Is there an option to keep the history when using non-destructive raw editing?

[phil4]

Hello,

when I edit a raw image and choose either RAW Layer (Embedded) or RAW Layer (Linked) as the output format, the history is lost the next time I redevelop the image. There also doesn't seem to be a way to get back to the full photo after cropping in the develop persona.

Am I missing something obvious? If that's the intended way for non-destructive raw editing to work, this feature sadly doesn't make that much sense in my opinion.

[Komatös]

Hello @phil4 and welcome to the forums.

Maybe you have overlooked it!

You can save the history with the document!
To do this, select File > Save History with Document.
 

EDIT: And I overlooked the fact that you are working with an iPad.  Unfortunately, I can't tell you here if and where you can find this setting.

[phil4]

Hi @Komatös, thanks a lot for your quick reply!

There doesn't seem to be an option like "Save History with Document" on the iPad. Do you know if there's at least a way to get back to the original, uncropped raw image after cropping it in the Develop Persona? My understanding of non-destructive is that it should be possible to select the crop tool and see the whole image again, just like in the normal Photo Persona. If this doesn't work, what's the point of the advertised non-destructive editing then?

Edited May 24, 2024 by phil4

[Alfred]

14 minutes ago, phil4 said:

There doesn't seem to be an option like "Save History with Document" on the iPad.

If you go to the Home Screen, tap on the three-bar ‘hamburger’ menu icon against any of the files displayed there and choose ‘Save As’, you’ll see a ‘Save history’ toggle in the dialog that pops up.

[phil4]

Hi @Alfred, thanks for the hint! I didn't expect that option to be hidden on the Home Screen. 

Although I have toggled the option "Save history" and the history gets saved, it's not exactly what I expected it to be. When I open the Develop Persona again, the history there is empty and I can't edit previous changes, e.g. change cropping.

Could you please tell me if it's possible to go back to the Develop Persona and tweak the options (e.g. change cropping or lighting) when it's been developed non-destructively?
Maybe I haven't quite understood the way non-destructive raw editing is supposed to work - I've only used V1 on the Mac before.

[Alfred]

1 minute ago, phil4 said:

Could you please tell me if it's possible to go back to the Develop Persona and tweak the options (e.g. change cropping or lighting) when it's been developed non-destructively?

I’m afraid I don’t shoot Raw, so I’m not the best person to try to help you, but in any case it sounds as though you’ve found out the answer for yourself!

3 minutes ago, phil4 said:

When I open the Develop Persona again, the history there is empty and I can't edit previous changes, e.g. change cropping.

 

[walt.farrell]

2 hours ago, phil4 said:

hen I open the Develop Persona again, the history there is empty and I can't edit previous changes, e.g. change cropping.

Most adjustments you've made in the Develop Persona can be modified on the iPad. I didn't check to see if History was available/usable, but the various panels and tabs will show the changes that were made, and you can further modify them.

Cropping seems to be a destructive action, though, in that upon returning to the Develop Persona on the iPad you can't un-crop the image. Note that it has not made any changes to the original Raw image file, so in that sense it is non-destructive as it did not affect your original. But it would be nice if you could change your mind and make the cropped image larger again.

This seems to affect only the iPad. On Windows, I can return to the Develop Persona and select the Crop Tool and see all of the original Raw image. I'm going to play with that more, and may file a bug report if I can confirm it's not possible on the iPad.

 

[walt.farrell]

On 5/24/2024 at 10:52 AM, walt.farrell said:

This seems to affect only the iPad. On Windows, I can return to the Develop Persona and select the Crop Tool and see all of the original Raw image. I'm going to play with that more, and may file a bug report if I can confirm it's not possible on the iPad.

I'm closer to reporting this as a bug, but I suspect it's related to AF-530 which describes an issue with the Crop Tool on the iPad, where the Reveal setting does not show areas outside of the cropping grid.

What I'm seeing with cropping in the Develop Persona, with a Raw image layer, is that if I Save the .afphoto file on the iPad, and Open it using Photo 2 on Windows, the cropped areas are still present and accessible in the Develop Persona on Windows, even though they are not available on the iPad.

[walt.farrell]

Bug reported: 

 

[phil4]

Hi Walt,

thanks for investigating this issue and reporting the bug! I hope that the Affinity Team will be able to fix it quickly 😀