Is it a bug? Unable to crop placed image, all changes affect background

[StuartPearson]

If I place an image on to an existing pixel background, I can moved the new added image around and resize it. However if I try to crop the placed image the full background is selected, this happens even if the background is deselected.

 

Is this the expected behaviour for a placed image, that it cannot be separately cropped?

[Callum]

Hi Stuart Pearson,

 

Which Crop Tool is it you are using? ( In the case of Photo this would be either the Photo persona Crop Tool or the Develop Persona Crop Tool)

 

Thanks

C

[MEB]

Hi StuartPearson,

Welcome to Affinity Forums :)

The Crop Tools in Affinity Photo are document based meaning all the document will be cropped (not just the selected layer.) however you can use a rectangle as a vector mask which in practise does the same as you want.

 

To do this:

- draw a vector rectangle, change to the Move Tool and adjust its size/position (reduce its opacity a little in the Colour Studio to help you position it over the image)

- when you are happy with its position/size, tap and hold its layer in the Layers Studio until a blue lines appear and drag it over the thumbnail of the layer (image) you want to "crop" (the thumbnail icon should become blue while you drag over it).

- the image should now be visible inside the rectangle only. Set the opacity of the rectangle again to 100% in case you have reduced it.

 

If you need to adjust the size of the rectangle mask again, select/tap its layer in the Layers Studio (you may have to click the small arrow on the left of the image thumbnail to expand that layer and see the rectangle layer), change to the Move Tool and drag the bounding box handles of the rectangle (or rotate it/shear it/convert to curves and manipulate the shape) as you see fit. Note that you must have the rectangle mask layer selected in the Layers Studio when you want to transform/adjust the rectangle mask. If you select the parent layer (the image) by mistake and drag the bounding box handles with the Move Tool it will distort the image instead.

[StuartPearson]

Thanks,

 

That's a great method of "cropping" the placed image, probably would be beneficial to others if this was added to the crop tutorial. I'm not aware of a reference to this on any of the existing tutorials.

 

Stuart