Pro designers, artists and illustrators describe how this new rival to Illustrator is revolutionising how they work.
Since its launch last month, Affinity Designer has more than just raised eyebrows in the design community. It rocketed to number one in the App Store on launch day, was Editor's Choice for a fortnight, was lauded with five-star reviews, and has many Windows users pouting.
The response from pro illustrators, artists, designers and other creatives has been enthusiastic so far, and now you can try it too! The Affinity team released a free trial last week; download it from their website now(for Mac OS X 10.7.5 and above).
The top designers featured here have all used Affinity Designer for creative projects, professional commissions and for pleasure, and they've said it's taking their artwork to a whole new level. Find out how Affinity Designer is improving the look, sharpness, flow and speed of their creative designing...
01. Space by Jonathan Ball
This piece of commissioned artwork has had some much deserved airtime on the Affinity website, on social media, and in various reviews; its rich, vibrant colours and cute styling earn it a spot here, too.
Creator Jonathan Ball of Cardiff-based Poked Studio is well known to us here at Creative Bloq and while he's clearly a talented illustrator, he also creates stylish artwork in unique 3D animated worlds.
Space by Jonathan Ball – click on the image to see a larger version
Ball has also gone on to use Affinity Designer for other commissions and found it a breath of fresh air, saying: "Affinity Designer transforms the sometimes tedious task of making complex and colourful vector images into a pleasure."
02. City by Ben The Illustrator
Ben The Illustrator is not only an award-winning illustrator with over 10 years' experience but also a creative director, animator of music videos, and one half of the impressive multi-discipline Huddle Formation creative studio.
City by Ben The Illustrator – click on the image to see a larger version
Renowned for having a creative affinity with colour and form, Ben has found working with Affinity Designer something of a revelation.
"Affinity Designer refreshes everything we're used to with vector artwork," he explains. "It's allowed me to work in a new way and achieve a freshness and sharpness that I'd not reached before."
03. The Race by Volker Valerian Motsch
Volker Valerian Motsch, aka Lescot, is a conceptual designer and professional illustrator based in Cologne, Germany, who uses mobile technologies to break out of the traditional studio space.
His MacBook Air is very much in love with Affinity Designer, though he also gets creative with other technologies and apps using a Cintiq Companion, Galaxy Note Tab and iPad. There's a retro chic and celebrity level of cool that shines out from his artwork, and The Race is definitely a winner!
The Race by Volker Valerian Motsch – click on the image to see a larger version
"What I really like about Affinity Designer is that it's easy to create a new design, Motsch enthuses. "The dashboard is a bit like that of a vintage muscle car: no frills, but when you take to the road you feel the power under the hood.
"My favourites are the pencil tool with smoothing and autofill – much more intuitive than working with Beziers alone – and the layer blends/layer fx. It's all in realtime. The pixel mode eraser is also a great way to create alpha channels for videos.
"It's not just that though," he adds. "There's no subscription and the developers have super-swift reactions when it comes to fixing bugs or implementing new features. Very impressive."
04. Concerto by Ignacio Valicenti
A talented graphic designer and illustrator from Buenos Aires, Ignacio Valicenti (aka IDV) always has a sketchbook at hand to get his ideas down.
He rocks a unique style, with a colour palette that can often move between projects. And he loves a bright and comfortable studio to create his artwork, which includes this compelling illustration commissioned for Affinity Designer.
Concerto by Ignacio Valicenti – click on the image to see a larger version
"Affinity works brilliantly! It's very versatile and easy to use," says Valicenti. "The possibility to edit pixels and vectors at the same time is fantastic, and the filters are also very useful and easy to edit.
"Gradient is my favourite tool, it helps me to easily compose dynamic and complex shapes. I am very happy with the process and the results."
05. Board Monkey by YoAz
There's always music playing when French artist YoAz gets to work creating complex geometric illustrations with striking colours and an abstract touch.
And it clearly does the trick, with this illustration, Board Monkey, hitting the spot with a kaleidoscopic explosion of shapes.
Board Monkey by YoAz – click on the image to see a larger version
Of working with Affinity Designer, YoAz says: "I love the diversity of the shapes and their geometry, and really like the way it uses and manages colour. It's very intuitive."
06. Mouth Monster by David Wildish
David Wildish of FLOKK Creative operates from Wiltshire, UK, and comes from a background of traditional print and publishing. Precision is a mantra mercilessly drilled into him by scary creative directors in years gone by.
And precision is reflected in illustrations like this piece, Mouth Monster. We wonder if it's a depiction of a former employer?
Mouth Monster by David Wildish – click on the image to see a larger version
"The precision I've grown up with as an illustrator means my work has a strong emphasis in clean cut vector lines and sharp graphics," Wildish explains. "Affinity's brilliant pen tools and accurate snap-to-point have really given me a new take on my work.
"I love that Affinity Designer has all the tools and options right where they need to be, rather than navigating a mess of panels, menus and woods to achieve a simple task."
07. Hunting Trophy by Neil Ladkin
As an art director and Affinity team member, Neil Ladkin's had more exposure than most to what Affinity Designer is capable of (and what is still to come). As a full time thrill-seeker who somehow also manages to be a full time illustrator and creative lead, Neil balances an edgy style with commercial professionalism.
Want to see that in action? Cover the lower half of his Hunting Trophy – eerily haunting, thanks – and then reveal the friendlier finish below (no more nightmares, cheers).
Hunting Trophy by Neil Ladkin – click on the image to see a larger version
"What I love most is how fluid Affinity Designer is," smiles Ladkin. "Concept artwork can flow naturally: it's hard to think of any other app that could achieve this mix of vector and raster techniques.
"One technique that helped create this piece is the live preview you get when hovering with brush tools," he adds. "It's especially useful for the eraser tool, which shows the effect of an erase before you touch down with the stylus or mouse. It gives you a time-saving level of confidence."
08. Corto Maltese by Paolo Limoncelli
Paolo Limoncelli, a UX designer and artist from Marche, Italy, is a fantastic combination of passionate and professional. When he's painting he very much likes to create custom brushes to suit each artwork, to achieve the perfect style. And we love what he's accomplished with Affinity Designer and his unique brush tips.
This painting is an original piece that echoes Hugo Pratt; showcasing an inked comic book style with great charm. Keep your eye out for Limoncelli's brushes in future Affinity announcements!
Corto Maltese by Paolo Limoncelli – click on the image to see a larger version
"I like to create my own tools in order to fit any specific need, retaining full control," explains Limoncelli. "In this case I've designed a layout pencil tool to sketch the base of this illustration, ink and watercolours to achieve an analog, natural media look.
"Thanks to Affinity Designer's sleek raster tools alongside non-destructive layers, masks, and blending modes, it is easy to reach professional results," he adds.
09. The Great Hunt by Sascha Preuss
Happy, cute and colourful are terms that are inseparable from the works of lively Bubblefriends illustrator Sascha Preuss, of Leverkusen, Germany. He mainly works in vector art but also dips into painting and sculpting to bring his cheerful and colourful characters to life.
The vibrant Bubblefriends are featured across multiple Affinity commissions and Sascha is still working with Designer, which is something that will also get further exposure in the first issue of the Affinity magazine.
The Great Hunt by Sascha Preuss – click on the image to see a larger version
"I love this app!" says Preuss. "It's fast, precise and packed with mighty colouring tools! I absolutely love the gradients in Affinity Designer and can't stop adding more and more."
10. Horse Burger by Jonathan Ball
We don't really need a good reason to feature Jonathan Ball twice (his artwork speaks for itself), but he has completed commissions that were undertaken with Affinity by Ball's volition—and they look fabulous. The tongue-in-cheek Horse Burger created for Dutch magazine Vrij Nederland definitely brings a smile.
Horse Burger by Jonathan Ball – click on the image to see a larger version
Earlier this year when Affinity Designer was still being tested, Ball tweeted "Holy molly, masks are amazingggggg!" and added that "it's been great fun and will change the way I work."
Get on board
Affinity Designer for Mac is just £35/€45/$50, well known designers love it and its output looks simply fantastic – so why not download it today?
Also be aware that blazing performance, solid tools and support for AI, PSD, EPS, PDF and SVG are just the start for Affinity Designer. The team have promised further improvements in free updates over the next couple of years, and in that time it will also be part of an industry-shaking suite that also includes Affinity Photo, Affinity Publisher, one common file format and undo history that works across all three apps.
If for some strange reason you're still not sure, you can always visit affinity.serif.com to learn more, download the trial, watch tutorial vids, or engage with devs and users on the forum.
Source: http://www.creativebloq.com/
