Sweatman Posted September 26, 2022 Share Posted September 26, 2022 So my handlers feel my vector work "looks too Social Media". Meaning, they'd prefer a more painterly style - read: "avoid that hard-edge nonsense!". So I've been trying to try things like putting a slight blur on everything. Which helps a lot IMO. I've also done the obvious, which is to switch to pixel mode and (groan) paint in fills. Despite the tedious workflow, I think it looks great. BUT I still can't escape the sharp, hard vector outlines. The Designer Persona brushes look AMAZING, but I can't paint on em. =\ Pls see image below. I also tried getting fancy with the Photoshop. But this image was simply PSD witchcraft - add noise, blur, blend modes, blah, blah - which I'm totally open to...but in the end, I dunno if I really dig this look. Welp..... Thx for reading. =] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aammppaa Posted September 26, 2022 Share Posted September 26, 2022 The Designer persona, vector brushes can be rasterized, making them a pixel layer. You can then paint over them in Pixel persona, by checking Protect Alpha. It is not an ideal workflow as it is destructive, but might work for you? Sweatman 1 Quote Win10 Home x64 | AMD Ryzen 7 2700X @ 3.7GHz | 48 GB RAM | 1TB SSD | nVidia GTX 1660 | Wacom Intuos Pro Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimmyJack Posted September 27, 2022 Share Posted September 27, 2022 Use your stroked vector a mask for a pixel layer. Then you can paint "on" it as you like. The curve will stay flexible if needed, but, of course the painted pixels won't move with it. Aammppaa 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweatman Posted September 28, 2022 Author Share Posted September 28, 2022 @JimmyJackThanks! That sounds like an interesting idea!! But... 1) wouldn't I then have to pain the stroke separately from the inner shapes 2) I don't know how to do this. 😕 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thomaso Posted September 28, 2022 Share Posted September 28, 2022 Not quite sure what you want to achieve. You may want to apply brushes directly to the vector curves (although they would still be perfectly straight lines, less painterly than manually painted strokes) ... Quote macOS 10.14.6 | MacBookPro Retina 15" | Eizo 27" | Affinity V1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firstdefence Posted September 28, 2022 Share Posted September 28, 2022 Bit of a melon twister for a mid week day lol! Adding blurs and the like to make a vector look raster is a bit of an oxymoron. I get the vector flexibility and scalability but if you are adding pixel textures then you have lost scalability and flexibility that takes a hit too doesn't it. Adding pixel based brushes to get a fuzzy edge is ok but then are we really dealing with a vector image and on export what happens? Quote iMac 27" 2019 Somona 14.3.1, iMac 27" Affinity Designer, Photo & Publisher V1 & V2, Adobe, Inkscape, Vectorstyler, Blender, C4D, Sketchup + more... XP-Pen Artist-22E, - iPad Pro 12.9 (Please refrain from licking the screen while using this forum) Affinity Help - Affinity Desktop Tutorials - Feedback - FAQ - most asked questions Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweatman Posted September 28, 2022 Author Share Posted September 28, 2022 8 hours ago, firstdefence said: Bit of a melon twister for a mid week day lol! Adding blurs and the like to make a vector look raster is a bit of an oxymoron. I get the vector flexibility and scalability but if you are adding pixel textures then you have lost scalability and flexibility that takes a hit too doesn't it. Adding pixel based brushes to get a fuzzy edge is ok but then are we really dealing with a vector image and on export what happens? Good points. However, I don't care about flexibility and scalability. I prefer to "draw" in vectors for the speed specifically. When I first read about AD combining the two AS WELL AS employing vectors I thought "Eureka!". Fast forward almost two years to today....putting a blur on shapes (still scalable, but I don't care) has been a blessing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
v_kyr Posted September 28, 2022 Share Posted September 28, 2022 23 minutes ago, Sweatman said: So my handlers feel my vector work "looks too Social Media". ... However, I don't care about flexibility and scalability. I prefer to "draw" in vectors for the speed specifically. The point here is, there isn't much left from plain vectors then, if that was maybe the initial intension. - Due to all the pixel layers the whole will export in/as a vector format with a bunch of embedded pixel images. - Or the other way said, a pseudo vector file then, with more bitmap contents than vectors at all. Quote ☛ Affinity Designer 1.10.8 ◆ Affinity Photo 1.10.8 ◆ Affinity Publisher 1.10.8 ◆ OSX El Capitan ☛ Affinity V2.3 apps ◆ MacOS Sonoma 14.2 ◆ iPad OS 17.2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
debraspicher Posted September 28, 2022 Share Posted September 28, 2022 Can you show a few examples of what they are rejecting? "Hard edges bad" is hysterically subjective. Illustrative works can often have hard edges, especially inked works. It's a case of balance. Too many hard edges can make a piece feel sterile or "computerized", but including some soft edges in "key" positions can really give dimension. Quote Microsoft Windows 10 Home (Build 19045) AMD Ryzen 7 5800X @ 3.8Ghz (-30 all core +200mhz PBO); Mobo: Asus X470 Prime Pro 32GB DDR4 (3600Mhz); EVGA NVIDIA GeForce GTX 3080 X3C Ultra 12GB Monitor 1 4K @ 125% due to a bug Monitor 2 4K @ 150% Monitor 3 (as needed) 1080p @ 100% WACOM Intuos4 Large; X-rite i1Display Pro; NIKON D5600 DSLR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thomaso Posted September 28, 2022 Share Posted September 28, 2022 20 minutes ago, debraspicher said: Can you show a few examples of what they are rejecting? Or can you show samples they would like? I wonder if they have not "hard edge" in mind but rather the perfect straightness of typical vector shaped curves. Their / your "painterly" may indicate such. (a jitter filter for vector curves would be nice;) Quote macOS 10.14.6 | MacBookPro Retina 15" | Eizo 27" | Affinity V1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweatman Posted September 28, 2022 Author Share Posted September 28, 2022 Orc = good. lobster = not so good. The solution (if there is one) doesn't HAVE to be done in AD. Which is why I mentioned a possible PSD solution earlier. I only posted the question here thinking that other AD folks may have encountered a similar situation. silkfredstudentdiscount 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thomaso Posted September 29, 2022 Share Posted September 29, 2022 It appears the orc has a lot more structure and its surface looks more natural, organic – while the lobster appears slightly artificial, oversaturated and glossy like plastic. – Trial without painting: 1 px blur on a copy (75% opacity, adjusted blend range), reduced glossy spots and reduced saturation with an HSL adjustment. On top a rectangle with an elliptical cyan-to-transparent gradient in softlight blend mode. Sweatman 1 Quote macOS 10.14.6 | MacBookPro Retina 15" | Eizo 27" | Affinity V1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweatman Posted September 29, 2022 Author Share Posted September 29, 2022 Thanks for all the fish, Everybody! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
debraspicher Posted September 30, 2022 Share Posted September 30, 2022 On 9/28/2022 at 1:51 PM, Sweatman said: Orc = good. lobster = not so good. The solution (if there is one) doesn't HAVE to be done in AD. Which is why I mentioned a possible PSD solution earlier. I only posted the question here thinking that other AD folks may have encountered a similar situation. Oof. The Orc is painted. Not the same process, so not the most helpful comparison. Still, the painterly look can be achieved with a slow build up of low opacity gradients/transparencies/overlays to build up lighting details, specifically, color temperature adjustments. I will say that the lobster has too many outlines, in conjunction with the shadows/detail work creating "faux" outlines by way of hard edges. (In other words, the details are too explicit). Shadows here create hard edges whereas in the real world, details tend to be lost in the shadows, and thus appear "blurrier", whereas the color's temperature tends to be cooler. Despite the "purple" in the crab, the piece is almost 100% warm color tones. The orc makes use of ambient lighting and let's color temperature do the work to create hard/soft edges. Even though the piece is technically "cooler", the details in the face appear "warm" which help them stand out. You'll notice the details in the shadows/background is not as sharp and there's no use of black. An aside, in painting, we're told to mix our own black, ie never use straight tube black as it creates hard edge/flat look and doesn't help with dimension. Bounced light can be used in place of edge details to create dimension. As for process... "Art by Flo" regularly mixes up raster details with vector (her pieces vary...). I find a lot of Procreate artists have moved away from the 100% painterly/raster approach since the program allows for speedier layer creation, and so vectors are often used to create a painterly comp. It might be someplace to start. Quote Microsoft Windows 10 Home (Build 19045) AMD Ryzen 7 5800X @ 3.8Ghz (-30 all core +200mhz PBO); Mobo: Asus X470 Prime Pro 32GB DDR4 (3600Mhz); EVGA NVIDIA GeForce GTX 3080 X3C Ultra 12GB Monitor 1 4K @ 125% due to a bug Monitor 2 4K @ 150% Monitor 3 (as needed) 1080p @ 100% WACOM Intuos4 Large; X-rite i1Display Pro; NIKON D5600 DSLR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweatman Posted September 30, 2022 Author Share Posted September 30, 2022 38 minutes ago, debraspicher said: Oof. The Orc is painted. Not the same process, Thank you for your keen observation. That's why I asked the question. I like vector; my Directors like raster. Dunno how to break the question down any simpler. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
debraspicher Posted September 30, 2022 Share Posted September 30, 2022 1 hour ago, Sweatman said: Thank you for your keen observation. That's why I asked the question. I like vector; my Directors like raster. Dunno how to break the question down any simpler. Right. It isn't the most helpful example if this were what you were given for "good". My background is painting, so I offered what perspective I could. Take care. Quote Microsoft Windows 10 Home (Build 19045) AMD Ryzen 7 5800X @ 3.8Ghz (-30 all core +200mhz PBO); Mobo: Asus X470 Prime Pro 32GB DDR4 (3600Mhz); EVGA NVIDIA GeForce GTX 3080 X3C Ultra 12GB Monitor 1 4K @ 125% due to a bug Monitor 2 4K @ 150% Monitor 3 (as needed) 1080p @ 100% WACOM Intuos4 Large; X-rite i1Display Pro; NIKON D5600 DSLR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweatman Posted November 4, 2022 Author Share Posted November 4, 2022 You too, D! Safe Holidays. =] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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