Get Ready for iPadOS 27 and iOS27

iOS 27 hatches on Monday September 14, 2026. Don't rush out and update. Read about the changes and look for what will impact your photography workflow. 

One Of my favorite YouTubers is Ellen and her videos are great guides for many techniques for mobile devices. The latest 7 Things to Do Before You Update might be your first introduction to her channel. 

Also, Dan Fox has posted Updated Photos App: New Features You're Missing to his YouTube Channel. This is a new channel for me, but other YouTubers recommended in the past will also have new reports.  

There are a combination of elements to consider before you update, maybe it is time to clean house. Here is my approach. Two years ago I bought three SSDs, external solid-state-drives of the same size and brand. If not now, then soon: Organize your files into folders and copy to the three drives. One drive stays with you and is will be used to offload documents. Ask a family member or trusted neighbor to keep a drive off-site in case something happens to the original at home. The third drive should go to your bank safe deposit box or a safe out-of-town location. Ideally, you rotate these drives 3 or 4 times a year to keep up with important documents and images. On your Mac computer make sure your TimeMachine is running a daily backup. Also, you want to backup for devices to iCloud daily and just before you migrate to a new device. 

1. Look at your current device for the storage and available space. 
2. Look at your current Apple iCloud subscription and available space. 
3. Are you optimizing images? Settings > Apple Account > iCloud > Photos > Optimize iPhone Storage … also for iPad Storage. 
4. Look for big files, remember that 1 GB = 1,024 MB, and move big files to external storage drives and delete to free up space on your devices or in iCloud. Settings > Apple Account > iCloud > Drive > Manage Storage > Review and Delete Large Files (after saving the files to external SSD). First, find the GB sized files and note the names and locations then decide if you can move to external SSD or if you need to keep the files handy on-device. 
5. In the Photos app, videos take up more space, off-load to SSD when possible. Are you shooting in Live mode most often? This takes up more storage, consider turning it off and using sparingly. 
6. Newer iPhone Camera apps can shoot at 48MP and in RAW. Assess if you need these pro features on all the time or just for special occasions -- especially if you are not editing your photos often. 
7. Assess whether you need to raise your iCloud+ subscription level and pay more but stress less. 

Shared Albums Are Great Until iPadOS 27

Long ago Apple Photos app introduced Shared Albums for Apple devices. This was a fabulous way to share photos with others by-invitation. The originator got to decide if invitees could also comment, like or upload their photos to the album. Another option was to make albums public and invite non-Apple devices to view the album via a web browser. The images were optimized and did not count against your iCloud storage. Until now. 

Shared - is a loose term in my experience. Yes, I have invited many people to see and share images in Shared Albums but I have also used this feature to just keep track of my stuff. Reference photos that did not have to go into my Library and Camera Roll. Some of my image groupings have titles like Shopping (what did I just buy? Make a screenshot and stuff it in this album until delivery), Local Contractors (photos of trucks and vans I see on morning walks that are bringing services to my neighbors), Online Classes (what activities am I signed up for that might come up again next year), MPIX (the online print service I use that have various 3-day sales during the year - I can plan on printing at the best sale price), Home Maintenance (photos of tasks around the yard and home), iPadOS 27 Prep (screenshots of current apps that might change when I complete the next OS update). 

In iPadOS/iOS 27 the rules have changed. New Shared Albums will have the full resolution of photos and count against your iCloud Storage subscription. We will wait and see if old Shared Albums remain under previous rules and cost structure. I have some old albums that are not useful/needed anymore. I will save them to practice on with this next OS update. 

RenSoc Fall 2026 Catalog is out

The new semester is approaching at a fast speed. by this time by this time next month we will have completed our second in-person class. 

Remember this experiment was designed as a two-semester commitment to do iPad art. You will not see our class listed in the fall '26 catalog because our workshop enrollment is "closed" to new participants. When you go to enroll on 8/17 or later a search for "Procreate" will bring up our class: Procreate iPad + Pencil Art Workshop. Everyone goes on the waitlist at first and then I change your status to "enrolled". 

Keep on learning

So many questions and so little time. I think it is helpful when you join a user group, an online discussion platform, watch YouTube content from trusted channels or take online classes. I will add to this list over the next couple months. 

• Dan's Tutorials is filled with Apple related topics for desktop, laptop and mobile devices. Learn something new or dive in and troubleshoot a process that you struggle with. Dan is also a regular participant in the Naples Mac User Group out of Florida. 
• NMUG - Naples MUG holds weekly meetings 9 months of the year and offers 10 classes beginning each year. 
• This blog is hosted on Blogger, a Google platform, and because editing takes a gmail login there is a benefit - YouTube videos now often include Ask for AI summaries based on the automated transcript of a video. Plus you can ask for other details or similar content. Yep, you have to have a gmail account to see this feature. 
• More to come 

Black Friday Sale - iPhone Photo Academy

I usually don’t recommend the offers that come in the mail but this one is worth considering - iPhone Photo Academy lifetime access for $25. Because this is a referral the sale timeline is extended and ends on December 1st. So, if you can take a look, take advantage of the offer - great. Or wait until this time next year and maybe the 90% off discount will return for the day. 

IOS 26 - Photos and Camera app notes

Great conversation today about what you noticed about the revamped apps central to this class. 

Ellen's Tips for iOS is a great resource and she is out with a new video - What’s New in the iOS 26 Photos App — Simplified for Seniors - be sure to log into your Google account and try the AI Ask tool to interact with the video - probably based on the automated transcript.  Not all YouTube videos include the AI features but it is helpful when presenters speak rapidly and it is hard to take notes. The Ask > Summarize this video option returns text and hyperlinks as timecode to jump the playhead to that position. Looking at her channel for other videos shows how busy Ellen has been: 

• iOS26 Made Simple
• iPadOS 26: How to Use the New Windows Feature
• iOS 26 for Seniors: Everything You Need to Know 
• iPhone Side Button Secrets Every Senior Should Know 

Proper Honest Tech is another channel to checkout. Maybe begin with How to fix 13 Annoying iPhone Issues - and I love the first one, the long press when pasting text reveals a menu. Cynthia needs to see the Camera Control button details at 5 minute mark. The Safari Compact View tip was also helpful to me. 

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.