Dear all,
At long last an alpha version of FotoSketcher 4.00 is available!
This version is not yet finalized (a few more effects and features will be added in the final release), but it is usable on Windows 10 and 11 and on recent versions of MacOS.
5 main different effects are available (9 variations in total):
- Pencil sketch 1
- Pencil Sketch 2 (B&W and color)
- Pen & Ink 1
- Painting 1 (watercolor)
- Painting 2 (brushstrokes) with 4 brush options (+ custom brushes):
- Oil painting
- Watercolor
- Cross hatching
- Oil pastel
Original photo credit Sean Sweeny - unsplash.com
In the painting above, I have used the "start from a blank canvas" feature (available for painting 1 and 2) for the first pass, then I have unchecked the tick box for the subsequent passes, using slightly different parameters and brushes.
I hope you have fun with this new version and as usual, please let me know if you find any bugs.
All the best,
David
18 comments:
Wait, are you saying that FS is no longer runnable on older versions of Windows? I'm still on Win7 myself with no real intention to upgrade anytime soon.
Hi Tom,
I have not tested on Windows 7, but I believe that it should run just fine. However, Windows XP is no longer supported with this new version of FotoSketcher.
I did not get any errors.
I was not sure how to go back to a different painting effect.
I will be interested to see this version develop.
I have become expert with 3.8 and have my processes and effects that I use. But as 4.0 is finished, I will be interested in what I can do with it.
Thank you for your feedback, Glenn. Once you've run an effect and want to try another one, just click on the "back" button, which takes you back to the different filters' screen.
I just tested on MacOS 12.6 M1 Max with 32GB RAM. It didn't crash like the previous test release, but this one is very slow on the included parrot image. Is it because it is running intel on Rosetta?
PS - keep up the great work. I was a real fan of your previous versions on both Windows and macOS.
Hi,
At least it did not crash, LOL.
If you have an M1 cpu, it should be faster than on Intel. The executable is universal (runs on Intel or M1, possibly M2 too).
I'll post some benchmarks measured on my M1 on MacOS 12.6 soon so you can compare.
Hi David, y tested your new creation on my laptop with Windows 8.1. The two painting options are with problems. Painting 2 is not working at all. I think you have a lot of work to do to make 4.0 running like 3.8. I will testing the upcoming alphas and keep you informed.
Is there a 3.9 version to work with. I made a lot of paintings with 3.8 which i like very much and have no problems at all in Windows 8.1. I will not upgrade Windows 8.1 which runs very good on my computer.
Keep on your great work
Albrecht
2 bugs I've found on macOS:
1. If you save an image and then don't close the app but open a new image to turn into a painting, then save that, the default filename is the entire path, eg "/users/home/John/folder/untitled.png" is the suggested filename.
2. the file open dialog doesn't recognise .jpeg files .. they need to be renamed .jpg
Hi Albrecht, thank you for your feedback. I intend to make FotoSketcher 4.00 work on Windows 8.1, and I suspect the problems come from the multi-threading code which is notoriously difficult to get right for bitmap manipulation. But I'm not giving up and will continue ironing out all the bugs.
@Anonymous, thanks for finding the 2 bugs on MacOS. The good news is that these issues are easily fixed. I'll solve them in the next alpha test version.
On the new MacOS 13.0 the current FotoSketcher reveals new problems. (1) parts of the UI are just white rectangles, and (2) the UI is unresonsive/slow and (3) sometimes it just stops requiring a cmd-Q quit.
Thank you for letting me know, I'll recompile FotoSketcher and will update my Mac to MacOS 13 to test.
I've also noticed that the fotosketcher app appears to pause if I switch away from the app.
This is a shame because the app takes a long time and it would be useful to work on something else and come back to see if fotosketcher is done.
Technically I'm switching virtual desktops - a standard feature on macOS.
I'm using MacOS 13 now but this also happened with macOS 12 with this 4.00 alpha 1.
I dont think we will see android version of the app anymore any updates
Hi,
Android may not be technically feasible (processing would be far too slow) and I'm not working on it.
I'm currently concentrating on MacOS and trying to iron out the bugs that were reported (sluggishness, freezes, pausing when switching desktops...).
I have to be honest, I am not in love with the new UI or any painting methods. It seems that we are missing many of the functions that were in 3.8.
My favorite filter was Watercolor 09 and it has become a solid part of my workflow. Will the old filters be available in the new version? The watercolor versions in this alpha do not do it for me. Painting 2 watercolor - seems too fake and functions a lot like Dynamic Auto Painter which I never liked. I really hope this isn't the future of my beloved Fotosketcher.
Will we be able to load old parameter files from 3.x? Will we be able to save parameters as presets?
Hi Anonymous,
Version 4.00 is a complete reboot, so it's natural that a lot of effects are still missing. 3.80 is the official release for Windows.
For MacOS, version 4.00 will be the one to download but it still lacks stability and requires a lot of difficult debugging yet.
As for presets, yes, they will be added.
As for the new UI, it will continue to evolve, but I think it looks much more modern than the 3.80 one. And I love Dynamic Auto Painter ;)
Hi David, any news on the Mac version?
Best regards, Jono
Hi js,
The experimental MacOS version is still available at https://www.fotosketcher.com/FotoSketcher.zip
But if you want to run the full FotoSketcher on MacOS, I recommend using the Windows version, together with https://getwhisky.app/ (which is also free).
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