RoadmapRoadmap
Photo Forge first: how the Forge suite will be sequenced
The suite will be built one application at a time. Photo Forge comes first, Light Forge second, and the rest of the lineup follows only after real milestones.
Active Development
Photo Forge development
Photo Forge is a real, working codebase: a professional raster, vector, and text editor in development. This page separates verified work from work in progress and from goals that have not been started.
Status as of October 18, 2026. Sources: the project's feature inventory, prioritized roadmap, and commit history. Photo Forge is not publicly available.
How it's built
Architecture
Python owns the interface, decisions, and the document. Rust does the heavy computation. Neither is allowed to quietly become the source of truth for the other.
Layer 1
Interface
Python · Qt (PySide6)
Owns the interface, user decisions, and integration. Widgets are views of the document; they never become the saved source of truth.
Layer 2
Document model
Python
The authoritative document: layers, text, vectors, masks, effects, and History. Saved as native .pforge files.
Layer 3
Forge Engine
Rust · PyO3 / maturin
Performance-critical pixel operations, with a Python reference fallback and parity tests for every native operation.
This diagram describes the software architecture. It is not a picture of the application.
Verified in development builds
What we've built
Capabilities that already work in development builds. Each carries a status label instead of a progress bar.
- Verified
- Works end to end in development builds and is covered by automated tests.
- Partial
- Works, with a stated gap.
- Fix in review
- A fix is implemented on a development branch and awaiting verification.
Layers
- Pixel, background, text, and vector layersVerified
- New, duplicate, delete, rename, and reorderVerified
- Visibility and opacityVerified
- Merge DownVerified
- Blend modesSix modes so farPartial
- Layer locksEnforcement and saving in reviewFix in review
Painting
- Brush with presets: size, hardness, spacing, flow, angle, roundnessVerified
- Gradient tool with on-canvas handlesVerified
- Rectangle, ellipse, and line toolsVerified
- Painting inside a selectionBRUSH-FIX1Fix in review
- Eraser that clears to transparencyERASER1Fix in review
Selection and transform
- Rectangular selection with invertVerified
- Select All, Deselect, Reselect, copy, cut, and pasteVerified
- Free Transform for pixels, selections, text, and vectorsVerified
- Flip and rotateVerified
- CropText and vector fidelity in progressPartial
Typography
- Point text and area text framesVerified
- In-canvas typing, selection, and clipboardVerified
- Range typography: family, size, color, scaleVerified
- Frame resize and rotation without changing font sizeVerified
Vector
- Rectangle, ellipse, and line objects with fill and strokeVerified
- Selection, resize, and rotate handlesVerified
- Path geometry modelNo Pen tool yetPartial
Masks and effects
- Layer masks: add, delete, enable, composite, saveVerified
- Mask painting and edit-target switching (MASK1B)Verified
- Drop Shadow, saved with the document (EFFECTS1)Verified
- Blur, denoise, detail, and sharpen filtersSlow on large imagesPartial
Documents
- Native .pforge save and open with atomic writes and recoveryVerified
- Open PNG and JPEGVerified
- Export PNGVerified
History
- Undo, redo, and a History panel with jump-to-stateVerified
- One History step per gestureNo global policy yetPartial
Forge Engine
- Native Rust mask fill, write, crop, alpha bounds, and applyVerified
- Python reference fallback with parity testsVerified
Milestones
Photo Forge saves and reopens its own document format with atomic writes and recovery, and keeps layers, text, vectors, masks, and effects editable across save and reopen.
Rectangle, ellipse, and line objects with fill and stroke, selection chrome, resize, and rotation with angle snapping.
In-canvas typing, selection, clipboard, and range typography in point and frame-based text that never gets silently rasterized.
ENGINE1
A native Rust engine connected through PyO3, with a Python reference fallback, now handling mask and raster operations.
EFFECTS1
Drop Shadow saved as a layer effect
Drop Shadow settings are now part of the document, persist in .pforge files, and render once per paint pass.
MASK1B
Layer masks with mask painting
Add, enable, and paint layer masks, and switch the edit target between layer content and its mask from the Layers panel.
In progress
What we're improving
Correctness and data safety come first, and performance is measured before it is optimized. These tasks are underway or in review on development branches.
- In Progress
Brush strokes inside selectionsBRUSH-FIX1
Fixes painting inside an active selection so strokes reach every canvas tile. Implemented and in review.
- In Progress
Eraser that clears to transparencyERASER1
Rebuilds the Eraser on the brush stroke pipeline so it removes pixels instead of painting white, with stroke performance work. In review.
- In Progress
Layer locks that are enforced and savedLOCK-PERSIST1
Locked layers refuse painting, and lock state survives save and reopen for every layer kind.
- In Progress
Crop that keeps text editable and vectors alignedCROP-FIDELITY1
Crop should keep text as editable text and keep vector layers aligned with the new canvas origin.
- In Progress
Lower-memory HistoryHIST2-COW
Copy-on-write tile sharing between History snapshots, followed by a configurable memory and depth budget.
- In Progress
Native blur in the Forge EngineENGINE2A
A separable blur kernel in Rust with parity tests against a Python reference, then integration into Photo Forge.
- In Progress
Benchmark harness and performance budgetsBENCH1
Repeatable measurements of real editing scenarios, so performance work is measured before and after every change.
Roadmap
What's coming next
Planned work is scheduled after the current fixes. Long-term goals are ambitions, not released features. None of these has a release date.
Planned next
Adjustment layers
One adjustment layer end to end first, such as Levels or Brightness/Contrast, then more.
More selection tools and soft selections
Ellipse and lasso selection, feathering, and selection-to-mask, built on a soft (grayscale) selection model.
Pen tablet pressure
Pressure-sensitive size and opacity for pen tablets, with tilt to follow.
Preferences, recent files, autosave, and recovery
Saved workspace layouts and settings, a recent-files list, and periodic recovery snapshots.
Faster, higher-quality Drop Shadow
Native blur, smarter caching, and a fix for visible stepping at large blur radii.
Eyedropper, paint bucket, and export presets
Everyday tools, plus PNG, JPEG, and WebP export presets with size and metadata options.
Long-term goals
High-quality PSD compatibility
Goal · not releasedOpening and saving layered PSD files with as much fidelity as possible. A goal, not a released feature.
Photoshop .ABR brush import
Goal · not releasedImporting brush presets from .abr files so artists can bring their tools with them. A goal, not a released feature.
Professional filters and layer styles
Goal · not releasedA broader catalog of filters and layer effects such as stroke and glow, built on the native engine.
Extension and plugin architecture
Goal · not releasedA command and extension API, developer documentation, and eventually a Forge Marketplace.
Installers for Linux, Windows, and macOS
Goal · not releasedReliable packaged builds across platforms, starting with Linux.
Development journal
Public journal
Photo ForgeIn review
Brush, eraser, and layer-lock fixes move into review
Three correctness fixes from the October audit are implemented on development branches: painting inside selections, an eraser that truly erases, and enforced layer locks.
EngineeringAudit
Where Photo Forge stands after EFFECTS1: an honest audit
A full repository audit classified every Photo Forge capability as verified, partial, placeholder, or missing. Here is the short version.
Photo ForgeMilestone
MASK1B: painting and editing layer masks
Layer masks can now be painted directly. The Layers panel lets you choose whether you are editing a layer's pixels or its mask.
Photo ForgeMilestone
EFFECTS1: Drop Shadow becomes a saved layer effect
Layer effects are now part of the document. Drop Shadow settings survive save and reopen, and shadows are built once per repaint instead of once per tile.
EngineeringEngineering
Forge Engine: a native Rust core under Photo Forge
Photo Forge now has a native engine written in Rust for mask and raster operations, connected to Python through PyO3 and backed by a reference fallback.
Follow Photo Forge as it takes shape.
Join the early-access list. We'll write when there is real progress, and when there is something you can try.