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How to perform simple cut and paste in iPad version


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I have two photos. One has one subject in it I want to select and copy to another image. I actually performed this while experimenting. I first selected the subject and exported him out to a new jpeg. I then added that jpeg to my new background photo. Within layers I was able to drag the subject jpeg onto the new background and the program automatically merged the two together. No matter what I have tried  since then, I have not been able to duplicate the process. Please provide steps I should take for this process. I have included the photo I happened to magically put together.

post-64185-0-76173100-1499106812_thumb.jpg

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Hi Lwhovey,

Welcome to Affinity Forums :)

Open the first image with the element you want to copy. Switch to the Selection Persona (the Lasso icon on top) and use the selection tools (on the left) to select the element. Then switch to Photo Persona (on top) tap the More menu (the three dots icon) and select Pasteboard ▸ Copy. Click the <- icon on top to go back to the Welcome Screen and open the second image. Now tap the More button again (the three dots on top) and select Pasterboard ▸ Paste. You selection will be pasted in this new document as a new layer. Adjust it as you want, then if you export it a JPG, all layers will be merged into a single image (because JPG's don't support layers). Let me know if you still have trouble

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  • 2 weeks later...

Thanks for the info. I have both the Mac and iOS versions of Affinity and it seems like the iOS version is very unintuitive and painfully laborious in the number of steps. I hacked around for quite a while trying to do this same simple operation. I.e. Paste and resize a new image from the iOS clipboard onto an existing image in order to create a composite.

 

is this something that will be changed in the future?

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Hi DavidT,

Welcome to Affinity Forums :)

Here's another method i forgot to mention which is a little quicker: go to Selection Persona and create your selection as usual then change to Photo Persona tap the screen with two fingers (this should open a popup menu with a few options) and select Copy, then open the second image tap the screen with two fingers again and select Paste.

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That is a nice trick. Definitely faster. 

 

Is there a way to copy just what is selected with the marquee tool onto a clipboard to paste? I can't seem to do it without creating a new document with exactly what I want. I.e. Everything else cropped out, then select the entire image to copy. Switch back to the original document and paste. 

 

This is is what I mean by unintuitive. Should be able to select a layer, select an area, copy and then paste and resize/move in the same document on another layer. As far as I can tell this is not possible.

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Hi David T,

If you are copying a  selection to the clipboard and Affinity is then pasting the whole layer, rather than just what you have selected it's because the layer you are copying from is an Image layer type. You can identify the type of layer looking at the small letters in all caps right above the layer's name in the Layers Studio. These type of layers are considered object layers, that is, (image) objects you place/are part of a  larger document/layout (like a header or a block of text) that you may want to transform (scale, rotate, skew etc) to compose the layout but that you do not intend to edit at a pixel level directly (you can still affect them through adjustments, filters etc but these methods are not changing/overwriting the pixels of the layers directly). Image layers retain all original placed image data so they can transformed without losing quality.
If you want/need to transform their pixels directly you must convert them to Pixel layers (type). Pixel layers are the equivalent of what you may be used to from other raster programs - it's where you can paint, edit, perform whatever pixel based operations you need, overwriting the existing data. To convert an Image layer to a Pixel layer, select the image layer in the Layers Studio, tap the More button on the top of the interface (the three dots) and select Rasterise ▸ Rasterize. You can then select, copy and paste just the selected area.

I believe this is what's causing confusion. So assuming you are working with Pixel layers you should be able to copy a selection to the clipboard, paste the selection as a new layer and then proceed to transform it (resize/move) using the Move Tool.

Let me know if you still have trouble.

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  • 1 year later...
  • 7 months later...

Thanks for the help on copy and paste. I’ve been using Photoshop on a Mac since 1994 and I have to say that the iOS version of Affinity Photo is the most unintuitive app I’ve ever grappled with! Quite a challenge. I guess I’m happier with keyboard shortcuts more than multi-finger gestures!!

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  • 1 year later...

I’m having terrible problems trying to cut and paste even following your instructions, which appear outdated for AF 1.9 for ipad.  This is a large part of what I do in photo editing. Why has this simple process been made so complex in AF? Kindly walk me through how you make a selection in one photo and paste it in another photo in AF 1.9 for ipad. I am using a Mac Pencil and with it, I find your selection tools difficult to use with the Mac Pencil. But with fingers or Mac Pencil, how do I make a selection of part of  one photo and move it to another photo?

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2 hours ago, WTS said:

I’m having terrible problems trying to cut and paste even following your instructions, which appear outdated for AF 1.9 for ipad.

Welcome to the Serif Affinity Forums, @WTS. :)

The instructions for displaying the popup menu are indeed outdated. Two-finger tap is now the gesture for ‘Undo’; you have to ‘long-press’ (with your finger, not your Apple Pencil) to make the context menu appear.

Here’s an up-to-date summary of the procedure:

1. Open the image containing whatever you want to copy.

2. Switch to the Selections Persona and use the selection tools to select the region of interest.

3. Switch back to the Photo Persona, long-press and choose ‘Copy’ from the popup menu.

4. Click on the ‘<-’ icon at top left to return to the Home screen.

5. Open the second image, long-press and choose ‘Paste’ from the popup menu.

6. Use the Move Tool to adjust the size and position of the pasted layer.

Alfred spacer.png
Affinity Designer/Photo/Publisher 2 for Windows • Windows 10 Home/Pro
Affinity Designer/Photo/Publisher 2 for iPad • iPadOS 17.4.1 (iPad 7th gen)

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