OS 26 Reading Material

Will hot spots (buttons or touchable areas) become more obvious with Liquid Glass interface? 

Be deliberate as you use the Apple Camera and Photos apps in the days before you trigger the upgrade. What is your workflow? What are the options you use most often? 

• Open Camera app with swipe left on Lock Screen 
• Open Camera app with Lock Screen button 
• Camera interface buttons at the top left and right, lens options and modes at the bottom of the screen
• Turn on RAW or Live as needed
• Watch EV shifts away from 0.0 stops 
• Burst shooting with Volume Up button 
• Photo to Portrait mode 
• Accessibility features to increase text size 

Geeky Gadgets has several articles worth your perusal. Video links are included. 

The iPhone Camera is Reborn: A Deep Dive into IOS 26 - by Roland Hutchinson - with a preview of what is to come. Reminded me of swipe, tap and tap-and-hold gestures on buttons. I am excited to try converting older images to Parallax 3D images that can be added as a Lock Screen wallpaper. There are Photo Styles to be applied before image capture and cannot be edited out in post. Photo Styles are not applied when shooting RAW. 

Think about how you share photos. Do you make albums? Do you just hand over your device and let people roam through photos? Do you mark Favorites? How good are your Photos Search skills? Have you used the Siri method (describe what you want in words) for making a Memory? Are you adding Captions to images to make search more effective? Do you look at the metadata for photos? 

The iOS 26 Photos App Is More Powerful Than You Thought - by Roland Hutchinson - in the video you will see how the user interface is changing and how to customize it to your workflow. The collapsible lists will work well on the iPhone but how will this operate on the iPad? There are some features on MacOS Photos that have not made it to mobile devices. Will this remain true? 

Transferring Data to You New iPhone 17: The Ultimate Guide - by Roland Hutchinson with video from Brandon Butch. 

Experience AI - Google NotebookLM

On our field trip we discussed artificial intelligence and I promised to share a new AI tool - Google's NotebookLM. If you have a gmail account then you can access this online service. Start by using a web browser to add this service to your Google account and later you can download NotebookLM as an app on iPad or iPhone. NotebookLM is a tool for creating study guides, reports, flashcards, quizzes ... but what blew my mind was the Audio Interview where two AI voices discuss the content provided. A new feature now includes creating a video overview. What ...? 

The example Notebook I built is Mastering Smartphone Photography: Tips for Every Shot where several PDF documents and a few other websites were added as sources. As you listen to an Audio Overview, look for the Join button to interrupt the conversation and ask a related question to see how the "podcasters" respond. 

The link opens in a web browser like this picture. Sources are on the left, content and chat in the middle and Studio elements on the right. Audio examples have a small play button - triangle in a circle. 

I hope to learn more at the Naples Mac User Group meeting one Wednesday, September 24th. Membership is $40 per year and this group has a worldwide audience with an active message board for troubleshooting iPhone, iPad and Mac issues. Online classes begin in January and are an extra expense. 

Dive Deeper into Camera Features

Watch for updates to this post. 

Photographic Styles were introduced a while back. Maybe it is time to revisit them. On YouTube, the Apple Support channel offered this video: How to use Photographic Styles on iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro because the new iOS 26 is arriving soon with a new style - Bright. Yes, this will be included with the new iPhone 17 Pro models. Watch the video to see how you can customize a Photographic Styles for favorite subjects. 

Another reliable source for information is DP Review (Digital Photography Review) and Dale Baskin has contributed iPhone 17 Pro cameras: What's new, what's unchanged for our attention. 

Another good source for targeted info is the Apple Support Channel on YouTube. Especially handy after you update the iOS. 

Three articles featuring last year’s model from TechRadar are worth reviewing: 

I took the iPhone 16 Pro to a soccer game and its nightography powers blew me away by Axel Metz from October 6, 2024

I’m a photographer – 5 ways to take great photos on your iPhone 16 in 2025 by Mark Wilson from December 29, 2024

How to customize Camera Control on your iPhone 16: change click speed, lock exposure, and more by Alex Blake from February 8, 2025 

Tyler Stalman offers iPhone 17: A Photographer's Review where he discusses  Apple's "Optical Quality" for digital zoom. Larger sensor reduces noise especially in low light conditions. Action Mode for videos will grab your attention. 

Stalman refers to 28 Years Later - a post-apocalyptic story and filmed with iPhone 15 Pro Max in 2024 is reported in Wikipedia.  

Austin Mann reviews the iPhone 17 Pro Camera Review: Dolomite Mountains  in his YouTube video - I am excited to hear Karen's reaction because Austin and team are cycling through mountains in Northern Italy. At 13:45 he talks about Photographic Styles (he is using RAW less ...) to use when shooting and not just in post.  See his website for photo examples with captions showing lens and Photographic Style used. At the bottom of the page past the comments is a link to his review of iPhone 16 Pro and scroll down to see link for iPhone 14 Pro ... 

PetaPixel's Chris Nichols YouTube Channel offers iPhone 17 Pro & Pro Max Review For Photographers! where I will need to watch several times, Chris is a fast talker! 

When is a Lens a Camera?

Time to read and re-read about small digital capture technology. Antonio G. Di Benedetto's article, Why does Apple think three lenses are eight lenses?, in The Verge offers some insight. There are still fixed apertures and sensor megapixel counts and focal length measurements. There is marketing math that makes three into eight lenses: macro, 0.5x - 13mm, 1x - 24mm, 1.2x - 28mm, 1.5x 35mm, 2x - 48mm, 4x - 100mm, 8x - 200mm. Then there is this "Fusion camera system" in the mix. 

Fall Schedule

Plans so far .. 

Thanks for the great ideas… Here is what my scribbled notes tell me. 

9/18 - Thursday, Art & Ag - Yolo Arts Event 

Heringer Estates Winery 

37375 Netherlands Road, Clarksburg, CA 95612 

Carpools suggested, bring your own lunch & beverage 

9/25 - on Zoom to share about new iPhone 17 models 

10/2 - POTENTIALLY switch to field trip to Sacramento Auto Museum to combine with Tuesday Digital Camera class - ORIGINALLY planned to be on Zoom to share and discuss iOS 26.1 and iPadOS 26.1 

10/9 - Apple Hill - High Hill Ranch 

10/18 - Saturday Witches on the Lake - Black Miner’s Bar, Lake Natoma - 4 pm to Sunset 

10/23 - hold this date for adventure

The End is Nigh

Stepping back for now.

Interesting that people still find the iPhone Photo Studio class since it is hidden in the catalog and online registration system. The class started spring 2017 and  my tenure as leader will end this semester. But I am hoping a new team of folks will take up the gauntlet and have as much fun as we did exploring the wonders of iPhone photography for eight years. This was not a beginner class from the get-go and enrollees were expected to buy $25 in apps and prints. So some folks shied away from the challenge or expense. However others thrived and kept re-enrolling so it was difficult to have newbies starting out and the 20 veterans so comfortable with each other. We really solidified our bonds during the pandemic and because we already knew each other, Zoom was easy. This class used a new Apple Shared Photo Album each semester so invited members could post photos and comment on the work of others. This also strengthened our connections. An example Shared Album is still available, iPhone Photography Studio Sampler with comments hinting at workflow. 

If asked by a new team for suggestions on how to launch a class about iPhone (or smartphone) photography, I’d say do 4 to 6 meetings, photo walks mostly and a Zoom session or two. Use the default camera app on the phones and edit with the default photo app (Photos on iPhone/iPad) and add Snapseed as an editor/stylizer (iOS and Android) and free! This class would be in demand! There are always people finding their way to my class’ waiting list and I contact them with the bad news but I’d like to give them hope. This class could be offered each semester and new folks would fit it and vets would be there to assist. Back during COVID we had a team using the 4 meeting template for Introduction to iPhone Photography with three Zoom sessions and one small group photo walk with guides in four locations. Any new class does not need to use a blog — design your class around your strengths. 

There are digital photography and smartphone photography classes available on the LinkedIn platform to folks with a Sacramento Public Library card. Why not have watch parties followed by photo walks? 

Renaissance is a place for the “peer learning” where any idea for a learning experience can be posted as a class and, like in Field of Dreams, “build it and they will come” or not. Curiosity more than expertise is of value. Find online experts if local ones are not available. I’ve been part of several teams that presented iPhone and iPad or Digital Photography classes and have always learned more from being involved in the effort and presentations.

I’ve been using RenSoc as a way to stay current with the tech I love. In the spring my plan is to join with others and launch a new team coaching approach to the iPad app Procreate for dabbling in image creation (photo manipulation, painting, etc) with the idea that new folks will be welcomed each semester and the coaches will share responsibilities for crafting a two-semester learning experience and from the beginning, embracing new ideas, mixing new people with familiar folks. Registration will be limited until we iron out the coaching details and do a dry run. We are hopeful this could become a new model for additional SIG topics in the future. 

Get ready. Go. Make connections. Explore new ideas. Create beauty. 

iOS 26 - Coming Soon!

The current iOS and iPadOS is 18.6.2 and by next week, September 15th,  the label for our mobile devices will jump to 26. Reflecting the 2026 year … ahead. Since the OSs are updated annually, Apple seems to think tracking with the year will be helpful. For all devices … mobile, computer, wearables, tv. 

My personal approach is to wait for a few days after a major update as there will always be a fix or two and iOS 26.01 could save some headaches. Let others jump on the bandwagon and find the bugs. 

Available to devices back to iPhone 11 the OS Overview - Stunning design. Stellar experiences. is Apple’s current web page with details about what to expect. Lots of hype about Liquid Glass visual interface elements. Interesting changes for multitasking on iPad with a “windowing system” where more than one app is on screen. Other items that caught my attention are: 

• Polls in Messages app - looks promising for small groups
• Spotlight Search is now on steroids
• Files app is “supercharged” 
• Preview app is new on iPad and iPhone for marking up PDFs
• Photos interface has updates and changes 

Read Tom’s Guide - I’ve been using the new iOS 26 Camera app — and it finally addresses my biggest annoyance for details on the essential app for this class. Here are a few hints: 

• Controls and preferences are now in the Camera app instead of the Settings app
• Simplified interface for shooting Photo or Video
• Liquid Glass visual interface elements 
• New icons reveal mode controls 
• Swipe horizontally or vertically for additional controls 
• Restoring full iPhone 16 Pro Camera Control side button, Settings > General > Camera Adjustments

The Apple Camera app still lacks manual adjustments to ISO, shutter speed and focus so the third party camera apps we’ve been using are still very much in play. 

9-12-25 Update 

The new user interface called Liquid Glass has hit nerves. Some like it, some don’t. This is what liquid glass looks like on iOS 26 – and how you can turn it off if you’re not a fan is an article by Tom Morgan-Freelander for Stuff. Make a few screenshots of your favorite apps before updating to iOS 26 and then make more screenshots so you can compare the interface “improvements” for yourself. Want to reduce the effect? Consider another round of screenshots, Tom offers a way “… open the Settings app, then Accessibility, then Display & Text Size. Enable the toggle for “reduced transparency”. That’ll cut out most of the flashier animations, making the control centre in particular a lot more legible.”

Image Utilities

Yes, we are attentive to camera and photo editing apps. But there are several utility functions and apps that are useful in visually representing our world.

First - making screenshots. Even the Photos app includes automatically collecting screenshots under the Utilities folder.  There is a combination of buttons to press to make screenshots (look it up and practice this life skill) but my favorite way to make screenshots is to add Assistive Touch to Accessibility Shortcuts in the Control Center. Now a floating button hovers over Home Screens. Screenshots become PNG files and are often of high quality, printable even. 

The Magnifier app - can be added to the Control Center or your Home Screen, or leave hidden in App Library. As a senior citizen with limited close-focus eyes, this app lets me read the text on product labels. Swipe up to see a drawer of all of the controls available. Use the Capture button to freeze the image. This will not automatically save to the Photos Library, if you want to experiment with macro photography using this app, then hide the drawer and make a screenshot. 

The Files app - is not the usual place to find photos. But when you want to post an image, maybe giving it a better name is a before-sharing-step. In Photos, Share to the Files app. Open the Files app and browse to find the exported image. Tap and hold on the photo to bring up a menu and Rename is an option. Confirm the file has been renamed and then tap and hold to see the menu again with Share button. In the Tuesday Digital Camera class, first get into the SmugMug posting area then Share and navigate to the Files app and to your renamed file. 

But Files has more image features. On most screens the top right corner has a More button, ( ... ), and this menu pops up the Scan Documents option. Actually More menu is different on the Browse screen compared to any other folder on iCloud or on your device. Find a printed page, an article in a publication or a receipt. Place the page on a flat surface with space around it. Hover your phone parallel to the surface and tap More > Scan Documents. A blue highlight recognizes the shape and grabs the image. You have options now to play with and see how to make them useful. Saving this page creates a PDF file in the Files app. Give this file a meaningful name and note the location where it is saved. Text on the PDF is selectable so it can be copied to the Clipboard. 

iPhone 16 Pro included the Camera Control button mentioned in The Hill : Pressing and holding the button while pointing the camera at a restaurant, for example, will pull up ratings and opening hours. If you’re using the camera to look at an event flyer, and you press and hold the button, you’ll have the option to add the event to your calendar. Another example ... point camera at a dog. Pressing and holding the new button showed the dog’s breed and other information. Apple Intelligence, AI, features at work. 

Touch Every Button

Yes, “touch every button” is the mantra for this class and it always hits me when I rediscover this approach. Just now, after so many years, I’ve changed the VIEW in Safari from the tab view of this page to the multi-page of current tabs. There are familiar buttons here that I’ve ignored. Now, time for a second cup of coffee because I want to touch every button and explore how the many websites I want to reference are here and can be copied at one time or shared through Messages app.  

Megapixels vs Sensor Size and Indigo

Dan Mold writes in Amateur Photographer, July 2025 available through Apple News, that sensor size is more important than megapixels. Bigger sensors improve low light capture and depth of field, and we use the “Portrait” mode with depth controls on iPhone. He also reports that software now includes AI to upscale resolution (megapixels) for larger prints in a time where most images are viewed on small smartphone screens. 

Have you looked at Adobe’s new Project Indigo camera app yet? On installation, the splash screens note: 

• Photo mode captures multiple frames and merges them automatically for higher dynamic range
• AI Denoise for low light capture
• Improved Night mode with Optical Image Stabilization 
• Digital Scaling for 2X and 10X zoom implementing SR, Super Resolution using AI
• Macro mode with multi-image Super Resolution 
• Histogram for current scene 
• Pro controls for manual shooting options 
• Capture is JPEG+DNG; edit JPEG in Photos or edit DNG in Lightroom or Nitro  

Working too hard

I want to make a collage image from an AI source with a screenshot and text. This will require erasing, masking (maybe), scale, watercolor effect and words on a curve. There will be rotation and warping of the screenshot involved. What are the apps to use and what is my workflow on iPad? Anticipate using multiple apps in this image processing.

The erasing part was the first step and no tool seemed to do the job as envisioned. Pixelmator (layers and erase), Graphic (layers and rotation), PicCollage (stylize and words on curve), Leonardo (layers and masking - no easy erase tool), and finally Procreate (layers, erase, rotate, scale) did the job. 

Every project begins and ends with Photos. Final workflow details: ChatGPT (image creation) > Safari (screenshot) > PicCollage (watercolor effect, export image) > Snapseed (Drama effect, export image) > Procreate (assemble pieces, erase, scale, rotate, export image) > PicCollage (import portrait image to landscape shape, add text on curve @ top, add text on curve @ bottom, export image) > Photos (crop) > Mail > (send article text and attach image). 

You might run into a project like this where your designer insists on using copyright-free images. You have to have permission to use art or a meme found on the Internet. Option to use or create your own original art. AI tools can assist and you want to explore your options. If you subscribe to Adobe Creative Cloud you will have FireFly AI built-in and ready for anything anytime. Or sign up for an Adobe Account to use FireFly on the web under monthly limitations. Other AI tools will also create images. Apple’s Image Playground is a beginning but style choices are limited. 

I’ve just confirmed “erase” has been used in this blog before but not in the same context as this workflow. It is finally time to update the Cheatsheet and add these details so it will be my go-to-starting-point for the next image creation project. 

Many of the apps we’ve used in this seminar have an AI stylizing feature before AI was hyped everywhere. It is a journey. I’m glad you all are on this path. Show us what you’ve got … Tell us your workflow story about any image creation workflow. The Cheatsheet awaits your insights.

Procreate app hints

Procreate is one of the apps that Today at Apple sessions introduce to iPad owners. It is digital art on steroids, especially when paired with the Apple Pencil. 

Leaving myself a note here about Art With Flo YouTube Channel or her website. where you will find tutorials building skills from beginner to intermediate to advanced. Some tutorials are free; come with brushes, color palettes and notebook. 

External SSD Video Recording

Ok, just went shopping at Costco and instead of buying a 55-gallon drum of ... anything ... I bought a 1TB Lexar SSD because the packaging said: Supports Apple ProRes Recording. This kit came with MagSafe connection, lanyard USB-C 3 data cable and USB-A adapter. This SSD seems to be formatted at exFAT and therefore ready to rock and roll. 

So much to learn. Now to YouTube for some ideas: 

Do These 4 Things to Record to an External SSD with your iPhone 16 Pro Max! Richard Taylor TV - Did you know that the Files app on iPhone can format an external SSD (or thumb drive)? Wow. 

How to record iPhone video directly to an external hard drive Backlight by Tara Schatz - iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max and the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max models can shoot Apple ProRes video. 

Apple ProRes is little like shooting RAW photo format. ProRes records 4K 60fps video in a lossless format that results in large files. Big files. Huge files. External capture and storage are essential. 

Easy and fast to transfer from Photos app to Files > SSD > New Folder ... 

Use this as a backup. Take caution on deleting files from Photos while will delete them from iCloud and all synced devices. 

Stumbling around with iPad and resorted to the Online User Guide to find more frustration. Under the Shutter button are only three options for shooting modes. The text of the guide were not helpful either. As a reminder-to-self the visible options are in a longer list and swiping up or down on the mode labels will reveal the other options! Time-Lapse Video, Slo-Mo, Video, Photo, Portrait,Square and Pano. 

Photo Walk with Newbies

I have invited people on our Studio Waitlist to attend a Photo Walk on week two. I asked for details about their goals ... 

What thoughts do you have about coaching iPhone Photographers? 

Refresh Your Viewpoint

Forget that you've used an iPhone for years! Now that we have iOS 18.2 and Apple Intelligence, it is time to erase our past experience with the Camera app and the Photos app. Especially the Photos app! 

Our muscle memory is not helpful now. How we interacted with our devices is ancient history. Put those visual clues out of your mind. Look at the app as if 1) this is your first time seeing it ... touch every button; 2) you are a 7 year old child exploring this screen for the first time -- swipe up, down, left and right. 

You know, "touch every button" is not a complete thought. There are gestures that have become more useful and the "when and where" to use gestures is not ... intuitive. Yet. We will build new habits this semester. 

The Apple Tips app refreshes in many ways. The brief content is updated with an iPad/iOS update and the tip categories switch out content. Two important features are here: 1) easy access to the User Guide for devices you own, 2) Setup Checklist to review features to take full advantage of your device. There is an item covering Gestures, but it is missing an important skill. Look for yourself.