Masking Removes Color Adjustments

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2022-05-09 23:33:30

I don't know if this is a bug or a "feature" I don't understand, but it only started happening after I updated to v2.4.2. It occurs in every Pixelmator document I've tried.

I have a normal layer that contains an image. I use any selection tool to create a selection. I click the `Select and Mask…` button. The `Output` is set to `New Layer With Mask`. When I click the `Apply` button, it creates a new layer with the mask and removes all color adjustments from both the original layer and new layer.

It never did this before v2.4.2. Is this a "feature" I don't understand or a bug?

The first time I noticed it, I was about fifty steps past creating the mask and I had to press Command-Z fifty times to keep from losing a lot of color adjustments.

Thanks
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2022-05-11 00:32:44

Can anyone confirm this behavior?

Thanks
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2022-05-11 14:17:49

Hey Arandor. Do you apply the color adjustments before or after you make a selection? Applying color adjustments or effects to selections directly is a destructive workflow in general. Even without the Select and Mask step, if you apply color adjustments to a selection and deselect it (you can press Command + D on your keyboard to do so), you'll no longer be able to adjust the previously selected area.

If you'd like to keep the process nondestructive, you can try the following steps:

1. Make a rough selection of the area you'd like to adjust first.
2. Apply the color adjustments you want to the selection.
3. Click + at the top of the Color Adjustments pane. This will create a new Color Adjustments layer with a mask that you can then refine (by Control-clicking it and choosing Refine).
Image
4. If you'd also like to mask the original layer, Option-drag the mask from the Color Adjustments layer onto it.
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2022-05-11 15:40:27

Thanks. I know applying a color adjustment to a selection is destructive. These are color adjustments applied to the entire layer. In the past, they have always been left intact. Now I have found the behavior to be somewhat erratic. Here's something that always happens.

1. Open an image and make sure it is saved as a Pixelmator document.

2. Select a layer and apply whatever color adjustments you want to the layer. The words "Color Adjustments" appear beneath the layer.

3. Select some area of that layer and click "Select and Mask". Make sure the Output is set to "New Layer With Mask". Click the Apply button.

4. A new layer with the mask is created and the words "Color Adjustments" disappear beneath both layers.

From there it gets erratic. Sometimes I click on the original layer and the words "Color Adjustment" return, and they are all just like I had set them.

Sometimes I click on the original layer, the words don't return, and all of the color adjustments are back to default.

Sometimes I click on the original layer, the words don't return, there are no color adjustments, but when I click another layer then come back to the original, the color adjustments have returned.

In any case, the least of the behavior that always happens can be reproduced with the four steps above.

Thanks
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2022-05-12 18:31:42

Hi arandor, from what I've managed to reproduce on my end, it does seem that the words "Color Adjustments" do sometimes disappear from the layer info. However, could you confirm whether the actual Color Adjustments themselves ever disappeared on your end, i.e. there no longer being an "active" indicator over the Color Adjustments tool, and all Color Adjustments being reset to their default values? If this is the case, it would be awesome if you could send a screen recording of this and a sample project file to support@pixelmator.com so we could take a closer look.
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2022-05-15 02:32:20

So far, I have not been able to reproduce it. I was working with a lot of layers so it's possible I saw the words Color Adjustments missing from one layer while I was looking at a different layer's Color Adjustments. If it comes up again, I'll let you know.

Thanks