Affinity Photo Mac App Store

| 01-05-2021
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  1. Affinity Photo App Store
  2. Affinity Photo Mac App Store
  3. Affinity Software For Mac

Affinity Photo Officially Launched, Available in the Mac App Store Jaron Schneider July 9, 2015 After a highly successful beta and more development based on feedback, Serif has announced the official launch of Affinity Photo with a pricing structure that is more akin to how software used to be sold and is available on the Mac Store starting today. Affinity Photoは、2015年7月に、macOS専用の画像編集ソフトとして、Mac App Storeにてリリースされた。RAW形式の現像機能を備えており、写真の加工などに適している。.

Affinity Photo App Store

Affinity Designer
Developer(s)Serif Europe
Initial release1 October 2014; 6 years ago
Stable release
1.9.3 / 13 April 2021; 8 days ago[1]
Operating systemmacOS, Microsoft Windows, iPadOS
Available in9 languages
English, German, Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, Japanese, Chinese, Russian
TypeVector graphics editor
LicenseProprietary
Websiteaffinity.serif.com/designer/
Affinity Photo Mac App Store

Affinity Designer is a vector graphics editor developed by Serif for macOS, iPadOS, and Microsoft Windows. It is part of the 'Affinity trinity' alongside Affinity Photo and Affinity Publisher. Affinity Designer is available for purchase directly from the company website and in the Mac App Store, iOS App Store, and the Microsoft Store.

Functionality[edit]

Affinity Designer serves as a successor to Serif's own DrawPlus software, which the company discontinued in August 2017 in order to focus on the Affinity product range.[2] It has been described as an Adobe Illustrator alternative,[3][4][5] and is compatible with common graphics file formats, including Adobe Illustrator (AI), Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG), Adobe Photoshop (PSD), Portable Document Format (PDF), and Encapsulated PostScript (EPS) formats.[6] The application can also import data from some Adobe FreeHand files (specifically versions 10 & MX).[7]

Affinity Designer's core functions include vector pen and shape-drawing tools, support for custom vector and raster brushes (including the ability to import Adobe Photoshop (ABR) brushes), dynamic symbols, stroke stabilization, text style management, and vector/pixel export options.[5][8][9]

Affinity Designer provides non-destructive editing features across unlimited layers, with pan and zoom at 60fps, and real-time views for effects and transformations.[10] It supports the RGB, RGB Hex, LAB, CMYK and Grayscale color models, along with PANTONE color swatches and an end-to-end CMYK workflow with ICC color management, and 16-bit per channel editing.[11][9]

Development[edit]

Affinity software for mac

Affinity Designer began as a vector graphics editor solely for macOS. It was developed entirely from scratch for this operating system, allowing it to leverage core native technologies such as OpenGL, Grand Central Dispatch, and Core Graphics.[12]

The first version was released in October 2014, making it the first of the Affinity apps to be released by Serif (and their first macOS release).[13] At that time, Serif's vector graphics application for Windows was DrawPlus; however, following the release of Affinity Designer for Windows, this product has now been discontinued.[14]

Version 1.2, released in April 2015, introduced new tools and features, such as a corner tool and a pixel-alignment mode for GUI design tasks.[15] In December 2015, version 1.4 then introduced new features for managing artboards and printing.[16] With version 1.5 in October 2016, the application received multiple new features, including symbols, constraints, asset management and text styles.[17]

The application began branching out to other platforms in November 2016, when it first launched for Microsoft Windows.[18]

Version 1.6 was released in November 2017, introducing performance improvements and alternative GUI display mode.[19]

Affinity

The first release of a separate iPad version of Affinity Designer took place in July 2018.[20]

Version 1.7 was released in June 2019 adding some key features such as HDR support, unlimited strokes and fills to a single shape, new point transform tool, new transform mode in Node tool, Lasso selection of nodes, new sculpt mode added to pencil, and also some big performance improvements.[21] Version 1.8, released in February 2020, added the ability for users to define their own document templates and keyboard shortcuts, and a built-in panel for adding stock images.[22]

Reception[edit]

Affinity Designer was selected as a runner-up in Apple's 'Best of 2014' list of Mac App Store and iTunes Store content in the macOS app category.[23][24][25] It also was one of the winners of the 2015 Apple Design Award.[26]

In 2018, the Windows version of Affinity Designer won 'Application Creator of the Year' at the Windows Developer Awards (part of Microsoft Build 2018).[27]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^'Affinity Designer for Windows - 1.9.0'. Affinity Forum. Retrieved 2021-02-04.CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  2. ^Ogunjobi, Anino (2017-08-10). 'Digital Craft: Serif discontinues its Pageplus, Drawplus and Photoplus designing software to focus on its(Serif) new Affinity range of Professional graphic design software'. ANINO. Retrieved 2019-08-17.
  3. ^'Why I Use Affinity Designer Instead of Illustrator for Motion Design'. School of Motion. Retrieved 2018-08-06.
  4. ^'Affinity Designer vs Adobe Illustrator CC 2018 Comparison | FinancesOnline'. Financesonline.com. Retrieved 2018-08-06.
  5. ^ ab'Affinity Designer vs. Adobe Illustrator: can Designer replace Illustrator? - 99designs'. 99designs. 2016-08-17. Retrieved 2018-08-06.
  6. ^Martin, Keith (November 27, 2014). 'Serif Affinity Designer'. Expert Reviews. Retrieved December 25, 2015.
  7. ^'Import and export file formats - Affinity Designer Help'. affinity.help. Retrieved 2018-08-06.
  8. ^'Affinity - One Year Review'. Cargo Creative. Retrieved 2018-09-05.
  9. ^ ab'Affinity Designer - Complete Feature List'. affinity.serif.com. Retrieved 2018-09-05.
  10. ^'Illustrator rival launches on Windows'. Creative Bloq. Retrieved 2018-09-05.
  11. ^'Graphic Design App 'Affinity Designer' Launches for iPad With Apple Pencil Support'. Retrieved 2018-09-05.
  12. ^'Serif releases free alternative to Adobe Illustrator'. Creative Bloq. Retrieved 2018-08-06.
  13. ^'Affinity Designer is a new graphics design suite available for Mac'. iMore. 2014-10-02. Retrieved 2018-08-06.
  14. ^'Digital Craft: Serif discontinues its Pageplus, Drawplus and Photoplus designing software to focus on its(Serif) new Affinity range of Professional graphic design software - ANINO'. ANINO. 2017-08-10. Retrieved 2018-09-04.
  15. ^'Affinity Designer gets first big update'. Creative Bloq. Retrieved 2018-08-06.
  16. ^'Top new features in Affinity Designer 1.4'. Creative Bloq. Retrieved 2018-08-06.
  17. ^'Affinity Designer 1.5 released | Webdesigner Depot'. Webdesigner Depot. 2016-10-12. Retrieved 2018-08-06.
  18. ^'Affinity Spotlight - Photography, Design & Illustration'. Affinity Spotlight.
  19. ^'Affinity Photo 1.6 released: faster processing, new features, and free stuff'. DPReview. Retrieved 2018-08-06.
  20. ^'9to5'. Twitter. Retrieved 2018-07-11.
  21. ^'Affinity Designer and Photo for Mac updated to version 1.7 with multi-GPU and HDR display support'. 9 to 5 Mac.
  22. ^Benjamin, Jeff (2020-02-26). 'Affinity Photo, Publisher, and Designer updated to version 1.8'. 9to5Mac. Retrieved 2020-03-07.
  23. ^Spencer, Graham (December 8, 2014). 'Apple Posts 'Best of 2014' App Store and iTunes Store Lists'. MacStories. Retrieved December 25, 2015.
  24. ^May, Tom (December 10, 2014). 'Affinity Designer is number 2 Mac app of 2014'. Creative Bloq. Retrieved December 25, 2015.
  25. ^Calimlim, Aldrin (December 8, 2014). 'Apple announces the App Store's Best of 2014 for iPhone, iPad and Mac'. AppAdvice. Retrieved December 25, 2015.
  26. ^Panzarino, Matthew (June 8, 2015). 'Fantastical 2, Workflow, Robinhood Among Winners At Apple Design Awards'. TechCrunch. Retrieved March 23, 2016.
  27. ^'Windows Developer Awards - Build 2018 - Windows app development'. developer.microsoft.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 2018-08-14.

Further reading[edit]

Affinity Designer Workbook. Nottingham: Serif Europe Ltd. 2016. ISBN9781909581036.

External links[edit]

Retrieved from 'https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Affinity_Designer&oldid=1017580272'

Apple is a company photographers and videographers follow with a mixture of excitement and dread. On the one hand, the Cupertino-based computer and software maker has given us the iPhone and a host of great hardware and applications for editing and sharing imagery. On the other hand, they have discontinued things dear to many, forcing inferior follow-up products on us. As is the case with the premature death of Aperture in favor of Photos. But by integrating Photos with Affinity Photo through extensions, you can restore some functionality to the program.

Before I go further, let me point out that what I'm suggesting here will only work for very specific use cases. I tend to avoid a lot of post processing. For some uses, such as quick online postings or Instagram, I need a program that will take my pictures from scans or raw files, apply some corrections in terms of shadows, highlights, exposure, brightness, and tonality, and then let me get on with life. Photos is not good enough for this yet, but it is the application in which all my iPhone snapshots automatically appear. If I use an Eye-Fi card or Apple's camera connection kit for iPads and iPhones, that's also true of photos I've taken on the go with more serious cameras. If you're looking for the path of least resistance from capture to finished product, sometimes saving extra steps in transferring images is worth the trade-off of putting up with a less-than-ideal software solution.

Affinity Develop adds much-needed functionality to Apple Photos's brightness and color editing options.

The Why

The obvious question regarding this combination is likely some version of 'Yes, but… why?' Fair enough. Here's why I like this combination. I'll admit, I am not a Photoshop native. Although I've worked with some version of the grand master of editing programs – the one that became the default to the point where its name is now a verb – on and off for over a decade and a half, the two of us never clicked. I loved Lightroom when it first came out in a beta version, but stopped using it in favor of Apple's Aperture a few years later. While Aperture was a good program, this was a bad decision.

For me, the draw of Aperture when it was still current was not only its much lower price point than Lightroom, or its seamless integration with a Mac-based workflow. It was also the fact that you could easily switch between having a simple, quick interface that integrated with online image-sharing services, most prominently Apple's own photostream and iCloud, by using iPhoto, and one that let you do most of what I would typically need to do to an image by using Aperture. All you needed to do was open the library file you were working with in one or the other. Since Aperture was abandoned, I've been casting about for an alternative. Apple's Photos is nowhere near the level of usefulness. Enter Serif's Affinity Photo and its extensions for Apple Photo.

Affinity Photo Mac App Store

Affinity Miniature allows for a tilt-shift effect to be applied.

The How

There isn't much to set up once you have Affinity Photo on your machine. The software itself is $49 on the Mac App Store. If you haven't heard much about it: it's a very affordable Photoshop alternative certainly worth a look.

Once you have Affinity Photo installed, six plugins, or extensions, will show up in Apple Photos' extension rider: Affinity Develop, Haze Removal, Liquify, Miniature, Monochrome, and Retouch, as well as an option to edit the image in Affinity Photo proper. Click on any one extension and go edit your picture. Saving the edits will take you back into Photos, where you can then select to apply more of Affinity's plugins, or tweak your image further using Photos itself.

Affinity Monochrome lets you fine-tune a black-and-white conversion right from the Photos app.

Affinity Photo Mac App Store

What I Liked

Apple Photos and Affinity Photo make for a more powerful combination than I first thought. If you're looking to quickly retouch a photo taken on your iPhone that's in Apple's cloud already, it's a near-seamless solution. You wouldn't really expect me to recommend this combination for serious editing work, though. I won't. Lightroom's (and formerly, Aperture's) mere existence has proved that we want professional software to organize and quickly tweak our images. When more excessive processing is called for, Photoshop still beckons – or, depending on your needs, Affinity Photo as a standalone program.

What I Didn't Like

The most glaring drawback of using an application like Photos with a more serious, capable application by another software maker such as Serif's photo editing application is simply that it's a workaround. Lightroom, Aperture, Photoshop, and Affinity Photo as standalone programs are capable of using plugins by themselves. I have long used the excellent and free Nik Collection for a large range of filtering and editing tools.

Since there is no way to integrate this directly into Photos, in order to use it you would be forced to first go into Photos' editing mode, then open the extensions section, select 'Edit in Affinity Photo' to send the image from Apple Photos to Affinity, and then edit it there with your choice of plugin. If your eyes just glazed over reading this: it's not at all more straightforward actually doing it.

The final edit fixes the white balance, removes a blue color cast, and brightens the shadows.

The Takeaway

The combination of Photos and Affinity Photo's plugins is nowhere near a replacement for Lightroom or the defunct Aperture, but if you're looking to use Apple's free software to do some heavier-than-normal lifting, it may just be the ticket.

Affinity Software For Mac

Apple's Photos App is a free download from the Mac App Store. Affinity Photos costs $49/€49, also downloadable from the App Store.