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I need to be able to convert raster art and convert it into vector art in an EPS format.  I need to be able to take in jpeg, giff, psd, pdf and other traditional raster art formats and convert and export the art into a vector art EPS format.  My clients need to put their logo on pens, cups and other things.  Accordingly it is important that I can supply them with vector art.  I know this can be done in Adobe Illustrator.  They have an Auto Trace option that works well.  My question is . . . Can this be done with Affinity Designer?  Thank you for your help in this matter.

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  • Staff

Hello sparky,

Welcome to Affinity Forums :)

Affinity Designer doesn't have an automatic tracing tool. This is being considered but it may take a while until we implement it in the program.

Currently your only option is to use third party software to do the conversion.

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Moderator:

 

Thank you for your reply.  I have two follow up questions . . . . You mention I'd have to go to third  party software.  I'm looking for something less expensive than Adobe Illustrator . . . Do you have any suggestions?.  I have a Mac so it would have to be a program that is compatible with the Apple world.

 

The second question is this . . . You mentioned Affinity Designer is working on creating this tool.  Do you have any rough estimate on when you might offer it?  Is it possible you might have it later this year  . . later in 2015? Or is it more a wish list kind of thing that is farther into the future like in the next few years?

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  • Staff

There's some options in the Mac App Store (just look for tracing), but the results are just regular. The best application i know is VectorMagic although it's still quite expensive (around $300 for the desktop version - they also have a subscription service). Other option you may try is Inkscape - an open source vector app which includes an automated tracing function.

 

Regarding you second question i'm afraid It's not coming any time soon.

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Thanks again . . .First let me say I am technically challenged, so I'm not all that sophisticated with this topic. . . I don't want to get hung up on the whole idea of "Auto Tracing" . . or having to get a tracing tool . . . All I want to do is turn jpeg, Giff, psd etc. formats into EPS vector art.  I don't care how it gets done whether it's an auto-tracing tool or whatever . . as long as I can take in raster based graphics and logos (like jpeg) and turn  out vector EPS files . . . Therefore my question is this . . Even though Affinity Designer does not have an automatic tracing tool, can it still allow me to scan in raster based art like jpeg and convert it into vector EPS art which I can export ?  Also what does "open source" mean?  You say Inkscape is an "open source" vector app which includes an automatic tracing function.  Lastly (and I am reading between the lines here) can I conclude that the word "Tracing" is the whole key to what I need done?  In the science of graphic arts software "Tracing" is the only way any app (no matter who is selling it) any app can do what I need to be done in converting raster art to Vector EPS art?  

 

Thank you again.  You have been most helpful to a newbie in this area.

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  • Staff

Hi sparky,

 

I'm sorry if I weren't very clear.

Yes tracing is the term we use to create vector lines/shapes from a raster image. 

You can do it manually, drawing all the lines and shapes with the Pen tool (which may take considerable time depending on the complexity of the image), or you can make use of an automated function we usually call auto-trace. There no other way to convert a raster image into vectors to export as an EPS. Affinity doesn't provide this functionality yet (auto-trace) and I'm afraid It's not coming any time soon. So the only way is to trace the image manually.

 

Open source is a software development model that provides everyone access to the code of the application, allowing them to edit, change, and redistribute that code as they wish. In a simplistic way, it means that the program doesn't belong to any company but to the community and as such everyone is free to use it for whatever they want (including commercial use).

 

Inkscape is a vector drawing application that was developed using the above development model. It includes an automated tracing function.

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Try to find someone with an old copy of Corel Trace that they wish to resell.  Could probably pick up a copy of the entire Corel Suite for $30.  I wish I had my old copy, lost the CD's about 5 years ago.

 

But, when I used it, it was awesome.  Not sure how well it will run in modern Windows.

 

But, there are other tools out there that will do it.  

 

I saw an old copy of Corel Office 12 on eBay.  (I don't know if it's legit)

 

Good luck.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Affinity Designer is listed as "almost There" as na Illustrator replacement for auto-tracing. 4 Alternatives to Illustrator to Convert Handmade Drawings into Vectors.

 

I just used the two free trace downloads from Vector Magic, did a pretty good job.

"You're never too old to create refrigerator art..." - crosbymultimedia.com <- site's being tweaked. "I have been wrong before."

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How about to give Autotracer a try? It's free, it's online - but it might be not as good as Vector Magic, but a try is it still worth, as long as AD doesn't give us an automatic trace ;)

 

http://www.autotracer.org/

iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2017), i7 4.2, Radeon 580 Pro 8 GB, 40 GB DDR4-RAM, 1 TB Flash, macOS 10.14.6

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How about to give Autotracer a try? It's free, it's online - but it might be not as good as Vector Magic, but a try is it still worth, as long as AD doesn't give us an automatic trace ;)

 

http://www.autotracer.org/

 

Just tried it with the same file I sent to Vector Magic. Not very good. The file was originally a pencil sketch with a lot of detail and variance in tone.

"You're never too old to create refrigerator art..." - crosbymultimedia.com <- site's being tweaked. "I have been wrong before."

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iVinci - Vector Design has a Live Trace Tool and it's available for Mac  App Store.

 

Here's a demo on YouTube 

 

Not sure how useful this would be in a workflow though. You can't copy from IVinci into Affinity Designer and the export options are limited unless you have the professional version.

 

UPDATE: IVINCI'S native file format is SVG so it just a matter of dragging the traced document onto the Affinity Designer Dock Icon.

 

Note: They also have a standalone app called iTrace which exports to SVG and PDF. Slightly more expensive.

2009: 27 inch iMac / Intel Core i5 / 2.66 GHz / 16 GB Memory / System: Yosemite 10.10.3 – PRINCIPAL DESIGN SOFTWARE: QuarkXpress 9.5.1, 10.5 and 2015 / Pinegrow Web Designer / Affinity Designer and Affinity Photo / Acorn

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Also there is Super Vectorizer as an cost effective Alternative in the App Store and got some good reviews.

But I don't know if the results are good enough for your needs.

 

https://itunes.apple.com/de/app/super-vectorizer/id704139979?mt=12

iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2017), i7 4.2, Radeon 580 Pro 8 GB, 40 GB DDR4-RAM, 1 TB Flash, macOS 10.14.6

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For now, I'm liking Vector Magic online. For $8/mo. you can do unlimited and cancel until you need it again. No way to pretest Super Vectorizer that I know of. I don't do this daily so it works for me.

 

This is what I was working with. Top is the bitmap original scan by someone else (10+ years ago) of a pencil drawing. It's small and doesn't enlarge well at all. Bottom is the medium detail version from Vector Magic online unedited. Over the years I've tried Illustrator and several other vector trace apps on it, none were very good. This one I like.

 

LogoGuyOnBike.jpg

"You're never too old to create refrigerator art..." - crosbymultimedia.com <- site's being tweaked. "I have been wrong before."

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This is an interesting field of software that perfectly demonstrates the issues of App Store style review processes and the decline of western media into a public relations arm of enterprise and finance.

 

In an ideal world there'd be professional reviewers of software working for honest and sincere publications, and consulting with people like Mr Crosby, right above, and then spending the time to really ascertain the value propositions of each alternative.

 

Despite all our technology, we're all basically consumer silos with very little cohesion.

 

Astonishing, really.

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Crosby, looks very good to me :) I think all stands and falls with the needs you really have. :)

 

I agree. Haven't had to scan and recreate logos, etc. like I used to in the days of Streamline, etc. Doing them with a Pen Tool usually suffices but that one would have taken me forever!

 

Client hasn't seen it yet and I doubt they'll notice it's not the same image. What they will notice is that the banners, large display pieces, etc. that they have been using it on will look a heck of a lot better. Glad the tools exist.

"You're never too old to create refrigerator art..." - crosbymultimedia.com <- site's being tweaked. "I have been wrong before."

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Hi Crosby,

 

Seems to me that you've cracked it. The second picture is a real gem. This is what I would use to promote the software. That picture looks like an original and the first picture looks like an overgrown thumbnail. 

 

Vectormagic: the clue is in the title.

 

Is MEB on commission?

MacBook pro, 2.26 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 4 GB 1067 MHz DDR3, NVIDIA GeForce 9400M 256 MB, OS X 10.11.6

 

http://www.pinterest.com/peter2111

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  • 2 months later...

That's a pity, as that particular feature is one of the most useful bits of Illustrator. I've personally had it with Adobe, (been there, done that, with Quark...) and I'm looking for a total viable alternnative. The fact you have alternatives to Photoshop and InDesign in the works is in many ways the asnwer to my dream. BUT I need auto trace, and would much prefer to use it within Affinity Designer. I have now switched entirely over to using this to produce my daily graphics, and love its intuitive simplicity. Keep it up!

 


Affinity doesn't provide this functionality yet (auto-trace) and I'm afraid It's not coming any time soon. So the only way is to trace the image manually.
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  • 2 months later...

What I find interesting is that Affinity Designer is trying to go head-to-head with Adobe Illustrator, and in so many ways its simply fantastic! However, and this is a big one, they obviously have in-house code to do vector tracing because Serif DrawPlus has it and they haven't figured out a way to incorporate it into Affinity Designer??? That's a shame, because you guys are getting so much good press, it's hard to convert people that are already entrenched in Illustrator, and you're just giving them more reasons not to take a second look. I would put this on your roadmap immediately and incorporate auto-trace ASAP. Just some friendly advice. Love your products!

P.S. Another bit of unsolicited advice. Vector Magic is ancient, but good, really good. Maybe you guys can merge with them or license their technology. If you had the Vector Magic tracing engine inside Affinity Designer you would absolutely slaughter Adobe and Corel. Thats it, my two cents. ;-)

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • Staff

@moebis, @dazzyweb,

Welcome to Affinity Forums :)

This was already discussed in several threads. We are considering to add a tracing tool to Affinity (eventually as a new persona) but it must be good enough to meet our  standards. This is not a trivial task/feature and may take some time until we get it as we want. Serif Drawplus codebase is totally different from Affinity's code. They are not compatible and the software requirements are also different. Affinity line of products are geared towards the professional market.

For more information please check the following thread: JPEG, bitmap, tracing to covert to vector

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