Topaz Studio 2 Won’t Open

[TeaLeaves]

I’ve searched this forum but haven’t seen an answer to my question. I’ve set up Topaz Studio 2 as a plug-in using the settings in the screenshot below.

When I have a rasterized layer and click on the Topaz Studio 2, nothing happens. The plug-in doesn’t open. I’ve been in contact with topaz support and they said that there is not a plug-in folder like you would see on PS for AP.

Has anyone else run into this issue or know of a way to resolve it? I’m not able to link to the “/contents” folder while updating AP settings. 

[walt.farrell]

Welcome to the Serif Affinity forums.

Please provide a screenshot of the complete application window, showing the Layers panel with the layer you're operating on selected. Also, what color format is your document? RGB/8, or 16, or 32?

[TeaLeaves]

Thank you! The color format of my document is RGB/8.

[walt.farrell]

Thanks. I'm not sure what's going on, unfortunately. I hope someone else will have an idea to help resolve it.

[v_kyr]

On 9/21/2023 at 10:41 PM, TeaLeaves said:

I’ve set up Topaz Studio 2 as a plug-in using the settings in the screenshot below.

Even the Topaz website shows it this way ...

• https://docs.topazlabs.com/photo-ai/plugins/affinity-photo

... that doesn't look to be the right path/place to add. - According to the below video it should be instead ...

Quote

"/Contents/Resources/PS_Plugins/"

 

• How to Install Topaz Studio and Test Drive - Affinity Photo

 

Is there inside the Topaz app folder the following PS_Plugin folder?

Quote

"/Contents/Resources/PS_Plugins/"

 

[TeaLeaves]

I don't see folder path in the screenshot from Topaz site you shared. Thanks for the video. I have my plugin search folder set up that way, but I'm still running into my original issue. For whatever reason, my file path isn't showing up as /Content but I did navigate to the folder per the YouTube video shared. As you can see in my screenshot, in the "history" tab it shows that the Plugin was used but the Studio Plugin never popped up for me to use as a filter.

[v_kyr]

11 minutes ago, TeaLeaves said:

I don't see folder path in the screenshot from Topaz site you shared ...

That's from the video, further I asked more after to go (via Finder etc.) into the Topaz Application folder and then manually inspect if there is a ...

• "/Applications/Topaz Labs LLC/Contents/Resources/PS_Plugins/"

... at all?  So does the Topaz Application app folder do contain deeper structured any "PS-Plugins" or "plugins" subfolder, where the plugin parts of the app do reside in?

---

As an example for the former times NIK Collection, things had to be path-wise setup like this for me ...

... aka insert the complete search path for where the plugins reside in on top and leaving the bottom support folder as "/".

 

[TeaLeaves]

I guess I wasn't clear in my last post. Yes, I have that folder path. Yes, I navigated to it in my AP settings and set it up as the plugin support folder in AP. Because I have Studio 2 and not Studio the path is: Topaz Studio 2/Topaz Studio 2.app/Content. 

I am still unable to get Topaz Studio 2 to open after following the video and setting up per my previous screenshot.

[v_kyr]

27 minutes ago, TeaLeaves said:

I guess I wasn't clear in my last post. Yes, I have that folder path. Yes, I navigated to it in my AP settings and set it up as the plugin support folder in AP. Because I have Studio 2 and not Studio the path is: Topaz Studio 2/Topaz Studio 2.app/Content. 

So there is NO deeper nested "Topaz Studio 2/Topaz Studio 2.app/Content/plugins" or "Topaz Studio 2/Topaz Studio 2.app/Content/resources/ps_plugins" path?

In case there is, point and include/add the complete "plugin" / "ps_plugin" to the top search settings and leave the bottom one as just "/" and retry.

Otherwise list the app's contexts folders substructes here, in order to see where the plugin module files do actually reside in.

[TeaLeaves]

1 minute ago, v_kyr said:

So there is NO deeper nested "Topaz Studio 2/Topaz Studio 2.app/Content/plugins" or "Topaz Studio 2/Topaz Studio 2.app/Content/resources/ps_plugins" path?

In case there is, point and include/add the complete "plugin" / "ps_plugin" to the top search settings and leave the bottom one as just "/" and retry.

Yes, I have that folder path. 
 

I have updated as you suggested using that as the top folder path and leaving the bottom as /. I am still unable to get topaz studio 2 to open 

[v_kyr]

3 minutes ago, TeaLeaves said:

Yes, I have that folder path. 
 

I have updated as you suggested using that as the top folder path and leaving the bottom as /. I am still unable to get topaz studio 2 to open

Can you reshow your actual plugin settings of that as a screenshot? And also take a look if there have been Topaz plugin related new APh menu entries be added at all.

[R C-R]

Since "Topaz Studio 2..." is listed as Unknown" in the OP's Settings and the History panel shows that it was used, then it almost certainly is set up correctly in Settings, so the problem is not with how that is configured but with something else.

It might help if @TeaLeaves could post a screenshot of the Filters > Plugins menu so we could see what if anything is listed there for Topaz.

[TeaLeaves]

45 minutes ago, R C-R said:

Since "Topaz Studio 2..." is listed as Unknown" in the OP's Settings and the History panel shows that it was used, then it almost certainly is set up correctly in Settings, so the problem is not with how that is configured but with something else.

It might help if @TeaLeaves could post a screenshot of the Filters > Plugins menu so we could see what if anything is listed there for Topaz.

Thank you! Yes, please see my screenshot below.

[R C-R]

11 minutes ago, TeaLeaves said:

Yes, please see my screenshot below.

So are you saying nothing at all happens if you click on "Topaz Studio 2..." (not just "Topaz Studio 2" as shown in the screenshot)?

[TeaLeaves]

6 minutes ago, R C-R said:

So are you saying nothing at all happens if you click on "Topaz Studio 2..." (not just "Topaz Studio 2" as shown in the screenshot)?

Yes, nothing happens if I click on "Topaz Studio 2...". Topaz Studio 2 works if I use it as a standalone but I can't use it as a plugin. 

[v_kyr]

14 minutes ago, TeaLeaves said:

Yes, nothing happens if I click on "Topaz Studio 2...". Topaz Studio 2 works if I use it as a standalone but I can't use it as a plugin. 

Strange, as the Topaz docs site tells ...

https://docs.topazlabs.com/photo-ai/plugins/affinity-photo

... so I would check the Affinity Photo macOS related user home folder for any plugins folder and files then ...

[R C-R]

3 minutes ago, v_kyr said:

Strange, as the Topaz docs site tells ...

Annoyingly, that just shows the Photoshop Plugins window for the Windows version of AP & worse, it implies that all you need to do for either OS is to tick the 'allow unknown' box for it to work. That may be true for Windows but not for Mac.

Also, I suspect that is meant for using the Topaz AI plugin(s), & I'm not sure it is supported as a plugin in the Mac version of AP.

Anyway, I think what it all boils down to for Macs is unless somewhere there are the plugin files (ones with the .plugin file extension) stored in a user-accessible location, they won't work.

[v_kyr]

1 minute ago, R C-R said:

Also, I suspect that is meant for using the Topaz AI plugin(s), & I'm not sure it is supported as a plugin in the Mac version of AP.

I've also searched after Studio 2 there, but all that the docs listed there is Photo AI/Video AI/and the other legacy AI apps.

4 minutes ago, R C-R said:

Anyway, I think what it all boils down to for Macs is unless somewhere there are the plugin files (ones with the .plugin file extension) stored in a user-accessible location, they won't work.

Sure, but usually the Topaz support service should be able to tell and advice the OP how to setup things in a working manner then for APh on a Mac.

[R C-R]

2 minutes ago, v_kyr said:

Sure, but usually the Topaz support service should be able to tell and advice the OP how to setup things in a working manner then for APh on a Mac.

Topaz seems to have failed to do that. I suspect it is because Topaz Studio 2 does not work with AP for Macs, at least not without some convoluted hacks to expose its *.plugin files, if they even exist as such.

[TeaLeaves]

Just now, R C-R said:

Topaz seems to have failed to do that. I suspect it is because Topaz Studio 2 does not work with AP for Macs, at least not without some convoluted hacks to expose its *.plugin files, if they even exist as such.

Yes, I think this is correct. I was in contact with Topaz support prior to making my post here. Their support team said that to even get to the .plugin files you have to ctrl+click > show package contents. There’s not a straight forward way to get to the folder which is probably resulting in all of the problems I’m having. 

[v_kyr]

24 minutes ago, TeaLeaves said:

Yes, I think this is correct. I was in contact with Topaz support prior to making my post here. Their support team said that to even get to the .plugin files you have to ctrl+click > show package contents. There’s not a straight forward way to get to the folder which is probably resulting in all of the problems I’m having. 

Maybe, but I can't tell as I don't use such a modern/actual Topaz version, which either way wouldn't run on my macOS system.

 

 

[R C-R]

11 minutes ago, TeaLeaves said:

I was in contact with Topaz support prior to making my post here. Their support team said that to even get to the .plugin files you have to ctrl+click > show package contents.

So did they say that after clicking "Add" in Plugin Search Folders, you could do that & drill down into the Topaz Studio 2 package & add the plugin(s) that way?

If not, it might be possible to open the app package in Finder (via right-click "Show Package Contents") & copy the .plugin files to the AD 2 default plugin folder (using the "Open Default Folder in Finder" button in the window. I would do the copy after quitting AP to be on the safe side.

I think that should make it unnecessary to add anything to Plugin Search Folders but do not know if it will work at all.

Regardless, it seems pretty lame that Topaz doesn't offer better support for Mac Affinity users.

[TeaLeaves]

23 minutes ago, R C-R said:

So did they say that after clicking "Add" in Plugin Search Folders, you could do that & drill down into the Topaz Studio 2 package & add the plugin(s) that way?

If not, it might be possible to open the app package in Finder (via right-click "Show Package Contents") & copy the .plugin files to the AD 2 default plugin folder (using the "Open Default Folder in Finder" button in the window. I would do the copy after quitting AP to be on the safe side.

I think that should make it unnecessary to add anything to Plugin Search Folders but do not know if it will work at all.

Regardless, it seems pretty lame that Topaz doesn't offer better support for Mac Affinity users.

I’ll definitely try that approach out and see if that fixes it. 
 

Here’s what the Topaz support team told me: “We don't have a true plugin for Affinity photo that installs directly into Affinity like our plugin does for Photoshop. As far as I know this should work as an external editor using an "edit in" or "open with" option within Affinity unless Affinity reads our Photoshop plugin, but I'm not sure if that's the case. We never developed Studio 2 specifically for Affinity and we never tested Studio 2 with Affinity directly.

The Filters plugin we have is how it appears in Photoshop, but I think you'd use an edit in or open with option within Affinity for using Studio 2 from Affinity.”

[R C-R]

6 minutes ago, TeaLeaves said:

As far as I know this should work as an external editor using an "edit in" or "open with" option within Affinity unless Affinity reads our Photoshop plugin, but I'm not sure if that's the case.

??? It sounds like the support team has no idea how AP works (& possibly not a very good understanding of the Mac OS either), since there is no 'edit in' options other than for the other Affinity apps in AP, nor is there an 'open with' option available from within AP.

[TeaLeaves]

1 hour ago, R C-R said:

??? It sounds like the support team has no idea how AP works (& possibly not a very good understanding of the Mac OS either), since there is no 'edit in' options other than for the other Affinity apps in AP, nor is there an 'open with' option available from within AP.

Yeah I thought it was pretty lame that they weren't more helpful. I guess they don't care about providing support or understanding the program if you're not Adobe.