"Erase" like blend mode?

[A Former User]

Is there a mode like in Affinity Designer that objects, fonts or outlines can have Blend mode "Erase" (or as another option), that is, they cut out with their shape what is underneath?

[Boldline]

@plrang You can use the boolean operations to cut one shape from another. I know Affinity has an option for making an object have full transparency right?

[A Former User]

I need that to cut the background (of a layer or group or a rectangle for example) out, but non destructive to fonts. I need fonts to be editable all the time.
That's why also I need VS for warping an editable text.

An editable text is set to Erase, cuts through the red circle (or anything in the group), but doesn't go below.

[VectorStyler]

@plrang No erase blend mode for now. Added it to the backlog.

[A Former User]

@VectorStyler I mean it doesn't have to be blend mode, but how can I do it in VS easy way? This is crucial for me and I cannot find a simple solution.

[VectorStyler]

@plrang One way to do this: group the ellipse and the text, and select the Exclude mode in Object -> Composite menu. All objects / text remain editable.
But this works only as a shape operation, so it cannot be used with multiple different shapes retaining their style.

[A Former User]

@VectorStyler Doesn't work. I'm not able to reproduce that effect, in Affinity it's a one click solution, which doesn't care about shapes and their styles, just cuts through.

[VectorStyler]

@plrang I will try to include the Erase blend mode in the next build.
Attached here the example with exclude:0_1656170358184_excluded.vstyler

[Ingolf]

@plrang Just so you know it, in Affinity "Erase" is a one-click-to-rasterize-those-objects solution:

That is why many things are possible in Affinity programs; it is handled by bitmap algorithms and output of those parts of the design will be rasterized. The most frustrating example in Affinity is Recolor. If you expect vector output, you are shit out of luck.

[A Former User]

@Ingolf Affinity is not ideal of course. Yet I don't care how they do it, until that gets the job done. I'm sure it can work also at the vector level, it's all just algorithms and a clever developer. If it can mask or clip, it can erase.
I hope it will show up one day in VS.

[b77]

@Ingolf Is the rasterization on export as SVG happening with any blend mode in AD?

Maybe AD rasterizes only when blend modes that are unsupported by the SVG standard are present. If so, that's understandable.

[A Former User]

@VectorStyler Great example, I couldn't do that (fresh user), it's a different philosophy, more like Inkscape or Corel Draw.
Unfortunately when I add a stroke to the text it's not used in the Exclude operation. What am I missing?

[b77]

@plrang Adding a thicker stroke doesn't change the result because 'Exclude' is a Boolean operation based on the shape of the text.
You could try instead a thicker weight of that font if available.

[VectorStyler]

@plrang The Shape Effects panel can be used to add an "Offset Path" live effect that expands the path.

But none of these workarounds can really replace an Erase composition mode, so I will try to do that ASAP.

[A Former User]

@VectorStyler Works as it should. I can use it now, although when streamlined it would be a great feature.
Thanks a lot for your help.

[A Former User]

@b77 Thanks! Yet the key is to keep looking for a solution, computers must do anything we want ;).

[Ingolf]

@b77 Affinity exports lousy SVG and too many objects are rasterized. Even gradients at times. And you cannot convert to curves what you made with blend modes or in any way expand your layers in Affinity to make them permanent vectors ready for output.

You do not have to export objects with blend modes. But you can use blend modes to create objects that are pure vector. Just not in Affinity.

That is why I ONLY use Affinity for bitmap output.

@plrang Affinity doesn't have clever vector developers.

[Ingolf]

@Ingolf said in "Erase" like blend mode?:

You do not have to export objects with blend modes. But you can use blend modes to create objects that are pure vector. Just not in Affinity.

Maybe I was too quick and clever. Can you actually do that in Vectorstyler?

Here I have expand and intersected to identical objects into this:

If I want the two layers displayed on the screen "finalized" to two layers where the bottom object's colors (green) become the colors that blend mode created (light blue), how do I do that?

If you want to create vector graphics where the colors are statistical and no longer the result of active blend modes in SVG or PDF.

[b77]

@Ingolf So basically you want a way to perform the (Boolean operation) of Divide AND keep the blend mode for the intersected parts to avoid the need for rasterizing the artwork on export, for those blending modes not supported by the SVG and PDF standards?

[Ingolf]

@b77 Yes, for example when making a logo where the output must be final, permanent and not dependent on interpretations or algorithms in browsers or printers, but simply finished, done vector in exactly the colors there. Or other scenarios.

There's a lot of craft involved usually, but I'm curious if some sort of vector flattener is possible.

Just curious; I've been doing this sort of thing manually for years.