Mask or Layer Selection and a little more I observe in Affinity Photo last weeks.

[mareksy]

I've started to use intensive Affinity Photo 2.5.3 in last month as serious changer for Photoshop 24 and I have some important observation.
I like it so much, but…

1. Too much times I operate on layer, while I wish to operate on Layer's Mask.
The system of presenting selected Layer/ Mask is not clear at glance. You use the same color to show selected L/ M in the Layers Palette, but change the saturation of the color is not distinctive enough.
Why this is not e.g. blue as it is now for layer, and e.g. yellow for masks?
The problem is bigger while we count this, if I am in a group of groups of layers, every one group is colored as well!

2. Sometimes also, if I switch to mask from layer with Brush Tool on, this tool stop working. I must to switch several times the tool or color to return operate of the tool.
Example: I paint on layer e.g. white on black, I switch to mask and paint white on black, nothing happens…

3. I think also use the Brush Tool only to reveal/ hidden on the masks is not intuitive, especially after decades in Photoshop and if we count, eraser button is in any tablet's pen's above, because of your choice of behaviour for those tools now is useless, because the Eraser Tool is not "the Brush Tool with color in opposite" as it expected.

4. Not intuitive is put FX between Adjustments and Lives in Layers Palette. Adjustments and Lives we used to use any time while FX not so much as usual.

5. Moving layer with/ without mask is not intuitive.
Not good at all in correspndence to point 1.
6. The place for button to hidden layer is not intuitive
Both 5. and 6. is better in Photoshop.

6. Layers' Group system is not intuitive.
Putting any element in the group made mush-up in the pic if I do not care enough. Especially the mess make masks of group, masks in masks, in layers etc. in that situation!
I find select and Click+G but it is hint, not solution.

I preffer also put layers in a group from below, when putted layer move to the down of the group as in old Photoshop behaviour, not above.
If a group is above and have layers in it (above) and I move to this group a leyer from below for this group, this layer will be now sudenly above layers which were above it a while before.
Foolish? Foolish.

Bugs:

A. If Photo closed suddenly, the Recovery system asked for return with recovered version, but no one time opened it. If it works, I do not see that.
By the way, where are those files of recovering, I think, I have several to delete.

B. The thumbnails generations is not working and much lazy.
Sometimes generation of thumbnails in Layers Palette needs minutes. In connection with p.1. above the problem is ready and obvious!
The same time Photoshop working without problem, so hardware must be no problem.

C. If I use typical for me number of layers with masks, 20–40, Photo starts to work slow, especially if I use Lives Layers. They are useless because of that for now.

D. I have had today also problem with Radeon AMD during resize document for de-moire. Adrenalin showed conflict info and Photo sudenly closed or stayed, but presented layer as transparent and some noises on thumb.

E. I do not find Alt+click to see clicked layer only. Exists?

F. Absence of change units for whole app option  is obvious and exists as I see since years

G. Yesterday I try to resample squared pic 3,5 cm 1200 dpi to 2,5 m and 12000 dpi.
It never hapened after several crash, I try the same in Ps, after several minutes Ps it done.

It is not all, but for now more important for me…
Thank you!

 

P.S. I miss Alt+Backspace fullfill for semi-transparent pixels:

 

[stokerg]

Hi @mareksy,

Thanks for your feedback.

For bug reports, we do ask that a seperate post is made for each report, as it makes investigating each issue much easier.

On 8/15/2024 at 9:41 PM, mareksy said:

A. If Photo closed suddenly, the Recovery system asked for return with recovered version, but no one time opened it. If it works, I do not see that.
By the way, where are those files of recovering, I think, I have several to delete.

The files are stored in the AutoSave folder and depending on if you installed the MSIX and MSI build of Affinity it will be in 1 of 2 locations:

%appdata%\Affinity\Photo\2.0\AutoSave

Or
%USERPROFILE%\.affinity\Photo\2.0\AutoSave

On 8/15/2024 at 9:41 PM, mareksy said:

B. The thumbnails generations is not working and much lazy.
Sometimes generation of thumbnails in Layers Palette needs minutes. In connection with p.1. above the problem is ready and obvious!
The same time Photoshop working without problem, so hardware must be no problem.

Depending on the amount of live filters in use, this is to be expected to a degree.  Live Filters are always being drawn to screen, so will use up resources, which would also align up with the 3rd point you raise. 

On 8/15/2024 at 9:41 PM, mareksy said:

C. If I use typical for me number of layers with masks, 20–40, Photo starts to work slow, especially if I use Lives Layers. They are useless because of that for now.

 

Live Filter Layers will use up resources as they are always being drawn to screen, so this is somewhat to be expected.

On 8/15/2024 at 9:41 PM, mareksy said:

have had today also problem with Radeon AMD during resize document for de-moire. Adrenalin showed conflict info and Photo sudenly closed or stayed, but presented layer as transparent and some noises on thumb.

Are you able to replicate this?  Do you have hardware acceleration enabled or disabled in Edit>Settings>Performance?  If you are able to replicate it, can you let me know the steps you are taking?

On 8/15/2024 at 9:41 PM, mareksy said:

E. I do not find Alt+click to see clicked layer only. Exists?

 

Alt+Clicking a layer will only display that layer.  If you aren't finding that, please create a seperate post and this can be investigated.

On 8/15/2024 at 9:41 PM, mareksy said:

F. Absence of change units for whole app option  is obvious and exists as I see since years

 

This isn't classed as a bug and would be an  Improvement Request.

On 8/15/2024 at 9:41 PM, mareksy said:

Yesterday I try to resample squared pic 3,5 cm 1200 dpi to 2,5 m and 12000 dpi.
It never hapened after several crash, I try the same in Ps, after several minutes Ps it done.

 

Can you replicate this?