close it in Designer. Now open in Publisher and turn off the show special characters, save and close. Now open it in Designer, the special characters should be off.

[thomaso]

3 minutes ago, walt.farrell said:

Designer can create documents with a canvas, or with Artboards.

Photo can create documents with a canvas, but via macros or assets can also create documents with Artboards.

Publisher can create documents with Pages, or from the Designer Persona one with Artboards. (Both of those using File > New.) Or in Publisher the Photo Persona and Designer Persona can create a new document with a canvas (via File > New from Clipboard).

Quite interesting. Can I know, recognize or detect what type becomes or became created? For instance if I create in APubs Photo Persona a new document (as New or via From Clipboard) and save this still in the Photo Persona it gets by default automatically the suffix .afpub – although it actually contains a canvas then, no page?

Or, in what way is it then relevant what you mentioned before (and what made me ask about this at all):

3 hours ago, walt.farrell said:

How about if you use an embedded .afphoto file instead. Why add all the complexity of a .afpub file into it?

[walt.farrell]

53 minutes ago, thomaso said:

For instance if I create in APubs Photo Persona a new document (as New or via From Clipboard) and save this still in the Photo Persona it gets by default automatically the suffix .afpub – although it actually contains a canvas then, no page?

If you create it in Publisher but in the Photo Persona, using File > New, the document will have Pages. You only get a canvas-based document there using New from Clipboard.
Edit: Even with New from Clipboard you seem to get a Page-based document in the Photo Persona. But it will be a document with only 1 page and no Master Pages. As long it has only 1 page it acts very much like a canvas-based document in both Designer and Photo, but I suspect it is still in some way "more complex". I just don't know how to tell for sure.

You cannot tell by the file extension. You must Open the document and look at it in order to know for sure which form of document you have.

53 minutes ago, thomaso said:

Or, in what way is it then relevant what you mentioned before (and what made me ask about this at all):

I assumed (correctly, I think) that you were not using a .afpub document with a canvas, but one with pages

[thomaso]

5 minutes ago, walt.farrell said:

One possibility is that you edited a file in Publisher, then later edited it in Designer, and while in Designer you used Edit > Defaults > Synchronize from Selection and Edit > Defaults > Save, which changed your default Text Frame settings.

I appears that is not the reason. Because if I press "Revert Defaults" in an existing .afdesign it does not make the Special Characters appear. Also, if I copy such a text frame without showing Special Characters into a new .afdesign the it shows Special Characters – which appears to mean that the appearance of Special Characters is neither related to the Defaults nor comes with the text frame.

[walt.farrell]

54 minutes ago, thomaso said:

Because if I press "Revert Defaults"

I'm not sure any of us really understand what Revert Defaults does, from some other threads.

Edit > Defaults > Factory Reset might provide a better test, but it is, of course, more disruptive so you might not want to do that.

54 minutes ago, thomaso said:

Also, if I copy such a text frame without showing Special Characters into a new .afdesign the it shows Special Characters – which appears to mean that the appearance of Special Characters is neither related to the Defaults nor comes with the text frame.

I'm not sure exactly what "such a text frame" refers to. Sorry.

However, if you have the Defaults set so that Text Frames have that option turned on, then it would be set when you create the new .afdesign document. At that point, pasting another text frame in would not make a difference, because the document default is already set.

Edited May 30, 2022 by walt.farrell
Clarification.

[Old Bruce]

11 minutes ago, thomaso said:

For instance if I create in APubs Photo Persona a new document (as New or via From Clipboard) and save this still in the Photo Persona it gets by default automatically the suffix .afpub – although it actually contains a canvas then, no page?

Here on Mac when done as File > New it contains a page and maybe even a Master Page if I had that set in the new dialog. If I use File > New from Clipboard, I get a page just without a master page.

[thomaso]

3 minutes ago, walt.farrell said:

You must Open the document and look at it in order to know for sure which form of document you have.

What are the indicators? – Is there a way to detect from the Affinity UI the initially creating app in the two attached .afphoto files? And do you have an idea why the more complex file (2 image layers + 1 filter) is 1/3 file size than the other (1 image layer) which includes the same placed image resource? (same pixel dimension / resolution)

embed-for-mockup_a.afphoto 

embed-for-mockup_b.afphoto