Affinity Photo 2 and Refine

[sonata31]

Hello
New to Affinity 2 on MacOS, I have a problem with the "Refine" selection tool
I have an image with a subject on a uniform background, so I used the "Flood Select" tool to select the background, then I used "Invert Pixel Selection" in order to select the subject
To refine the selection of the subject I then click on "Refine"
I paint the unselected parts of the subject in order to add them to the selection, but it doesn't do anything
I have the following settings:
Preview: Overlay
Output: Selection

Thanks for your help
Louis

[Komatös]

Hi @sonata31

I would recommend you to use the Selection Brush instead of the Flood Selection Tool.

Use a larger brush tip for large contiguous areas and a correspondingly smaller brush size for small filigree areas.
It doesn't matter if small areas of the area to be removed are also selected, you can remove them afterwards with Refine.

 

[sonata31]

Hello
First thank you for your answer
I tried with "Selection Brush" but I can't do it
Here is the image I am using, I would like to select the horse with all its hair

Thanks for your help
Louis

[GarryP]

You might like to watch the video at the top of this thread:
https://forum.affinity.serif.com/index.php?/topic/163643-best-way-to-select-hair-and-fur-precisely-in-affinity-photo/

If that’s not what you want, try searching the forums for select hair and see what else you can find.

[sonata31]

Hello
My problem is that whatever the method to make the selection, when I use Refine nothing happens, the selection is not modilfied

Thanks for your help
Louis

[Dan C]

Welcome to the Affinity Forums @sonata31 

48 minutes ago, sonata31 said:

My problem is that whatever the method to make the selection, when I use Refine nothing happens, the selection is not modilfied

Sorry to hear this - are you able to provide a screen recording showing this issue for me so that we can investigate further?

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

Many thanks in advance!

[sonata31]

Hello Dan
I will try to see how to make a video capture

Thanks for your help
Louis

[sonata31]

Hello Dan
Here is the video capture
We can see that the hairs are not selected although I painted them with Refine
Thanks for your help
Louis

[Dan C]

Many thanks for providing that for me!

3 hours ago, sonata31 said:

My problem is that whatever the method to make the selection, when I use Refine nothing happens, the selection is not modilfied

I'm not seeing the same behaviour in your recording, comparing the selection before refining - 

To the selection after refining - 

This shows to me that the Refine Selection tool is adjusting your selection, however with such a large brush and 1 stroke around the image, some of the hair may be missed.

You will need to use a smaller brush at a higher zoom level for your image to ensure that more of the hair is included in the selection.

You may then need to further adjust the mask using the brush tools, as shown in the above link from GarryP.

I hope this helps!

[sonata31]

Hello Dan
Thank you for this explanation and thank you again for your help.
Louis