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Questions re: Opening PSD files in AP


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I did a lot of reading as well as exploring within AP, but couldn't find the correct info to help me, so I'm posting here.

Forgive the amount of info, but at least you'll know what I'm driving at. Please bear with me.

I have a PSD template I use for colorizations in PS. I would like to open that (or any other preexisting file) in AP and maintain all layers, associated masks, colors, and clipped adjustment layers, as well as groups, blending options, etc.

What I'm getting is that the groups seems ok. I noticed that the icon displays effects of what is within that group, whereas in PS, it was a simple Group icon. This is a nice touch in AP. Blending modes and opacities are the same.

The Solid Color fill layers and their associated masks are merged when loaded into AP, instead of having a fill layer and separate mask underneath it like when creating a fill layer, then adding a layer mask if it was done directly in AP. The layer icon background is black and the revealed area is a color similar to what was masked in PS, but the RGB Hex number for the Solid Color fill layers in PS do not match the RGB Hex number in AP. Note that the color profile is set the same in preferences, but could be different in the template file, which I've had for a long time, and since it doesn't happen in something like the example below.

I will use a simple example here without groups, one that can be recreated by anyone rather than me uploading a picture:

In a PS PSD file, layers tab, we have:

- a locked background picture - let's say of two green balloons.

- a Solid Color fill layer - let's say blue, and named "Blue Balloon".

- the associated layer mask that PS automatically added when choosing the Solid Color fill layer. This is inverted to all black except for the white portion set to a selection of one of the balloons to allow us to change the color to blue or any other color we want thereafter, and to allow us to change or adjust the masked area later on as well.

- a Hue Saturation layer clipped to the Solid Color fill layer below it - let's say we set Hue to +25 and Saturation to +50 for the sake of this example.


Save the PSD file, then open it in AP.


In AP, layers tab, we have:

- a locked background (Pixel) picture of the two green balloons.

- a layer named "Blue Balloon (Fill)". It appears to be a merge of the blue Solid Color fill layer and the associated layer mask created in PS.

- a Hue Saturation layer that looks clipped (is under the fill layer), but seems to have no affect on the Solid Color fill layer above it. Also, Hue Shift has the color under cyan at +25 as compared to blue in PS. Saturation Shift appears to be the same.


So at first glance, it appears we have a few problems: the fill layer and mask are merged, the RGB Hex number is different (in my colorization template but not any other file I start from scratch), and the HS layer does not appear to be active, nor does the hue amount match when loaded into AP.

First, how can I ensure that the color hex numbers are the same when loading a PSD file in AP?

Next, are there solutions and/or workarounds to loading PSD files into AP, especially in the case of merged layers and masks, and if so, what are they, and what have you users been doing in these types of situations?

Cheers!

p.s. Is there a preview post option on this forum? I just get Cancel and Submit Topic.

 

 

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17 hours ago, SloCan said:

p.s. Is there a preview post option on this forum? I just get Cancel and Submit Topic.

 

There’s a ‘Preview’ icon at the right-hand end of the formatting toolbar. detective.gif

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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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11 minutes ago, SloCan said:

Thanks (again)! :)

 

You’re welcome, as always. :)

 

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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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Hi SloCan,

 

It appears that we don't currently fully support Masks for Fill Layers when importing. The PSD format is a proprietary format and AFAIK there's no documentation for it, which makes it harder for our developers to correctly support the format. However, i'm seeing the correct hex code within Affinity Photo after the Fill Layer and Mask are merged on import. Feel free to PM me a sample file to test at my end.

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Well the common problem with proprietary unstandardized formats, something is mostly always hidden and bad tongues would say now, to have still some competitive advantage.

☛ Affinity Designer 1.10.8 ◆ Affinity Photo 1.10.8 ◆ Affinity Publisher 1.10.8 ◆ OSX El Capitan
☛ Affinity V2.3 apps ◆ MacOS Sonoma 14.2 ◆ iPad OS 17.2

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5 hours ago, Leigh said:

Hi SloCan,

It appears that we don't currently fully support Masks for Fill Layers when importing. The PSD format is a proprietary format and AFAIK there's no documentation for it, which makes it harder for our developers to correctly support the format. However, i'm seeing the correct hex code within Affinity Photo after the Fill Layer and Mask are merged on import. Feel free to PM me a sample file to test at my end.

Thanks @Leigh! PM sent! 

 What I have learned along the way is that I can still change the color of the merged fill layer, but if I want to alter the mask, it's best to CTRL + click on the merged layer to get the original selection, then create a new mask that I can then manipulate. I think I got that right, although it still needs more testing.

In regards to the different hex numbers, at first, I thought it was a profile issue, but I have found that the same problem exists whether the profile is an sRGB or 1998. As mentioned to Leigh in my PM, it could be a settings issue on my end, although I don't have a clue at this point. The converted hex numbers are close, but not the same. I also added a fill layer on it's own that matches the color used in the fill layer that was merged. Interestingly enough, that number is slightly different than the other when converted.

Since getting AP, I've also been racking my brains in regards to the HS layer that is clipped to a color fill layer that I use to accurately change saturation on the fly. When converted, the HS layer goes in below the fill layer (which is now merged with the mask layer as per my OP), the way it's done in AP (which I now understand). The problem is that the HS, or rather HSL layer now, doesn't have any affect on the fill layer, regardless of which slider you adjust (Hue, Saturation, or Luminosity). I have read countless threads, and tried many different things since starting this thread, but to no avail. Last night, I tried to simply unclip and move the HSL layer to a position over the fill layer. Immediately, the fill layer was affected by the HSL layer. But the problem is, so is the rest of the image, of course. So why does the HSL layer affect a fill layer when used separately, but not when clipped or masked directly to the fill itself? Workarounds such as rasterizing the fill layer after moving the HSL out are undesirable, since you remove the ability to change the layer's color "on the fly". I've spent too many hours trying to figure this one out, and am at wits' end at the moment.

By the way, I read somewhere that the adjustment layers also act as masks, so I tested out creating a fill layer, then adding the HSL layer to it, and then masking directly to it. The thumbnail looks like it is masking, but it wasn't actually having any affect on the fill layer whether used in the clipped or masked position, as noted earlier.

Thanks!

 

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