How to Use the Point Transform Tool in Affinity Designer

The Point Transform Tool is an extremely useful tool. It allows scaling and rotation from any node around an origin point. The origin point can be moved anywhere on an object's shape or geometry. This is especially helpful when using isometric grids. We take a look at how to use the Point Transform Tool in Affinity Designer.

Click on Affinity Designer to open the software and select New document. In the New Document properties window, choose your settings and click Create.

Locate the Point Transform Tool and properties

The Point Transform tool shares a tab with the Node Tool. As the Node Tool is more widely used it will be the one visible. Go to the Node Tool on the left side panel and click the little white arrow next to it.

This will open the tool selection menu where you can select the Point Transform Tool. At the top of the menu will be the tool editing options.

We will begin with a heart shape from the shape selection tool. On the left hand side click on the white arrow next to the shape selection tool. Select the Heart tool and click + drag out the shape. Add a fill from the Swatches panel on the right hand side. We also created our text using the Artistic Text Tool.

Fill, Stroke and Stroke Width

For the majority of the tools, the Fill, Stroke and Stroke Width shortcuts are usually available at the top. Here you can quickly change how the fill and stroke appear.

Hide selection while dragging

This option temporarily turns off the selection box while moving the object around. The selection box, shown as blue, will still be active but not visible. It can give a clearer view of the object's edge when moving. In the image below the option is turned off.

In the next image, the option is turned on and the object moved. While being moved the blue selection box turns off. When the mouse button is released the blue selection box becomes visible.

Text Baseline mode

Simply put, a baseline is added to the bottom of the text. This allows for other text or an object to snapped directly to the bottom of the text.

Align to nodes of selected curve

Whenever the origin point is moved in line with a node it will automatically align vertically and/or horizontally. You will see the snapping line appear as a thin green or red line. This is different to the usual, thicker snapping guide used to help align objects. The origin point can aligned to a node on the same object or another object.

Snap to geometry of selected curves

With this option selected, the origin point will snap to the shape or geometry of the curve. For the heart curve, the origin will snap along the line of the shape. When it does this, the curve line will highlight in a light green.

Use the Point Transform Tool with designs

The Point Transform tool is a great option when changing elements in a design. Now that you have an idea of how the properties work, let us put that into action.

We used a fun gnome svg created by GreenWolf, but you can use any Fall SVG. There are tons of amazing designs available on Design Bundles.

Step 1 - Group the elements you want adjusted

For our adorable little gnome we wanted to adjust the pumpkin and some other elements.

Go to File and click Open, locate your SVG design and click Open again.

The pumpkin is composed of a few shapes. In order to move these shapes together we need to group them. Hold Shift and click on the pumpkin shape, the stem and the two curves. Right click and select Group.

Step 2 - Use the Point Transform Tool

When using the Point Transform tool on a group, there will only be one origin point visible. With the group selected, click on the Point Transform Tool on the left side. Click + drag the origin point to the right until it snaps to the right side node.

Next, click + drag on any of the nodes and pull to the left. As you click + drag, slowly drag the design out a bit to make the pumpkin bigger.

Now we want to adjust the hands. There is no need to group anything here. Click on one hand to select it. If the Point Transform Tool is still active, it will automatically apply. Next, change the position of the node. We moved the node to one of the fingers. When adjusting the node you may not want the size to change. Holding Ctrl while adjusting will keep the proportion of the shape.

Carry on to adjust the design as needed. Here we tilted his little hat and adjusted his feet to give the impression he is looking up.

With SVG files, shapes can easily be manipulated with the Point Transform Tool. A character's position and their elements can be completely changed. Have fun with your SVG files while creating for your projects.

If you found this tutorial helpful you may also like our tutorials on curving text in Affinity Designer, creating Affinity Designer brushes, and making a paper cut effect in Affinity Designer.