Macro problem.

[HP27f]

Some time ago I started using the macro function in Affinity Photo.

To brighten a picture I wrote the following macro after opening a picture.

In Tab Layer.

1. New layer from snapshot/ background.

In layers at the right side.

2. In layer set opacity to 50%.

3. In layer set mode to Add.

In Tab Layer.

4. Merge down.

After use the macro is stored in the macro menu with the name “ lichter “.

Using the macro with another picture results in a picture with a shade of the picture from the first use through the new one.

What is wrong in this macro?

[Pšenda]

19 minutes ago, HP27f said:

What is wrong in this macro?

Placing the "question" would be more appropriate in the "Questions" section than in the bug report section - there is a better chance that someone will answer and advise you.

[Dan C]

Hi @HP27f,

Welcome to the Affinity Forums

Can you please open Affinity Photo and navigate to the Library Studio (where the macro is stored), then right-click on the macro and select Edit.

In the Macro Studio, you should now see the steps for this macro you have created - please select Export from the top toolbar options in this studio, to save this as a .afmacro file, and attach a copy of this here for me.

Many thanks in advance!

20 minutes ago, Pšenda said:

Placing the "question" would be more appropriate in the "Questions" section than in the bug report section

Thanks, I've moved the thread to the Questions section, until a bug is confirmed here

[John Rostron]

If you copy a layer or selection in a macro, then Photo will store the copied image in the macro itself. I suspect that the same is happening here. The new layer in step 1 is embedded in the macro, not the instruction to create a new layer.

On 7/19/2022 at 9:58 AM, HP27f said:

What is wrong in this macro?

Really nothing is wrong with the macro itself, it is the way that macros are implemented in Photo.

John

[Old Bruce]

5 hours ago, HP27f said:

What is wrong in this macro?

Step one, the snapshot is stored in the Macro. If it is a photo of a kitten then it will always be a photo of a kitten. Try Select the bottom layer, duplicate it do stuff ....

[smadell]

One additional comment…

Once you select the bottom layer, duplicate it, and set the opacity and blend mode - stop there! The “merge down” step makes this a destructive edit, and precludes the opportunity to go back and change the various settings after the fact. Other than some economy of file size, it does not seem that you gain anything from merging the duplicated layer; you do, however, lose significant editing potential further along in your edit.

[HP27f]

Attached the .afmacro file.

lichter.afmacro

[smadell]

good morning, @HP27f. As noted previously, your macro (when originally recorded) took up the photo you used during the recording. This was the result of a "copy" operation in one manner or another. You need a macro that does not do that!

I have attached a version of your macro, except that it will work on any photo without referencing an older one. I've also attached a brief video that I took while creating the macro, so you can see the steps as they occur. In brief:

1) Deselect (get rid of any selection that might exist on the document). - I do this most of the time, because in most cases an existing selection can screw up whatever the steps to the macro might be.

2) Deselect Layers - I also include this step in most of my macros, so that I can begin fresh.

3) Select the Background Layer - during macro recording, this brings up a dialog box asking how to specify which layer you mean to select. Be sure to choose "Select layer 1 from the bottom." This guarantees that you select the bottom-most layer in the stack.

4) Duplicate - this adds a copy of the background layer, just above it.

5) Set Opacity to 50%

6) Set Blend Mode to "Add"

7) I did not add a Merge Down command since, as I said in a previous post, this is an unnecessary step that makes this a destructive process.

I also created an alternate version of your macro, in which I get a similar result using a "Brightness and Contrast" adjustment instead of duplicating the background layer. I believe this is a "cleaner" and simpler method, and it allows me to put a dialog box into the macro in which you can choose the Brightness level (if you should want something a little lighter or darker).

Lighten Background.afmacro Lighten Background (alternate).afmacro

[HP27f]

Thanks for your help.I'm going to work with it.