How to Remove and Change a Background with Affinity Designer

In this tutorial, we will show you how to remove and change a background with Affinity Designer. There are many reasons why you may want to remove the background from an image. Maybe the colors are not bright enough, or there are some unwanted elements in it. Therefore, you may want it replaced.



We will explore a couple of ways this can be done, like hiding the unwanted area using a layer mask or creating a path around the portion you want to keep and clipping it inside. Both options are non-destructive so that you can adjust the removed areas at any time.

We also have a guide for how to remove a background in Affinity Photo if needed.

We will replace the background on this ocean landscape photo with this nature background photo. You can choose your photos from this set of commercial use photos instead.

First Option: Remove the Background Using a Layer Mask

In this option, we will work with some tools from the Pixel Persona to make a selection and then use a layer mask to get rid of the background.

Step 1 - Unlock Your Background Layer

First, open the image you would like to change the background of. Then, unlock the background image layer by clicking on the small padlock icon in the Layers panel.

The padlock icon should disappear when the layer is unlocked.

Step 2 - Enter Affinity Designer’s Pixel Persona

To be able to select pixels from our image, we need to enter the Pixel Persona, where you can perform raster operations and use dedicated tools.

To switch, select the middle icon on the left of the top toolbar. You will notice that the toolbars will change and display the raster editing tools.

Step 3 - Make Your Selection

Use the Selection Brush Tool (W) and adjust its settings, like the brush size and selection mode, found in the top toolbar. Then, drag your cursor on top of the area you want to select.

In this case, we decided to select the sky (background) since it is less complex than the rest of the image, making it easier to create a clean selection.

You can tweak your selection by clicking on the Refine button in the top toolbar.

This will open the Refine Selection panel, where you can adjust some of the values if you need to.

Invert Your Selection if Needed to Select What You Want to Keep

Before we create the layer mask, make sure your selection is of what you want to keep. Since the selected portion of our image was the sky (background), the part that we want to hide, we need to invert the selection so our layer mask will affect the correct portion.

So, let’s head to Select > Invert Pixel Selection (Shift + Cmd/Ctrl + I) to invert our selection.

Step 4 - Create a Layer Mask With Your Selection

Now, click on the Mask Layer button at the bottom of the Layerspanel to mask the background and hide it. The unmasked selected area will stay visible.

Step 5 - Place the Second Background Image

Next, go to File > Place and select the image you chose as the new background.

Your cursor will change and will let you click where you want to place your image. Click and drag on your canvas to adjust the size of the image to fit your needs as you’re placing it.

You can also resize the image later on if needed.

Step 6 - Move the New Background Layer to the Bottom in the Layers Panel

Next, go to the Layers panel and drag the new background image layer below the original masked image layer. The new background image is now behind the original image, as shown in the following image.

Step 7 - Reveal the New Background Using a Clipping Mask

You may notice that the new background is not showing. To bring it out, we need to clip the original background image to the mask.

In the Layers panel, drag the mask layer into the original background image thumbnail to clip it. Make sure you place it on top of the image thumbnail and not on the layer’s text, or it won’t work. See the following animated image for a better understanding.

Refine the Mask Edges if Needed

If you want to adjust the masked edges further, just right-click on top of the mask thumbnail and choose Refine Mask to open the Refine Selection panel again.

Step 8 - Add Some Layer Effects

Finally, you can use layer effects to adjust your image. In this case, we used a glow effect to create a haze around the image and smooth out the edges a bit.

Second Option: Remove the Background Using a Clipping Mask

In this option, we will work from the Designer Persona to create a path around the portion we want to keep and then use it as a Clipping Mask to remove the background.

Step 1 - Create a Path Outlining the Portion You Want to Keep

First, open the image you want to work with and unlock it by clicking on the small padlock icon on its layer in the Layers panel, just like in the First Option.

Then, use thePen Tool (P) to draw around the part of the image you would like to keep.

Go around the edges of the image until you reach your starting point and close the path.

Use the Node Tool (A) to refine your path and move the nodes to fix anything that needs it.

Step 2 - Add the Second Background Image

Next, go to File > Place. Select the image you chose as the new background. Click and drag to place the image as was done in Step 5 of the First Option. Resize and reposition it if needed.

Step 3 - Clip Your Image Inside the Path

To clip the background image into the path, drag the background image layer into the Curve layer to create a clipping mask in the Layers panel.

Make sure that you place it on top of the text portion instead of the image thumbnail as a child layer.

Step 4 - Make the Stroke Color Transparent and Add Layer Effects

Now, we need to change the Stroke to no color to make it transparent.

Here, you can also use layer effects to adjust your image like in the First Option.

If you enjoyed this tutorial, you could browse our other Affinity Designer tutorials, like how to add a bitmap fill or create a pastel gradient background.