Chiselled features
James Paterson shows you how to transform a face into an array of bold polygon patterns with Affinity Photo
Some image effects take mere seconds to create. But it’s usually those that require a little more work that are all the more rewarding for it…
In this project we’ll look at how to transform a portrait into a series of striking geometric shapes. Unfortunately we can’t just run a filter over the image, we have to create each individual polygon shape. But this makes the overall impression completely unique, rather than the generic look that you often see when filters are used.
Each triangular shape in the face and hair here has to be plotted out by hand, which will take time and patience.
Thankfully there is a way we can speed up the process. Macros are a handy Affinity Photo feature that let us record a set of tasks (much like actions in Photoshop CC). This means that we can make a macro for a repetitive sequence of edits, then apply the entire sequence again and again with a single click. We begin by making a triangle with the Pen tool, then blur the area and add an inner glow effect. Each step we make is recorded in the macro. Once done, we can use the Pen tool to move the triangle into a different position and then hit play on our macro to repeat the sequence.
It might take an hour or so to cover the entire face in this way, but it’s the sort of task that can easily be done while watching television, listening to a podcast, or something else equally relaxing, and the strikingly angular results are well worth the time and effort put in.
Make a triangle
Open the portrait and then grab the Pen tool from the toolbar. Click four times to make a closed triangle over the cheek. Next, go to the Fill box in the options at the top and choose any colour to fill the area. Double-click the layer name and call it ‘Pen shape’. Next, go to Window>studio> Macro and hit the Record button.
Reposition the shape
Grab the Node tool from the toolbar. Click on one point of the triangle and drag it to another position, then hit the play button in the Macro panel to repeat the process to create a second triangle. Carry on making triangles to build up the polygon effect.
Build it up
This is the time-consuming part. You want to triangles to cover the entire subject, using macros and Node tool. Try to keep triangles to areas of similar colour and tone. Use larger triangles for smooth areas like the cheeks and smaller ones for details like eyes and lips. Each triangle should meet at the corner with the one beside it.
Blur the area
Hold Cmd/ctrl and click on the ‘Pen shape’ layer to load a selection, then click on the ‘Background’ layer and hit Cmd/ctrl+j to copy the selection to a new layer. Go to Arrange>move to Front then rename the layer ‘Triangle.’ Go to Filter>blur>average.
Finish off Record the macro
Click the fx button in the Layers panel and choose Inner Glow. Set the blend mode to Multiply, choose a grey colour and set Opacity 20%, Radius 5px, Intensity 0 then hit OK. Press Cmd/ctrl+d to deselect then click on the ‘Pen shape’ layer. Press the Stop button in the Macro panel.
Cover the entire subject, then make a few more polygon shapes for the background. Once done, finish off by boosting the colours and the contrast. Add an HSL adjustment and boost the Saturation, then use a Brightness and/or Contrast adjustment to increase contrast.