Affinity Bootcamp - January 2025

[Jacques]

My first try with Affinity...

[Jacques]

@Cassel How did you create a 3600x3600, 300 DPI etc page template in the "creating a new document" section?

Edited January 16 by Jacques

[Marie-Claire]

 

Day 2

 

Day 3

Edited January 19 by Marie-Claire

[Sharon Murray]

Trying to get caught up!  Here is my lunch from Lesson 2.  I had to add dill pickles because I love pickles!!!  🙂

[Cassel]

  On 1/16/2025 at 4:35 PM, Jacques said:

How did you create a 3600x3600, 300 DPI etc page template in the "creating a new document" section?

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Set the values you want and then click the Preset button on the bottom left. You will then be prompted to give it a name and an icon:

[Corrie Kinkel]

  On 1/16/2025 at 4:08 AM, Cassel said:

I am glad to see everyone back in our comfortable forum. Thank you for your patience while I worked at exterminating those gremlins 🙂

@Jenny MacKay I am not familiar with Affinity 1 as never used it. I would suggest you watch the videos and see if you are able to follow. I can't imagine that it would be THAT different, but I might be wrong.

@Daniel Hess I have not found a way to enlarge icons and text either. I don't think Affinity has that function. I don't know about ABR files. I checked mine and it is still associated with Photoshop. For your first layout, you might want to add some shadows to give it more 3D effect.

@Ann Seeber The Navigation panel is similar to the Preview palette in PSP. It gives you an overview of the image. The Sandwich components are new and will be carried over to the PSP Bootcamp too. Bauhaus is also a font I tend to use often. I like that "boldness" and the roundness.

@Cristina using the same photo and same kit for the first project is definitely a way to work faster. Right now, it gives you time to focus on the features and commands in Affinity. 

@Rene Marker It would be nice if all the functionalities were the same in Affinity as in PSP. It would be much easier for sure, but that is not the case. It is a different tool that works differently. You surely will find some advantages, but at other times, you will miss some PSP features/functions, that is for sure. I found that Affinity often has some "default" settings, but they don't seem to be that useful. At least, that is what I observed.

@Angela Tilghman Affinity does not have scripting capabilities. All the scripts you currently have (and might get), can't be used in Affinity. They have "scripting" in their roadmap, BUT it likely will use javascript, meaning that the PSP scripts won't work there, AND it has been on their roadmap for over two years so far. You might want to keep your PSP handy! One thing that you can use is File > Place. That will do something similar to the "Open as a layer". However, you will have to rasterize that layer if you want to delete some of it (Rene faced that challenge).

@Anne Lamp Are you trying to install Affinity on your computer or on a Windows tablet? As Rene mentioned, it COULD be the file you tried to install. The ones with ARM in the name are for tablets. Which one did you download/try to install?

@eli1 Thank you for your tips. I will gather all the tips that participants share and will make a sort of cheat sheet. 

@Gerry Landreth I always love to see the results of the sandwich exercise, and I was happy to change the images this time around 🙂 Do your cats enjoy music? I can just envision that "cat flower" as a big musical box!

@Corrie Kinkel I don't have a cheat sheet to share with all those tools on the left. I made one for myself, but it is only to know what is "hidden". There are many many tools and they are grouped differently than what you are used to. For example, in PSP, we have 4 tools grouped as "vector tools", while in Affinity, you will have 23 shapes to pick from. It is like learning a different language! 😉 I might try to make a cheat sheet for the tools used in the Bootcamp though, if it can help.

@Saara Glad to see you added a fabric napkin. We have to be environmentally conscious, right? 😉 Scrapbooking is a fantastic way to showcase your photos and graphics. You will see some participants are primarily photographers, but take advantage of scrapbooking techniques to display their favorite photos. If you don't have scrapbooking stashes, you can always follow the links offered. They are always free supplies.

@Linda J Walker I think that when you minimize a window, gremlins eat it! Just kidding. When you minimize an image, you can "recover" it by hovering over the icon on your taskbar. It will appear like a different document. Click on it when it pops up and you are good to go. Try it and let me know how it goes. For the white border, there is a way to do that. You can do it with the Layer FX > Outline, or you can use the Select > Outline after making a selection of your photo. You can also make a selection and add a layer below the photo and fill it with white. Through this Bootcamp (and future workshops), you will be able to catch various ways to do things in Affinity. As for linking, Daniel is correct: you can group, however that is only for adjacent layers. There is a way to "link" layers but it is more convoluted. It took me a while to understand it!

@Jean Naumann Yes, spending time looking for photos or supplies seem to be a "side effect" of scrapbooking LOL! Great layout!

@Sharon Murray I am like you and I am not comfortable with how Affinity floats images. They seem more "in the way" since the "windows" don't resize with the images.

Continue to post your projects and questions. I read every single post (and I get an email notification for every post so I can't miss any).

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Carole having a cheat sheet of the tools for this bootcamp would be great! It will make a start on which I can build as needed!

[Linda J Walker]

Susan I agree--the instructions for installing are not very clear! I don't feel dumb about computers....usually  😆

[Linda J Walker]

Uploading my basic 'sandwich' here. No bread, or pickles, with extra bacon and tomatoes. No frills, no tablecloth, no napkin, no fancy cut sandwich, nothing to drink, just the basic lesson. Affinity is pretty different from PSP. I assume 'Photo' is for working with photos. However I don't see how to do that. It is does not wwork the way PSP and PhotoShop work.

Edited January 16 by Linda J Walker

[Rene Marker]

I was playing with it today and struggled to make a selection (miss that magic wand) using the selection brush. I wanted a simple selection. I wanted to select the inside of a frame and delete the part of the photo that extended past it. I kept at it because I wanted to get the hang of using the tool. I did eventually get it. After I was done, I thought of the rectangular marquee tool and realized that is what I should have used.

But I just watched a YouTube Video and my mind was blown. You can make a selection with the Pen Tool! But that is for something later down the road. I don't like the pen tool in PSP but I just may like it in Affinity!

[Rene Marker]

@Linda J Walker I think once we get past the basics, we will see how it can be used for photos. I've been watching YouTube videos today since we had no assignment and I've seen some pretty cool things done with photos (it's too cold to venture outside). But none of the videos even come close to "scrapbooking" as we know it. 

[Rene Marker]

This is the layout that I worked on using the selection brush on the frame. 

Edit: To add a link to the kit used. Kristin Cronin-Barrow's "A Cold Snap: Snowy Days" available at Sweet Digi Scraps. 

Edited January 18 by Rene Marker
add kit information

[Linda J Walker]

  On 1/16/2025 at 8:11 PM, Corrie Kinkel said:

Carole having a cheat sheet of the tools for this bootcamp would be great! It will make a start on which I can build as needed!

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There is a 'quick start' page online - https://affinity.serif.com/en-us/learn/photo/desktop/quickstart/

[Corrie Kinkel]

  On 1/16/2025 at 8:56 PM, Rene Marker said:

This is the layout that I worked on using the selection brush on the frame. 

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Wow Rene you are much further with this. I agree with the things about Affinity you said in the posts above this one. Just this week was an unusually busy one for me, my husband had his 80th birthday and we had company on 3 days, my fridge/freezer combi brook down, and today a new one is installed and much minor things took a lot of time too. I'm now reading everything that is in this tread. Hopefully I will have a bit more time to poke around Affinity. So far I only managed to do the sandwich and project 1. I'm curious how it will go, time will tell........

[Corrie Kinkel]

  On 1/16/2025 at 9:07 PM, Linda J Walker said:

There is a 'quick start' page online - https://affinity.serif.com/en-us/learn/photo/desktop/quickstart/

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Thank you and I have found that one too but it automatically directs me to that page in German and I'm not in Germany! I live in the Netherlands which borders Germany and I installed Affinity in US English. Of course I have an Dutch IP address, computer mysteries! I speak/read German but I want the tools and their names in English because I'm used to those. Besides this I asked Carole not for a full list of all the tools, but a cheat sheet for the ones we will use mostly so I can decide which ones I have in my toolbar and can build on that as I'm more comfortable with this for me totally new program.

Edited January 16 by Corrie Kinkel

[Corrie Kinkel]

I had posted this one in the "old forum" and now here. This sandwich was the very first thing I ever did with Affinity and after all the trouble I had to install this with the 90 days trial I was very glad I at least had something. It is still a basic sandwich without any background and an empty cup, after the lesson for project 1 I feel a little bit more comfortable with this new program. But I had no time to add a placemat under my plate. I too noticed the nice new plate, cup, cutlery etc;  it makes it a bit more realistic.

[David Belton]

This is my project 1. I've used affinity for a while now for photo editing as it's raw image tools are really good. This is my first time working with it for scrapbook work. 

[Julie Magerka]

  On 1/16/2025 at 11:20 PM, David Belton said:

This is my project 1. I've used affinity for a while now for photo editing as it's raw image tools are really good. This is my first time working with it for scrapbook work. 

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My favorite people are dogs too! (and cats!) My house usually has a few of one or the other.

Edited January 16 by Julie Magerka

[Cindy Sheets]

Okay, I was actually having an issue with PSP that Carole helped me fix and then I had a hiccup getting my trial version activated. BUT, I am up and running now. I am legally blind, so I prefer a dark background without all the glaring white. I also chose to go with the mono icons. There are other projects that I need to complete, so I haven't picked any photos yet but I have plenty ready and waiting on my computer when I do the exercises.

[Cassel]

I am so glad to see more projects today!

@Linda Rexford That gingham tablecloth makes me think you are having a picnic! I am so surprised to see your cat enjoying falling snow! That birdbath must be very comfortable!

@Jenny MacKay I am glad that you can follow with Version 1. Did you find many significant differences from what is shown in the video?

@Raymond It is great that you use a sky photo as a background. It is perfectly matching the theme.

@Euka Considering that someone using version 1 is able to follow, I can assume you would not have any issues with version 2.2. Nice page with Nano. Did you create the plaid paper yourself? Or adjust it? It matches the photo so well!

@Anne Lamp May I just suggest you reach out to their support? I heard that Darren has helped a few of you in the past week, so hopefully, you can get it all set up correctly.

@Jacques That is such a lovely photo to showcase! It made me smile ear to ear!

@Marie-Claire Poncho is such a photogenic dog. Did you train him to pose like that?

@Sharon Murray May I ask if you are left-handed? Moving the cup to the left makes me think that. Am I right?

@Linda J Walker Yes, Affinity works differently. Someone told me that changing software is not just a matter of translating commands/tools, but especially in this case, you have to change your mindset too, as the process and the thought behind the tools and commands are different. 

@Rene Marker I also miss the selection tools from PSP. Affinity has a Selection Brush (W) and a Flood Select tool (W). And yes, the same shortcut for both! But it also has a Freehand selection tool (hidden in the group where you can see the Rectangle Marquee tool). Great layout by the way.

@David Belton Welcome to the Campus. It will be interesting to see an experienced Affinity user as a scrapbooking newcomer! Your first layout looks great!

@Cindy Sheets I am glad you are able to tweak the interface to suit your vision limitations. Too bad you can't get larger icons!

And I will look at making a cheat sheet before the end of the Bootcamp as suggested by Corrie.

Watch for the next project tutorial, tomorrow!

[Jenny MacKay]

@Cassel so far, The only difference was the setup in the first video, the preferences were in a different spot. So all good so far. I guess the only down comment I have to make is every time you bring in an element or photo, that window then needs to be closed. I’m sure I’ll get used to it. So far, it’s going well.  
oh and I couldn’t open your sandwich files as they were created in a later version, but I got the gist of layers.

Edited January 17 by Jenny MacKay

[Carolyn Rye]

Day 3 of the Bootcamp using Affinity Photo 2.  Some things are similar and others a little different.  It is just a matter of finding my way around.  I did find a YouTube video that I found helpful so I thought I would share.  Hope it helps a little. It was Kru Mark - How to use Affinity Photo 2 for Beginners 2024 Quick Start Guide.  He explains all the tools and how to use.  Some are very similar to PSP but in different places, so this guide helps with this.

The photo is of my eldest daughter when she was very young.  She was with her father.

 

Edited January 17 by Carolyn Rye

[Cheryle Becker]

Hi Carole,  It worked this time.....Thanks again.

Here is my Project 1.

[Euka]

@Cassel   The plaid was made following your recent blog post then I reduced the opacity so it didn't overpower the photo.  (I also learned this way to make plaid in the "Love Story Challenge") and love making them.    Nano is my nephew's baby and she is a  very, very spoilt cat!   

[Ann Seeber]

I was poking around in the folder for AASPN supplies and was surprised to see what looks like an .abr brush file. It only shows up when I use Affinity but not with PSP. What can we do with these brushes? Here's a screenshot of that folder.

Edited January 17 by Ann Seeber

[Saara]

  On 1/17/2025 at 4:31 AM, Jenny MacKay said:

@Cassel

"I guess the only down comment I have to make is every time you bring in an element or photo, that window then needs to be closed. I’m sure I’ll get used to it."

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Jenny, are you clicking "File >> Open" each time you want to add a new element to your page?  If so, try using "File>> Place" (or click on the Place tool in the tool bar on the left).  This will give you a cursor on the page you're working on. Just drag that out to place your element. 😊