Affinity Creative Partners: leading the way in how real work gets made
Creative Partners are professional creatives doing real work in Affinity.
They’ve found a way of working that fits how creative projects really unfold, from early ideas through to final output. No switching between tools. No fragmented workflows. When that shift happens, it feels like a turning point. The kind you don’t keep to yourself.
What they’re partnering with us to share isn’t polished demos or scripted walkthroughs. It’s their actual process. How ideas take shape, how projects move forward, and what’s changed since they made the switch.
By opening this up, they show what a new way of working looks like in practice, and why it’s worth it.
The creatives already working this way
These creatives are leading the way from within the industry, taking on the same projects, pressures, and deadlines as everyone else. What sets them apart is a choice most creatives don’t take lightly: stepping away from familiar tools to find something that actually works better.
Work builds up over time, shaped by years of files, habits, and shortcuts. So change has to prove itself in real projects. When it does, the difference is clear. Projects move faster. Transitions feel smoother. Ideas flow instead of being interrupted every time you switch tools.
That’s where Affinity fits. A single environment where vector design, image editing, and layout all happen in the same file, without exporting, rebuilding, or breaking the flow.
This shift doesn’t just speed things up, it changes how the work comes together. Affinity Creative Partners have already made that transition, using it across real projects. They understand where it fits, what it replaces, and what it unlocks.
Their perspective matters because they’re not imagining a better way of working. They’re already living it.
James Martin
Also known as Made By James, James Martin is a brand designer and educator who builds bold, recognizable identities and helps others sharpen their creative process. His direct, no-nonsense approach has led to advisory roles with Affinity and the Canva Design Advisory Board, as well as work alongside brands like Nike, Disney, and Monster Energy. He uses Affinity to build full brand identities in a single file, taking projects from concept to final delivery without pulling them apart across tools.
“Affinity fits how I actually work. It gives me speed without sacrificing control, and structure without killing creativity.”
Pope Phoenix
Pope Phoenix is an illustrator and multidisciplinary artist creating expressive, story-driven work. Formally trained in illustration, art direction, and graphic design, his practice spans digital and traditional media, focused on exploring shared human experiences. He uses Affinity to combine vector and pixel work in one place, letting ideas evolve naturally without jumping between apps.
“When everything’s in one place, my process stays fluid and ideas can develop the way they’re supposed to.”
Will Paterson
Focused on typography, identity systems, and clean, considered design, Will Paterson is a brand designer and lettering specialist. Slightly obsessed with Bézier curves and the details that make a logo feel just right, he’s spent over a decade helping companies build simple, memorable brands that stand the test of time. He develops logo and branding work in Affinity, shaping ideas from concept to final assets without fragmenting the process across different tools.
“Good design software should get out of the way and let you focus on the craft. That’s exactly what I’ve found with Affinity.”
How they show it in their work
They all work differently. But there’s a common thread: a willingness to question the way things have always been done, and to push that further in real projects.
That’s what they’ll be opening up over the coming months.
Creative Partners will start sharing more of how they work, through dedicated learning series shaped around their own disciplines and skills. From brand identity and typography to illustration and mixed-media workflows, you’ll see how each of them approaches their work from start to finish.
We’ll also be bringing in more creatives across different disciplines and regions, each with their own way of working and perspective on what makes a process hold up over time.
Through process insights and project walkthroughs, you’ll see how Affinity fits into creative practice and how it supports the full process from concept to final delivery.
