SVG Import - Problems with gradients

[cdordelly]

Hello!

I want to ask if there is limited support with SVG files and gradients. if I try to open for example this .svg from this link:



https://www.sidefx.com/docs/houdini/icons/VOP/kinefx-transformfrompath.svg

In Affinity v2 it appears like this:



I don't know if I'm missing something, please let me know if you know what can be causing this unexpected interpretation.

Thanks a lot!

 

[cdordelly]

Hello!

This is still happening on the new 2.0.3 build.

I hope that you can find out what is causing this, thanks!

[lacerto]

This SVG file is a good demonstration of problems related to transferability of advanced vector graphics features like fills and outlines containing transparent gradients. While Inkscape does a good job in exporting these features to a PDF file (attached below), the original SVG file contains Inkscape specialties that do not transfer perfectly to other vector graphics apps like Affinity Designer, CorelDRAW or Illustrator (very old CS6 tested only, though), even when exporting from Inkscape using plain SVG format. So instead of using the native or simplified SVG format, it is sometimes better to export and import using the PDF format (or sometimes possibly even EPS):

kinefx-transformfrompath_cropped.pdf

Partially the problems are related to another app (like CorelDRAW) not supporting natively a specific feature (like gradients or “fountain fills” as they are called in CorelDRAW, in object outlines [strokes in Affinity apps]), and partially to complexity related to transferring a feature that has been converted to PDF back to native objects trying to retain all aspects and attributes of the original objects. As for this specific image, Xara Designer seems to import original features otherwise most accurately but has odd polygonal artifacts in imported circles with gradient transparency in strokes. Direct copy paste from Inkscape to Affinity Designer via Clipboard works also well but has inaccuracies in some details.  

So this specific design could be transferred to fully editable vector design, retaining most if not all properties of the original design, by combining different elements rendered in different apps (or converting individual elements to native elements and reapplying equivalent formatting parameters), but it seems that there is no other app that could perfectly open the Inkscape created SVG (neither in “Inkscape SVG”, “Plain SVG” or PDF format).

This file also shows why native implementations are required: they allow advanced features, more effectively and intuitively operating control over complex features, etc. , even when not extending the standard. While they can be successfully produced in vector formats like PDF, editability can be transferred normally only partially. This also explains why there are such modifications as “Inkscape SVG”, “Photoshop EPS”, or “Illustrator EPS”, “Xara EPS”, “FreeHand EPS”, etc., indicated by the following list of import formats of Xara Designer 19 (note how many extended EPS formats are very old and version specific, so one may well ask how "standardized" EPS has ever been):

Anyway, extended EPS formats are not necessarily expressions of evil mind and aspiration to monopoly 😉

 

[cdordelly]

Thanks a lot for the explanation. So in theory, the correct thing to say is that it would be nice to have more extended support for SVG / vector files with advanced features right? 

If I open the .SVG file that I shared on the first post in Illustrator, is interpreted correctly:



Now, based on what you said, I tried to export a new .svg from Illustrator and in .eps too, and open the three formats again in Affinity Photo V2, here are the results:






 

As we can see, the re-exported .SVG now appears correctly in Affinity Photo v2, and if I open the .AI or the .EPS they appear almost fine, they only have some rasterization interpretation that appears as pixelated sections.

So, it would be nice to have more extended support for vector imports.

Thanks.