For those who don’t know the tool: Affinity is a multi-discipline design app for image, vector, and layout work. It now plugs into Canva brand features, can roundtrip .af assets into DaVinci Resolve, and accepts .af exports from Capture One.

The headline feature is not a filter

DaVinci Resolve can now import Affinity .af files for use as title cards, video overlays, and annotations, with updates flowing through in real time when you save changes in the design app. That lands alongside Resolve 21.0, which is currently in beta.

This attacks the boring part of motion workflows: the constant export, relink, and version soup when a client wants one word nudged three pixels left. It also sets a clear expectation for what .af should mean in a post pipeline: not just a “design source”, but a living asset that your edit can keep referencing while you keep iterating.

You should still treat any new file interchange like a fragile truce. Test it on your actual porcess, with your actual templates, actual codecs, uncomfortably shared storage, and idiosyncratic naming rules, before you trust it on a deadline.

Pixels get a few sharper teeth

Affinity 3.2 adds a Texture Filter aimed at enhancing fine detail in the midtones of an image. The Multi Band Sharpen filter also gets a new Fine Detail sharpening option. There are also updates to astrophotography tools and to RAW image processing.

On the masking side, the update introduces new mask types called Object Selection, Luminosity, Hue Range, and Compound. If your day includes pulling masks for retouching, matte prep, or quick comp touch-ups, those additions are worth a focused test session: not because new mask types magically fix hard edges, but because they can change how fast you get to a usable first pass.

Capture One to .af, with the guts intact

Capture One can now export .af files for use in Affinity, preserving masks, watermarks, and metadata when those files are imported. The official messaging also describes a one click move that carries through layers, masks, metadata, annotations, overlays, and guides.

If you sit between photo selection and finishing, this is the practical kind of interoperability. It reduces the “rebuild it by hand” tax that often turns a quick retouch into an unplanned afternoon. As always, validate what “preserving” means for the specific features you rely on, especially once you start mixing adjustments, complex masks, and layered comps.

Brand systems, paid tiers, and the automation angle

Canva says its Brand System now sits inside Affinity, providing access to approved colors, fonts, imagery, and brand voice while you work. Paid subscriptions also add access to Brand Kits inside the app.

There is also an automation path via an AI connection to Claude. With Claude Desktop, it is possible to automate repetitive tasks in Affinity by giving natural-language instructions. The connector is free while in beta, and the workflow is presented as Claude building reusable scripts you can run again.

This is the part to approach with healthy production paranoia. Even when a tool promises time savings, automation can fail in ways that are harder to spot than a broken Mini-USB cable in THAT box we all keep. Run it on duplicates, keep versions, and validate outputs like you would validate any new plug-in or script in a shared pipeline.

Price and platforms

The core application is free on Windows and macOS, and downloading it requires registering for a free online account. Using the online AI tools inside Affinity requires a paid subscription. Pro subscriptions now cost $144 per year and Business subscriptions now cost $250 per year, with both prices described as having increased since March. Pricing beyond those figures is not specified in the Sources.

If you are tempted to roll this straight into production because it fixes a real pain point, do the responsible thing: build a small test project that matches your real deliverables, then try to break it on purpose. The goal is to find the weird corner cases before your client does.
https://www.canva.com/launches/

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The post Canva ships Affinity 3.2 first appeared on DIGITAL PRODUCTION and was written by Bela Beier.