Using the Affinity Photo Overlay Tools for Better RAW Processing

[@windmilljohn]

Fantastic. I’ve been adding an overlay, then going to the photo persona and back to the develop persona to add another!!! I didn’t realise I could add more like Lightroom. This now makes Affinity Photo a really superb alternative to Lightroom for me at least. A belated thanks Robin.

[@RobinWhalley]

You're very welcome and I'm pleased that it helps you. It sounds like you are already using the "RAW" Layer option in the Affinity Photo 2 Develop Person but if you aren't, you might want to see how I use it in this video kzbin.info/www/bejne/kJSWnZWffs15g9E. It preserves all your editing in the Develop Person so that it's non-destructive.

[@windmilljohn]

Once again, thank you. I was not using as you described. I was literally using a gradient in ‘Develop’, going to ‘Photo’, then back to ‘Develop’ to add another another gradient…. Yes I know, an idiot!

[@phileptlett4070]

I have been trying to work out how to use overlays with moderate results, now I am enlightened after watching your video. Should have watched it sooner to avoid some frustration. Many thanks

[@RobinWhalley]

You're welcome and I'm glad it was helpful!

[@alangauld6079]

Thanks, I've played with these but didn't really understand how to use them. As a result i just waited till I got into the Photo persona to apply local adjustments. Nice to know i can do it in develop now.

[@RobinWhalley]

Great to hear!

[@justalittledaf]

Great job. Using Eliptical Gradient Overlays will looks like it will be perfect for isolating faces from backgrounds so touchups can be done on the facial areas without affecting anything else. Look forward to experimenting with this knowledge that you shared. Thanks for sharing!

[@RobinWhalley]

You're welcome.

[@ronmaunder8662]

Thank you! I was quite confused about using the RAW tools as I'm very new to editing.

[@RobinWhalley]

Happy to try to help!

[@LeeChandler]

Thanks Robin. I wish they would add the overlay reveal button to the win/Mac version similar to the one that appears in the iPad OS version. Great explanation.

[@RobinWhalley]

Good call!

[@weddingbells100]

Many thanks' Robin for a very informative video you have been a great help to me I have always wondered how to use overlays this video has been a revelation to me.

[@RobinWhalley]

I'm glad it was helpful to you. Thank you.

[@JanVizner]

Your tutorials are excellent. I'm glad to hear your pleasant voice.

[@RobinWhalley]

Thank you very much!

[@manuelandaur2628]

Excelente video explicativo, muy bueno. Desde Rancagua chile un gran saludo

[@RobinWhalley]

De nada. Gracias

[@lloydstuartm.d.5625]

No joke, Robin, but you're my hero! You have taken my photography to a new level. Some of your videos are a little over my head but this one is fantastic! Do you have a vide on how to soften a photo using Affinity? I find the fog effect to be tough to look natural. If you have one, please share the link.

[@RobinWhalley]

Thank you very much. If you want to add natural looking fog and mist, this video shows how to do it kzbin.info/www/bejne/bqbEiapphaZ0fKc A good way you can soften an image in Affinity Photo is using a Frequency Separation. This video explains how and you can vary the level of softening kzbin.info/www/bejne/j3TXe4GjhbB4gtE

[@GregBrammah]

Hi Robin, Great info, thank-you. If you want to show/adjust the mask overlay, after making basic adjustments. ie: exposure for a gradient on the sky. Toggle off the adjustment and the mask overlay reappears. It's not ideal, but helps on occasion. I wish you could use a brush to edit such a mask though, rather than creating another mask for the bits you want to reverse out.

[@RobinWhalley]

Thanks for the idea! I agree also about the brushes. Hopefully they wiull enhance the overlays in the future.

[@birdie399]

Very helpful, thanks.

[@RobinWhalley]

You're welcome. Thank you.

[@cliffordmcfarlane9008]

Thank you Robin, once again an informative tutorial.

[@RobinWhalley]

My pleasure!

[@vilajetleka3414]

Thanks, just what I needed, the elliptical tool explanation was a surprise bonus :)

[@RobinWhalley]

You're welcome!

Returning to refresh my memory :)

[@RobinWhalley]

I know that feeling.

[@glarvenz]

I've been using Affinity Photo for about a year and I didn't even know those were there! Thanks so much!

[@RobinWhalley]

Happy to help!

[@petermaddern6653]

Thank you once again Robin. I have been using the overlay tools but my wife hasn't and she found this one very useful. I find myself using local adjustment s and control points in DXO more now.

[@RobinWhalley]

Glad it was helpful! DxO is also very useful. I love the control points in there as well. I just wish they would support Fuji XTrans files.

[@CamStLouis]

Really clear and helpful description, thanks!

[@RobinWhalley]

You're very welcome!

[@JulesMoyaert_photo]

Thank you!

[@RobinWhalley]

You're welcome!

[@stevehallam0850]

Very useful as always with your videos. I was aware of these tools but hadn't used them to their full capabilities. Thanks Robin.

[@RobinWhalley]

Happy to help!

[@rodneyferguson961]

You are an absolute star : )

[@RobinWhalley]

Thank you

[@SanPedro22]

Very helpful! I never before realized I could do this in the raw persona. Excellent tutorial. Gracias!

[@RobinWhalley]

You're very welcome!

[@roychavez519]

Thanks. How to add sharpness to an image.

[@RobinWhalley]

I have a sharpening video coming up later this week.

[@EElgar1857]

The "Develop P." tools may be limited, but at least I can make them work! Not the case with the gradient tool in the "Photo Persona", which I can't seem to figure out. It must work completely differently from Capture One, and many others, which are easy. Do you have a video on the AP one? Thanks!

[@RobinWhalley]

Yes, it works differently to the overlay tool but you can use it for different things. Try this video. I think it might be what you are looking for kzbin.info/www/bejne/pJCvpISwrJdsgas

[@EElgar1857]

@@RobinWhalley I will; thank you! Your videos are really excellent - the best I've seen.

[@alexschorm3077]

Thanks, Robin. Your videos are always very informative. I am afraid I very much agree with your last remark about regrettable restrictions imposed on these selection tools. It would be interesting to be able not only to apply other adjustment options than those currently available, but also e.g. to invert the elliptical or radial gradient’s ‘mask’.

[@RobinWhalley]

Thanks. Hopefully they will address some of the shortcomings in the future.

[@gossedejong9248]

brilliant

[@RobinWhalley]

Thank you

[@zoltanpuskas4722]

Thanks for doing this, Robin, I had no idea it even existed.

[@RobinWhalley]

My pleasure!

[@AkhterRasool]

Very great tutorial

[@RobinWhalley]

Glad you think so! Thank you.

[@jean-pierregodefroy7083]

Un grand merci !

[@RobinWhalley]

je vous en prie

[@pjos11]

I gave up photography a few years back. One of the reasons was I couldn't keep my photos organised and kept destroying my originals. Is there a video that gives a good organisation structure?

[@RobinWhalley]

It's a common problem for people. This video will help kzbin.info/www/bejne/emq8gpx6n56Dba8. I'd also recommend reading this article on my website lenscraft.co.uk/photo-editing-tutorials/organising-photos-pc-or-mac/ This should help to explain what you need to know. If you follow this structure, everything else becomes much easier. I have hundreds of thousand of digitised images from 20 years and can find images in seconds with this method.

[@capturesintime7080]

Robin... love your videos and they really help me out with my editing. Im at the stage with my landscape shots where i bracket in field and then want to being two images together. I used to do this in HDR blend mode but more recently with your videos help learnt exposure blending... i still need more practice on this. Anyway... very often even after the blend id like to make local adjustments and up to now will dodge and burn usually but i find the edges of this hard to control and sometimes wish I could take the image back to raw editing persona to use the overlay tools. Ive tried it but they just dont seem to work properly i imagine as its not a raw file any more. So my question is how or what am I best to do to make these local adjustments.... I see others edit on videos using the LR-PS and using the radial adjustments always looks so simple... I never use the gradient filter on Affinity in the photo persona as its not really what im after... its an overlay tool... any advice would be appreciated... thanks and merry Christmas when it comes. ⛄️🎅🏻

[@RobinWhalley]

As you've already discovered, the adjustments in the Develop persona get locked into the image when you leave. You could create a new consolidated pixel layer and then take that into the Develop persona for editing. The Photo persona doesn't have the Overlay tools in the toolbar but the toolbar also doesn't show all the tools. Try clicking the menu option "View | Customise Toolbar" and you will see what's available. You may find some of these helpful. The real approach though is using Masks and Selections to apply local adjustments. Do you have a copy of my book "Affinity Photo How To" as I cover quite a bit of it there. I've also published a couple of recent videos which explain how to use the selection tools. For the best results when making local adjustments, painting through selections to create masks is invaluable as is the use of Blend Modes.

[@capturesintime7080]

@@RobinWhalley I’ll defo look into your book... I think you have confirmed what I already knew... I just think the overlay option seems so much easier than the masking... especially as i know it would do what i want it to do... i’ll see if any of the other tools or consolidation of my edit to a new consolidated pixel layer maybe is the best solution. How would i do that? I understand the concept of masks but the time involved in learning and getting to grips with them puts me off as to be honest im not a huge fan of spending a long time in the PP process. Masks also mean making and committing to a selection which i might want to alter later... which i guess u can do.... Ill try what u suggest and get your book as a starter for ten.

[@rickewilde]

I'm new to affinity so excuse my ignorance, but could this overlay tool be used to lessen reflections on polished floors or other reflective surfaces? At the develop stage.

[@RobinWhalley]

Possibly. Reflections seem more intense when the contrast is high. You could soften them by selectively reducing contrast. The only problem you might encounter is if an area of the reflection has turned to pure white. It would then be difficult.

[@Vincent112june]

Is there a way to paint off some of it ?.

[@RobinWhalley]

No, unfortunately not. These are quite crude selection tools compared with what's available in some packages.

[@Dexter101x]

Shame this doesn't have the sharpen tool available when using the gradient overlay

[@RobinWhalley]

Don't forget, the sharpening tools in the Develop Persona are really only intended for capture sharpening. It's much better to use the Sharpen Live Filter layer in the Photo Persona. You can then use gradients and other mask/layer features to control where it's applied. Have you seen this kzbin.info/www/bejne/qqnTaWt4nZuGkLs

[@caskraker]

I just don’t get the idea of making local adjustments in Develop when you can go in the Photo persona to do everything, better, easier and non destructive.

[@RobinWhalley]

The Develop Persona is non-destructive in Affinity Photo 2. Just change the setting to output to a RAW layer. But the real benefit is that these tools allow you to extract the maximum data from the RAW file. Then, when you take the image into the Photo Persona, you have more flexibility in editing. To give a better example, if an area in the image is black, you may be able to recover detail in the RAW file. But you can't recover the detail once converted to an image and editing in the Photo Persona. All you can do is make black appear less black. The same is true for highlights that might be clipped. That's why we use these tools in the Develop Persona. It's to produce the best possible starting point to begin editing in the photo persona.