How to reset all edits?

[peterD]

I just purchased Affinity Photo and having used Apple Aperture I find this app unnecessarily complex. Ok, I'll leave that alone for now. My question is how do I reset all adjustments I made to a photo? You know to simply start all over again. Seems like it should be a front and center button but I can't find it anywhere. 

[Callum]

Hi PeterD,

You could delete all of the adjustment layers or drag the history slider in the history tab all the way back to the beginning.

Thanks

Callum

[peterD]

Thanks, I did manage to undo my edits using the history slider but it still showed a list of every edit. Ok I figured out how I can delete the history list by using my delete key but even then I had to hit the delete key several times and see a white screen. Ok I finally removed the history but seriously, why so tedious and complex??? . Am I the only one that thinks a "Revert to original" button would be so much better and not require a tutorial. I sometimes wonder about  how simple things are made so unnecessarily complex. If the learning curve continues to become more "Photoshopesq" I'll most likely ask for a refund. 

[4personnen]

I am not a photo user but I guess it's because Aperture is more like Photoshop Lightroom than Affinity Photo (edits saved as a sidecar file as opposite to layers saved with the document*). Remove layers from any photo editing software, and I'll track you until you beg for mercy
You find it complex, because its aim is not to simply organise and do some light retouch (Like you'd do with Aperture and Lightroom) but is able to handle things that are incredibly complex and out of the scope of Aperture/Lightroom (*were* of the scope of Aperture then).

I think that maybe at some point Affinity will try to fill that gap, but you can't really replace Aperture and Affinity Photo like-for-like, eventhough they both retouch photos, the UI, the functions and more importantly workflow are fundamentally different. And it's the way it should be

* meaning that the original file always remains intact, only the "sidecar" bit of the file is altered, as opposite as having an original file unretouched  and a retouched file with some layers like in Photoshop/Affinity Photo/Gimp

 

[peterD]

45 minutes ago, 4personnen said:

I am not a photo user but I guess it's because Aperture is more like Photoshop Lightroom thans Affinity Photo (edits saved as a side file as opposite to layers saved with the document*). Remove layers from any photo editing software, and I'll track you until you beg for mercy
You find it complex, because its aim is not to simply organise and do some light retouch (Like you'd do with Aperture and Lightroom) but is able to handle things that are incredibly complex and out of the scope of Aperture/Lightroom (*were* of the scope of Aperture then).

I think that maybe at some point Affinity will try to fill that gap, but you can't really replace Aperture and Affinity Photo like-or-like, eventhough they both retouch photos, the UI, the functions and more importantly workflow are fundamentally different. And it's the way it should be

* meaning that the original file always remains intact, only the "sidecar" bit of the file is altered, as opposite as having an original file and a retouched file completely separated like in Photoshop/Affinity Photo/ Gimp

Aperture is non destructive the same as Affinity Photo and was one of if not the first to do that. Aperture was/is still a brilliant software app and I've been using it since it was first issued.. You can apply edits globally or brush it in with controlled brushes, simple, intuitive and effective. Remove edits quickly without complicated steps. Intuitive beyond anything on the market. The interface of this affinity app is unnecessarily complex and it needs not be that way. If the aim was to replicate photoshop then their mission was accomplished. With all the advancements in cameras the need for complex editing has diminished. Aperture Color adjustment is brilliantly simple. Reds, Blues, Greens Yellows and if you need shades in between you got them too. Simple and effective. Sharpening/Definition, simple and effective as is every other adjustment. Cloning tool still one of the best if not the best. 

I bought Affinity Photos because of all I've read about it, awards etc. Ok, its cheap as in cost but already I see no particular benefit to me as I rarely need complex muti-layered edits. the icons are mostly meaningless and require study, Photoshop created a genre of complex editing and learning to use it effectively took months or years to master. I don't want to lean a new language but only to apply effective edits in simply way. My opinion of course. BTW, I never study the Aperture manual because within minutes I had a very good control of my workflow. Uncomplicated!

 

[4personnen]

@peterD

I use both Photoshop and Lightroom for my day job, so I know how they work, and I wouldn't choose Affinity Photo to replace Aperture/Lightroom. Completely different workflow (and that's why I am using both Photoshop and Lightroom for completely different stuff)... As I said, maybe at some point Affinity will disrupt the Adobe status-quo (only 100% compatibilty with my clients refrains me from changing shops at the moment - and I'm not completely disatisfied with Photoshop like I was with Illustrator). Me too I downloaded lightroom and didn't need the help files, but that's because the stuff that Lightroom does is rather simplistic.

What I was saying is that they operate on a completely different level and are for completely different workflows. I get that you find it too overwhelming, but it isn't for anyone who does compositing for a living (or any other kind of complicated stuff), as they need all the shenaningan. 

[R C-R]

16 hours ago, peterD said:

Thanks, I did manage to undo my edits using the history slider but it still showed a list of every edit. Ok I figured out how I can delete the history list by using my delete key but even then I had to hit the delete key several times and see a white screen. Ok I finally removed the history but seriously, why so tedious and complex??? .

There is no need to delete all the steps after the one you have currently set the History panel to, which BTW you can do either with the slider or simply by clicking on the step (not the camera icon next to it) you want to revert to in the list of steps. Unless you explicitly set "Save History with Document' in the File menu, all steps will be discarded when you save the file.

The History panel offers considerably more than just undo, redo, & revert to original functions. You might want to watch the newly revised Affinity Photo - Undo, redo and history official video tutorial to get an idea of how all this works, including the new 'futures' branching feature.

Also, while there is (as yet) no video tutorial for it, you might also want to check out the help topics relating to the Snapshots feature, like Using snapshots, Undo Brush Tool (where the camera icon in the History panel comes into play), & of course the History panel topic itself.

So while it is complex, it does not have to be tedious.

[Phillustrator]

Nobody has explained why there isn't a 're-set' button that removes your history altogether. Surely, it's possible to add a button. Is there a way to send feature requests to the developers? This would seem like an oversight that will frustrate a lot of new users who are editing photos in Affinity 'Photo'.

[walt.farrell]

17 minutes ago, Phillustrator said:

Nobody has explained why there isn't a 're-set' button that removes your history altogether. Surely, it's possible to add a button. Is there a way to send feature requests to the developers? This would seem like an oversight that will frustrate a lot of new users who are editing photos in Affinity 'Photo'.

Post a topic in one of the Feature Request & Suggestions forums.

Ideally, search first, and add your thoughts to an existing request rather than starting a new topic. I'm sure that one has already been suggested.

 

[Phillustrator]

Thanks, I added my voice to a similar post

[walt.farrell]

37 minutes ago, Phillustrator said:

Thanks, I added my voice to a similar post

Unfortunately, you picked one that is not related to what we're discussing here.

That one is specifically about resetting edits within an Adjustment layer, not about resetting edits to the photo in general.