How to Turn Day to Night

In this tutorial, we’ll learn how to turn day to night in Affinity Photo. We’ll do two different methods to create this effect.

Before you begin the turn day to night tutorial, go to the following links to download the images used in this tutorial.

• Boat at sea
• Sky

Step 1

First, go to File > Open and select the picture of the boat in the lake. Press CTRL + J to duplicate the image and label the layer Copy.

Step 2

Next, go to the Layers Panel and click the Adjustments icon. Select Curves adjustment. Click in the center to add a point and drag the point down to the area you see on the screen. In the Layers Panel, label this layer Darken.

Step 3

Now, click the Adjustments icon and select the HSL adjustment. Set the Saturation Shift to -55 percent. Label this layer Desaturate.

Step 4

In the Layers Panel, click the Add Pixel Layer icon to add a new layer. Double click the colored circle in the Swatches Panel to bring up the Color Chooser. Type in the following hex code #546BAB.

Step 5

With the pixel layer still selected, go to the Edit menu and select Fill with Primary Color to fill the pixel layer with the color we just chose. In the Layers Panel, set the Blend Mode to Multiply and lower the Opacity to 25 percent.

Step 6

In the Layers Panel, turn off the filled pixel layer and the adjustment layers. Grab the Selection Brush Tool from the Tools Panel. Make sure the Copy layer is selected. In the Context Toolbar, make sure Add is selected and that Snap to Edges is checked. Take the brush and select the sky.

Step 7

Now, press CTRL + Shift + I to invert the selection so that the land, the lake, and the boat is selected. Or go to the Select menu and click Invert Pixel Selection. Then, press CTRL + J to duplicate the selection onto a new layer. Label the new layer Lake and turn the Copy layer off. Press CTRL + D to deselect.

Step 8

Go to File > Open and select the sky image. Copy the sky image and paste it onto our document. In the Layers Panel, drag the sky layer beneath the Lake layer and label it Sky.

Step 9

Next, go to the Transform Panel and turn on the Lock Aspect Ratio. Grab the Move Tool and resize the sky image as you see it on the screen.

Step 10

In the Layers Panel, turn the adjustment layers and the filled pixel layer back on.

Step 11

Go to the Adjustments icon and select the Brightness and Contrast adjustment. Set the Brightness to 25 percent and the Contrast to – 4 percent.

Step 12

In the Layers Panel, select the Sky layer and all the layers above it. Make sure the Copy and the original boat/lake image is turned off. Right click on the selection and click Merge Visible. Label the pixel layer Method 1. Reselect the Sky layer and the other layers we previously selected. Press CTRL + G to group the layers together. Label the group Method 1 and turn it off. Drag the merged layer into the Method 1 group.

Now, we’ll use method two to turn day to night.

Step 1

In the Layers Panel, turn the original layer back on and delete the Copy layer.

Step 2

Grab the Selection Brush Tool from the Tools Panel. In the Context Toolbar, make sure the Add mode is selected and that Snap to Edges is checked. Take the brush and select the sky. Then, press CTRL + Shift + I to invert the selection.

Step 3

In the Context Toolbar, select Refine. Set the Output to New Layer with Mask.

Step 4

Now, go to File > Open and select the sky image. Copy the image and past it onto the document. Label this layer Sky. In the Layers Panel, drag the Sky layer beneath the layer with the mask. Take the Move Tool and resize the sky image the way you see it on the screen.

Step 5

With the Sky layer selected, go to the Layers Panel and select the Adjustments icon. Click the Curves adjustment. Drag the Curves adjustment into the Sky layer. Select the point on the left and drag it to the right. Now, place a point in the center and drag it down.

Step 6

Next, go to the Layers Panel and click the Add Pixel Layer icon to add a new layer. Go to the Tools Panel and grab a color from it.

Step 7

After selecting the color, go to the Swatches Panel and click the colored circle beside the Color Picker. Now, make sure the new pixel layer we added is selected in the Layers Panel. Then, go to the Edit menu and select Fill with Primary color. In the Layers Panel, turn the filled layer off.

Step 8

Select the masked layer above the Sky layer. Grab the Selection Brush Tool from the Tools Panel. Take the brush and select the rock area. Make sure you’re in the Add Mode and that Snap to Edges is checked.

Step 9

Once you’ve selected the rock area, press CTRL + J to place the selection onto a new layer. Label this layer Rock. Then, press CTRL + D to deselect the area.

Step 10

In the Layers Panel, select the filled layer. Press CTRL + J to duplicate the layer. Or right click on the layer and select Duplicate.

Step 11

Drag the duplicated filled layer into the Rock layer and turn it on. Change the Blend Mode of the filled layer to Glow. Then, lower the Opacity to about 63 percent.

Step 12

Select the masked layer we selected before. Grab the Selection Brush Tool from the Tools Panel. In the Context Toolbar, select the Add Mode and check Snap to Edges. This time, take the brush and select the water. Switch to the Subtract Mode to select the boat so that it’s not apart of the water selection.

Step 13

After you select the water, press CTRL + J to place the selection onto a new layer. Label this layer Water. Press CTRL + D to deselect.

Step 14

In the Layers Panel, select the other filled layer and drag it inside the Water layer and turn it on. Set the Blend Mode to Multiply and lower the Opacity to about 59 percent.

Step 15

Now, grab the Selection Brush Tool from the Tools Panel. In the Layers Panel, select the masked layer we selected before. Make sure you’re in the Add mode in the Context Toolbar. Take the brush and select the boat.

Step 16

Press CTRL + J to put the selection of the boat onto a new layer. Label this layer Boat. Then, Press CTRL + D to deselect.

Step 17

With the Boat layer selected, click the Adjustments icon in the Layers Panel and select the Curves adjustment. Drag the adjustment inside of the Boat layer. Add a point on the curve in the same area you see on the screen. Then, drag this point down. Now, add another point on the curve in the area you see on the screen.

Step 18

In the Layers Panel, select the masked layer we selected for the other selection and delete it.

Step 19

Now, select the Sky layer and all the layers above it. Right click on the selected layers and click Merge Visible. Label the merged label Method 2.

Step 20

Select the other layers we just selected. Press CTRL + G to group the layers together and label the group Method 2. You can turn the group off in the Layers Panel.

Congratulations, this tutorial is complete! You now know how to turn day to night in Affinity Photo. For more Affinity Photo tutorials, check out this article on how to create lightning.

Comment below which method of how to turn day to night do you like better. Method 1 or Method 2?