Illustrator has been part of my toolkit for years, mainly for editing icons and working with vector-based graphics. When I moved away from Acrobat, I began questioning whether Illustrator and Photoshop were still right for me. In this blog post I spill the beans on my move to Affinity Studio.
My instructional design and eLearning development work requires me to regularly manipulate images. I use Illustrator a lot when editing icons and working with vector-based images. I took an introductory Illustrator course a few years ago and, after that, never really thought about using anything else.
Alongside Illustrator and Photoshop, I also use tools like Snagit and Canva. These are my lighter-weight tools for screen capture or very quick image creation and edits. Each tool has a clear role, and Illustrator has traditionally been where I went when I needed more control over vectors and layouts.
Why Affinity Made Sense
During my search for an Acrobat replacement, I started thinking more broadly about which Creative Cloud apps I could realistically replace. Illustrator was high on that list. I have since replaced it with Affinity, although the timing made the move slightly awkward.
When I first decided to switch, Affinity had temporarily suspended selling its software ahead of a major announcement. This was frustrating, as I had already trialled the software and was keen to purchase it. I contacted Affinity to ask whether my trial could be extended and was told no, and that I should wait for the announcement. At the time, this was annoying. In hindsight, waiting turned out to be the better option. Affinity announced a significant change to its product offering…a product which no longer had a price tag and FREE to use.
Affinity is now owned by Canva, and as I already have a Canva subscription, it made sense to explore how well Affinity would fit into my existing setup. So far, I have not found any Illustrator features that I relied on and no longer have access to. I was never using Illustrator to its full capacity anyway, and in that sense the move has been a clear win that should save me money in the long run.
Performance and Day to Day Use
Similar to my experience with PDF XChange, I was struck by how quickly Affinity launches. I genuinely think Creative Cloud plays a role here. I regularly switch between two machines, a MacBook Pro and a Windows desktop that I built and upgrade myself. Neither is old or underpowered, so I am confident the slowness I experienced with Adobe tools was not hardware related.
I have noticed similar performance improvements with other non Adobe applications where Creative Cloud is the common factor that has been removed. The difference is noticeable enough that it has changed how I think about background services and subscription based software more generally.
At the time of writing, Affinity can be downloaded for free. Because I have a Canva account, I logged in and was able to access everything straight away. I am not entirely sure how this works if you don’t already have a Canva account, whether it remains free, requires a free account, or functions as a trial. Either way, if you are considering moving away from Illustrator, it’s well worth exploring. I should add the usual caveat that I am not a graphic designer, so there may be advanced or specialist features missing that a graphic designer would rely on. I’d be interested in hearing from more graphic designers on this topic!
Vector and Raster Work in One Place
One of the most useful differences I have noticed with Affinity is how it handles both vector and raster work within the same application. Illustrator is vector-focused, which has always meant switching to Photoshop for pixel-based manipulations. In Affinity, vector and raster editing sit side by side. I can create clean vector graphics and then move straight into pixel-level adjustments without exporting files or opening a separate application. With this in mind, i’m also thinking that Affinity will also replace Photoshop. Although, I don’t really use Photoshop an awful lot.
Summary
If you use Illustrator in a similar way to me, mainly for icons, diagrams, and general vector work, Affinity is well worth trying. It covers what I need, lets me work with both vector and raster images in one place, and means I no longer need Creative Cloud installed just to access a single app. For my day-to-day work, so far, it has been a solid replacement.
You can find out more about Affinity via the website.