Is Affinity Studio the real-deal or is it a trick?

[maxoakland]

Wanna get pretty?

Contribute to the code-base.

Designers and programmers have fundamentally different skill sets. I have good UI design skills but can’t contribute to the code base

That thinking is the problem with a lot of open source software. Ideally, programmers and designers would partner to make the software the best it can be, not lord their skill sets over each others heads and sarcastically tell them to do things they don’t know how to do

 

[Herbert123]

I think one of the benefits of Affinity is it doesn’t have as many features as Adobe so it’s less confusing. It has pretty much everything most people will need but Adobe also has that plus a bunch of niche stuff, which can clutter the interface

That depends on how you interpret the catch-all term "Adobe".

Affinity is now one consolidated app, and when compared to Photoshop offers a much broader and deeper feature set but for some outliers (if animation is excluded - but who wants to animate in Photoshop?!).

Compared to the Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign triad: yep, Affinity still loses out in terms of features.

That said, as it stands Affinity offers an amazing range of features for a completely free app that integrates bitmap, vector, and page layout editing in one application.

 

[Ambrosia7177]

Okay, I will bite...

The danger with these questions is always that each answer will generally be directed by that respondent's personal preference and familiarity of software that they happen to use within the context of their work requirements.

Of course.

My experience: I use most Adobe apps since Photoshop 3.5. Extensive experience in just about any design app, from 2D to 3D, UX prototyping, and film & FX editing. But I also teach this stuff to either beginners and experienced people alike. I like to work in open source software (if possible) as well. I used or tried almost every design app ever published, from C64 times onward to today.

Yes, I recall you have an impressive background and are "long in the tooth"... ;-)

To me software is merely a tool that is used in a particular context. If it saves me time, makes me more efficient and it is fun to use: I will use it. I do not care about free or commercial. I do, however, tend to avoid locked-in subscriptions if possible. I have been bitten too often. I tend to favour different design tools for my own personal work compared to what I am 'forced' to utilize at my jobs. But it depends.

And that is the key phrase here: it depends.

Okay.

Let's return to your @Ambrosia7177 's task requirements and context:


As others have mentioned here: aside from having to create a Canva account, the core version of Affinity is entirely free. No strings attached (as of yet? Unknown at this time) and Canva has gone to quite extreme lengths to calm their Affinity users that their intention is to keep it freely available for everyone.

The only part users have to pay rent/a subscription for is to access the generative AI features.

Okay, just wanted to "measure twice and cut once" on that part!

But the core application is actually the next FULL release of Affinity Designer, Photo, and Publisher seamlessly integrated into one application with different workspaces to conveniently switch between these three feature sets.

Sounds similar to how Black Magic Design combined DaVinci Resolve and Fusion and Fairlight into one suite.

It is also good to mention here that in this version a bunch of long LOOOOONG requested features have finally been implemented. For example it is now possible to convert bitmaps to vectors.

Okay.

As it stands today: there is no catch. Affinty is fully featured, sans AI functionality. And free. It really is quite impressive if you think about it.

Again, sounds like DaVinci Resolve.

It does NOT save your work to their servers. It does NOT send your files for training their AI. It works locally. Even when users opt for the paid subscription: the AI models are downloaded to your local machine, and run on your local machine.

Good to know, because that stuff is important to me - even if others don't care.

The Affinity Photo workspace will easily accommodate your listed requirements here. Yours are very basic needs, actually. Because Affinity is now a combined trio of apps, it might come across as cumbersome to learn - but the dedicated workspaces do keep things relatively clutter-free.

I have grown comfortable with DaVinci Resolve, and the way you get 3-4 apps in one suite is incredible! So I think Affinity Studio will actually feel fairly natural to me.

GIMP will do just fine as well. The latest version (R3) is actually not that bad (would never have thought to actually write this).

Krita will also work just fine. Amazingly good for digital painting in my opinion, but is also fairly good at general image editing, even if not as performant as dedicated image editors. The only drawback is its text tool, which is okay, but doesn't allow for direct edits on the canvas (yet).

Maybe if I first master Affinity Studio, then I can be bold and play around with Gimp 3.0 and Krita and Illustrator?

PhotoLine is my preferred general purpose image editing app. A glorious underdog - but not for everyone. And an obscurity on the web and social media. Not great for absolute beginners due to a distinct lack of tutorials.

Yes, I recall our long conversation about this from about a year ago. In fact, I spent a good part of yesetrday afetrnoon re-reading that entire thread here on MacRumors!

Pixelmator accomodates your purposes really well too.

Am interested in PixelMator Pro amd Photomator, but don't have the $$$ right now, so it looks like Affinity Studio wins.

If you are reluctant because of the 'free' Affinity deal being a "too good to be true" offer: at this point there is no indication that there are any catches. Of course, you will still need a Canva account, and the software will have to check your license and contact the Canva servers once in a while for you to keep using it. I believe I read that Affinity will need to contact their servers every 7 days, or so, to keep running. But don't quote me here.

For some people this might be a dealbreaker. For most it is not. I mean: quite a few design apps can't even be used anymore without an active live internet connection... (Figma, for example)

All valid points.

I really have to ask: if you are already familiar with Resolve: why not also do your photo editing in it? I know people who left Photoshop in favour of Resolve. Of course, it is 'different', but I have edited stills in Resolve myself.

Just grab a frame, place it in its own comp, add text. Use layers, effects. For more complex effects switch to the Fusion workspace. The colour grading workspace allows for high-level colour and light adjustments as well...

Export that one frame to an image. And create your own text/graphics templates to quickly generate new thumbnails for Youtube.

No need for an external image editor.

I was going to ask that very question, but my threads - like this one - have a habit of becoming "bloated" so I held off.

Right now I just know how to do basic video-editing in DaVinci Resolve and do all of my work in the Edit and Fairlight pages, so I don't yet have the skills to use the COlor and Fusion pages, but I'll get there next year.

This... is something that requires experience and insight in good design and layout. And knowing your audience - what they respond to.

I was asking more from a standpoint of things that Canva is famous for - among YouTubers - like removing abackground in 1-2 clicks, isolating the subject and moving the subject around or applying filters to the subject, adding text, etc. all in a matter of a few minutes.

Can't help you with that. Read up on good design. Get a good book on design. Watch some tutorials on what good design is. You need to develop an eye and sense for it - which can't be done in a mere 40 hours.

Learning a new software interface and medium-level usage of software can be easily taught (by oneself or watching/reading tutorials) in 40 hours. Learning how to be a good designer: Nah.

I think I have a decent eye for design.

So how long would it take me to be proficient in Affinity Photo so that I can edit iPhone photos and make them ready for my future website?

And how long to learn Affinity Photo + Designer to be able to make professional-looking YouTube Thumbnails?

But you can copy designs from other people, of course.

True.

I can't tell you which general purpose image editor would work best for you --no-one can. All of the image editors listed above (including Resolve) are overkill for your modest requirements, and it basically comes down to your own preferences: how you want to work, and which software feels 'best' for you personally.

I guess that is a good problem to have.

Which means: download and install each (trial), and test for a week, or so. NO-ONE can tell you which will work best for you in this case (in my opinion). We can only suggest options and alternatives, and make you aware of what exists and about different workflows. You decide in the end.

True, but this thread has helped me to focus on which options make more sense (e.g. Affinity Studio) and which ones are likely a waste of time (e.g. Gimp).

Thanks as always!!!

 

[Ambrosia7177]

PS I forgot to mention that I have used the Affinity apps since their first release. Personally, there are too many paper-cuts in those apps for my personal requirements and workflow(s). This, however, should not influence your @Ambrosia7177 decision which image editing workflow and software to use.

Your requirements are extremely basic. Mine reach into the ninth circle of Dante's proverbial hell.

Even the lofty Photoshop falls short on what I need to accomplish my work. Btw, Photoshop's core is full of legacy code and design decisions that require backward workarounds, and in some cases just cannot keep up with modern workflows.

So what exactly are you creating that has put you in "Dante's 9th circle of Hell"???

 

[maxoakland]

That depends on how you interpret the catch-all term "Adobe".

Affinity is now one consolidated app, and when compared to Photoshop offers a much broader and deeper feature set but for some outliers (if animation is excluded - but who wants to animate in Photoshop?!).

Compared to the Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign triad: yep, Affinity still loses out in terms of features.

That said, as it stands Affinity offers an amazing range of features for a completely free app that integrates bitmap, vector, and page layout editing in one application.

I actually miss the animation feature in photoshop now that I use affinity. It’s a very simple way to do sprite animations for my games

No question that affinity offers an amazing range of features. Especially since it’s free. Even when it was a paid app, it was well worth the price

But it does lack a lot of niche features most people won’t need. And that makes it a lot more approachable. Photoshop is gen has a feature where you can hide menus because their menus have gotten so cluttered

 

[loby]

It's a trick. Wait until they capture enough of the market and you'll see exactly what they are up to.

Worth also noting that if software has any of the following, you always need an exit strategy:

1. Sign in that is mandatory
2. License key activation
3. Auto upgrades.

Yes...unfortunately we have to be skeptical when we hear "Free for life". I agree with someone that pointed out that they are not after the individual user, but the corporate clients. "Free for Now" is really a better statement, because they can always say later that they "had" to switch to a subscription due to the demand and need to continually update or security etc. This is the name of the game.

That is why I keep and store the individual apps that I bought back when it first came out that is "suppose" to be the same as the now "free version". I bought when I get fed up with Adobe and the costs and Affinity had a great deal for all three app purchase.

I think they would do better to have a one time purchase option still (cost reasonable) that would trump Adobe's slavery subscription mania. "Free forever" can get users to come over and then (like Adobe) trap the user once they are locked into using it.

It is understandable why a subscription for A.I. tools. Why? Because it is still in development and the costs continue to rise, including development and developers need to finance their exploits in A.I. and keep it current. I personally now do not do demanding graphic design anymore to have to "keep up" or compete with everyone else, so A.I. venturing is more so just "interesting" or "fun" instead of necessarily.

I am glad I am not starting out in graphic design in this new era. It will be hard to express your personal talent when A.I. can copy it and expand it, creating a "you" but better.

That will be the talent and completion in the arts with A.I...who can use the tool to do better A.I. artwork.

 

[loby]

@cateye,

"Over-thinking" is my specialty!




After researching a lot of software over the last 24 hours, I think you are 90%+ correct...

Where I left off before supper was this...

In addition to Affinity Studio, maybe I want to look at Pixelmator Pro and/or Photomator. (Photomator sounds like it is a decent to Lightroom?)

Also, it sounds like I should be saving photos for my website to avif, so that is a small strike against Affinity. So if I go the Affinity route, then I need to find a workaround for that thing.

Otherwise I think you are right - yet it never hurts to spend some time familiarizing myself with all of the paid and free and open-source options out there for photo-editing and vector-editing.




Oh, okay, I didn't know that. To me, Canva, is synonymous with cringe-worthy YouTube thumbnails!!




Makes sense!




Another conclusion that I also came to this afternoon...

Affinity Studio presumably has tons of YouTube tutorials, but from the little I have read, Pixelmator Pro and/or Photomator might be easier/quicker to learn, and in the beginning those latter two applications might be all that I need?

But assuming that Affinity Studio is around for a few years, it would probably be a great application to learn and help me to 'cut my teeth" on a fairly beefy photo-editing application.




So because of my hangups about The Cloud and A.I., that could be a good thing as far as Canva products go, because it sorta forces my hand to man-up and learn the harder applications, i.e. Affinity Studio, versus using the cutesy web-based Canva...

I also have Pixelmator Pro and it is a decent app. I was quite surprised that Apple purchased them...

Why? I thought...

But...If Apple is going to pour some money into getting Pixelmator Pro up to Adobe level...that could be a competition I would love to see.

But I hope Apple just leaves the developers alone and just gives them money to create. I think they did that with Logic and it is a wonderful app for that reason.

Only time will tell...

 

[r.harris1]

Where does Canva make most of its money now?

And can you explain what you mean by "a better toehold in the corporate publishing markets"?

If you aren’t yet familiar with the company whose products you’re considering, I’d suggest this as a good place to start: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canva.

Adobe’s publishing business (e.g. Creative Cloud) is BIG business. They don’t make most of their money from photographers or YouTubers, per se. They make a ton of money by selling Adobe Creative Suite to corporate customers - think Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Acrobat, etc. Affinity’s suite of tools are direct competitors. Canva bought Affinity - already cheap to customers - because they didn’t have that set of capabilities. Now they do. Corporate customers already use Canva products and have Canva subscriptions - my company does - and now they can directly compete with Adobe software by offering their own version of Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign via Affinity. My company also has tons of Adobe Creative Cloud subscriptions. A cheaper alternative would be nice. Adobe makes their income from Creative Cloud, their analytics business, and more recently, their AI (Firefly) business.

 

[Allen_Wentz]

Valid point, but I guess it was implied in my OP that I am looking for an ecosystem with a solid product and even better tutorials and online forums and videos to help me get up to speed QUICKLY versus floundering with something like Gimp for the next 5 years.

QUICKLY may be too much of an ask. Graphic design competence is very much a case of putting in the time and effort. Part of the issue (at least for me) is that you do not know what you do not know. So you have to spend time working at it to see what there is to see, train your eyes/brain.

I suggest to optimize on QUICKLY [quickly not recommended by me] to spend $50 at the app store for Pixelmator and try using it to do what you want to do. Pixelmator is a solid app.

 

[cjsuk]

Wanna get pretty?

Contribute to the code-base.

Oh please don't roll out the "contribute to open source code base". That is only said by proponents who have never tried to contribute to an open source code base. I have, and have commits in quite a few quite well known things but it wasn't without much pain and misery. At best you'll get ignored. If you're lucky you'll get insulted. If you're really lucky you'll start a flame war somewhere. Eventually someone will tell you "if you're not happy, fork it" which means you then have to maintain a few for years at great cost.

All open source projects are run like the village in Hot Fuzz. FOR THE GREATER GOOD.

 

[Ambrosia7177]

If you aren’t yet familiar with the company whose products you’re considering, I’d suggest this as a good place to start: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canva.

Adobe’s publishing business (e.g. Creative Cloud) is BIG business. They don’t make most of their money from photographers or YouTubers, per se. They make a ton of money by selling Adobe Creative Suite to corporate customers - think Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Acrobat, etc. Affinity’s suite of tools are direct competitors. Canva bought Affinity - already cheap to customers - because they didn’t have that set of capabilities. Now they do. Corporate customers already use Canva products and have Canva subscriptions - my company does - and now they can directly compete with Adobe software by offering their own version of Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign via Affinity. My company also has tons of Adobe Creative Cloud subscriptions. A cheaper alternative would be nice. Adobe makes their income from Creative Cloud, their analytics business, and more recently, their AI (Firefly) business.

Thanks for the summary - I had no clue!

 

[Ambrosia7177]

QUICKLY may be too much of an ask. Graphic design competence is very much a case of putting in the time and effort. Part of the issue (at least for me) is that you do not know what you do not know. So you have to spend time working at it to see what there is to see, train your eyes/brain.

I suggest to optimize on QUICKLY [quickly not recommended by me] to spend $50 at the app store for Pixelmator and try using it to do what you want to do. Pixelmator is a solid app.

Because Pixelmator Pro would be "quicker" to learn than Affinity?

 

[splitpea]

PS I forgot to mention that I have used the Affinity apps since their first release. Personally, there are too many paper-cuts in those apps for my personal requirements and workflow(s). This, however, should not influence your @Ambrosia7177 decision which image editing workflow and software to use.

Your requirements are extremely basic. Mine reach into the ninth circle of Dante's proverbial hell.

Even the lofty Photoshop falls short on what I need to accomplish my work. Btw, Photoshop's core is full of legacy code and design decisions that require backward workarounds, and in some cases just cannot keep up with modern workflows.

As someone who used photoshop for web design moderately heavily from about 2005-2015 but hasn’t done much graphics work since, nor used PS since CS2, may I ask how modern workflows have evolved since then?

 

[cjsuk]

QUICKLY may be too much of an ask. Graphic design competence is very much a case of putting in the time and effort. Part of the issue (at least for me) is that you do not know what you do not know. So you have to spend time working at it to see what there is to see, train your eyes/brain.

I suggest to optimize on QUICKLY [quickly not recommended by me] to spend $50 at the app store for Pixelmator and try using it to do what you want to do. Pixelmator is a solid app.

Pixelmator is really good. I will admit I use it occasionally when I can't be bothered to remember how to do something in Photoshop.

 

[splifingate]

Designers and programmers have fundamentally different skill sets. I have good UI design skills but can’t contribute to the code base

That thinking is the problem with a lot of open source software. Ideally, programmers and designers would partner to make the software the best it can be, not lord their skill sets over each others heads and sarcastically tell them to do things they don’t know how to do

I'm not privy to the internals of GIMP's design strateg(ies), but I'm sure that there is no lack of interest on the Design Team's part for making use of the soft be appealing.

GIMP is theme-able, and allows for much (maybe too-much) customization.

Not bad for an un-paid, volunteer team

This being said, I do not use GIMP on-the-daily. Affinity (2.6.5) really hits the sweet-spot, for me.

 

[splifingate]

Oh please don't roll out the "contribute to open source code base". That is only said by proponents who have never tried to contribute to an open source code base. I have, and have commits in quite a few quite well known things but it wasn't without much pain and misery. At best you'll get ignored. If you're lucky you'll get insulted. If you're really lucky you'll start a flame war somewhere. Eventually someone will tell you "if you're not happy, fork it" which means you then have to maintain a few for years at great cost.

All open source projects are run like the village in Hot Fuzz. FOR THE GREATER GOOD.

Yes; it's a laborious process, but democracy is messy.

As a fellow contributor to an 'open source code base', surely you must have internalized some sense of agency and ownership through your participation in the process? Is this not enough?

Every time I can contribute (through my hard work) to some shared resource, I am gratified mostly by the fact that others' might benefit.

Being a busy guy, I mostly just pay companies to provide a decent product (and hope that they pay their developers well).

 

[OldMacs4Me]

What Canva has to say.

Add salt according to taste.

 

[Allen_Wentz]

Because Pixelmator Pro would be "quicker" to learn than Affinity?

Yes. Simpler, less full-featured.