Convert Pen Tool path into Selection in Affinity Photo?

[nickbatz]

On 12/12/2019 at 6:07 AM, Chosen Idea said:

There should be a keyboard shortcut for everything.

This is three years later, and of course it's a matter of personal preference... but is this really the kind of operation you perform often enough to warrant assigning a keystroke to it?

I'm not trolling, I'm just surprised that this would be so important to anyone.

[jfraze]

On 2/3/2017 at 9:58 AM, Bri-Toon said:

Of course. After you draw your closed region with the Pen Tool, just click "Selection" from the Context Toolbar.

Seemed like the obvious solution to me... but when I click the "Selection" button it deselects my path and creates a new path encompassing the whole layer. What am I doing wrong?

Clicking the "mask" button instead does indeed create the expected mask. Why would the "Selection" button not work the same way?

Edited January 30, 2023 by jfraze
additional information

[NotMyFault]

1 hour ago, jfraze said:

Seemed like the obvious solution to me... but when I click the "Selection" button it deselects my path and creates a new path encompassing the whole layer. What am I doing wrong?

Clicking the "mask" button instead does indeed create the expected mask. Why would the "Selection" button not work the same way?

Selections and masks are related, but different topics.

you can have only one selection active at any time, but use unlimited masks in layers.

you can use selections while editing masks, but not vice versa.

If you convert a curve to selection, the curve gets consumed (deleted). If you create a mask from selection, the selection stays active and must be deactivated manually.

the big question is what do you want to achieve - there are many possible ways with its pros and cons.

 

[jfraze]

22 minutes ago, NotMyFault said:

Selections and masks are related, but different topics.

you can have only one selection active at any time, but use unlimited masks in layers.

you can use selections while editing masks, but not vice versa.

If you convert a curve to selection, the curve gets consumed (deleted). If you create a mask from selection, the selection stays active and must be deactivated manually.

the big question is what do you want to achieve - there are many possible ways with its pros and cons.

 

I'm not sure you understand my question. I only brought up the mask option because the two buttons are right next to each other, and both should effect the selected path. One does exactly what I'd expect: it takes the selected path and turns it into a mask. I would assume the other would function the same way: it should take the selected path and turn it into a selection. I assume that's what it's supposed to do, right? It's not doing that. It's deselecting or deleting the selected the path, and apparently creating a new path in its place. This new path is just a box encompassing the entire area of the layer. Nothing in the document ends up selected. I've tried toggling "Show/Hide Pixel Selection" but nothing at all is selected.

I gave up and just created a mask from the path, then used the mask to create the selection area I needed. Either I ran into a glitch or I'm misunderstanding something about the use of paths.

While we're at it, why does creating a selection delete the path? This should not be a destructive process. I shouldn't really need to go through a bunch of extra hoops just to save my path. Is there a simple way to keep the path?

[walt.farrell]

Maybe a screen recording or some screenshots would help us understand what you're doing and why you're getting the results you've described. Make sure the complete application window is visible, including the Layers panel.

[NotMyFault]

17 minutes ago, jfraze said:

While we're at it, why does creating a selection delete the path? This should not be a destructive process. I shouldn't really need to go through a bunch of extra hoops just to save my path. Is there a simple way to keep the path?

Yes, use „selection from layer“ via menu. But the path must be closed filled with color.

17 minutes ago, jfraze said:

I assume that's what it's supposed to do, right? It's not doing that.

It does what it does, since the App was created. I find this illogic, too. You may file a feature request in the feedback section. Technically, it is not a bug - because Affinity decided that's the way they wanted it to be.

Edited January 30, 2023 by NotMyFault

[jfraze]

34 minutes ago, walt.farrell said:

Maybe a screen recording or some screenshots would help us understand what you're doing and why you're getting the results you've described. Make sure the complete application window is visible, including the Layers panel.

I think I figured it out. Evidently the layer was turned "off" even though the path itself showed up as selected. If I click the checkbox to toggle the layer on and off it makes no visual difference to my path or the active layer below it... i.e, there's nothing to warn me that the path is in an "invisible" layer. AFAIK this is how the layer created itself when I clicked on the pen tool and started "drawing" with it. Maybe I accidentally hit some key combo that turned "off" the layer?

When I click on the checkbox to "show" the layer, however, the "Selection" button does what I expected all along. (Other than the fact that it deletes the path, which apparently is how it was designed!) That is, the selected path turns into a pixel selection.
 

[nickbatz]

3 hours ago, NotMyFault said:

Yes, use „selection from layer“ via menu. But the path must be closed filled with color

I'm not in Affinity Photo this second, but I think you're just saying that it doesn't work over alpha channel areas?

[NotMyFault]

5 hours ago, nickbatz said:

I'm not in Affinity Photo this second, but I think you're just saying that it doesn't work over alpha channel areas?

Selection from Layer converts the alpha channel of the chosen layer into a selection. 
If you have a layer with an open curve, no stroke, no fill, alpha is zero for every pixel.

I don’t know what you want to say with „don’t work“. It definitely works, but maybe not in the way you are expecting.

[nickbatz]

11 hours ago, NotMyFault said:

 

I don’t know what you want to say with „don’t work“. It definitely works, but maybe not in the way you are expecting.

I was just trying to translate what you said!

[NotMyFault]

38 minutes ago, nickbatz said:

I was just trying to translate what you said!

Maybe I misinterpreted a sentence with a question mark as question?