Photos users still exploring the new features on their Macs should not overlook the addition of Memories to their iPhones. In some ways, the mobile version surpasses the desktop experience.

What makes sense about Memories on an iPhone is that it's the perfect device to share our experiences with others. And the ability to enhance a handful of images by creating professional looking slideshows with just a tap on the screen elevates the entire presentation.

Test it for yourself right now. Tap on the Memories button at the bottom of the Photos interface and turn your device to sideways to landscape mode. Tap the play button in the right corner, and Photos will build a slideshow based on the images in that Memory and start playing it.

Terrific. But you can step in and fine tune the presentation. Tap on the screen again to reveal the controls, as shown below.

Directly beneath the image appears a row of themes you can choose from, things like Sentimental, Gentle, and Chill. And if you have enough slides, right below that is a second row that lists three durations, Short, Medium, and Long. So depending on the mood that you want to convey, and the amount of time your viewer has, you can reconfigure the presentation with just two taps on the screen.

For even more control, tap on the Adjustments icon in the upper left corner. Now you have additional editing options for the title, music, duration, and specific images included in the slideshow. Tap Done once you've made your changes.

You can share the presentation beyond your iPhone by tapping the Share button at the top of the screen. All of the usual suspects are available, including Facebook, YouTube, and Vimeo.

I recommend building your Memories on the desktop version of Photos for macOS. It's easier than working on the phone, and everything is instantly shared via iCloud anyway. But when it's time to show off the pictures, design the presentation on the fly for your viewer, then blow their socks off. It really is impressive.

Master Photos for OS X

(It's More Powerful than You Think)

For hands-on tutorials, be sure to take a look at Photos for OS X Essential Training on lynda.com. I cover everything you need to know to get the most from this surprisingly powerful image management application.

More Help and Insights on Photos for OS X

Don't forget about the Photos for OS X Special Feature Section on The Digital Story. It's a roundup of tutorials, videos, and articles focused on helping you master Apple's latest photo management software. You can also find it under Photography in the top nav bar.

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This is The Digital Story Podcast #552, October 4, 2016. Today's theme is "Off-Season Projects." I'm Derrick Story.

Opening Monologue

Over the next few months, the days will shorten and the weather becomes less favorable for North American photographers. So after we've had our fill of Fall color, it's time to think about projects that we shelved during the long days of summer. This week I offer a few ideas for you to consider during your photography off-season.

Off-Season Projects

When I was mowing lawns to augment my income during those college days, I liked the Winter. I might not have made as much money, but I enjoyed working on my gardening equipment in the garage during those crisp Southern CA winter days. And now, as a photographer, I have similar feelings about getting my business in order for the next busy season. Here are a few suggestions for your downtime.

Migrate to Capture One Pro - Aperture users who have been procrastinating the move to Capture One Pro might want to tackle that project this Fall. Then everything will be in order for the start of the New Year. (Or, Give Photos for macOS a Second Chance - Now that macOS Sierra is live, consider looking at Photos 2.0 and the available editing extensions for it. It's come a long way since its initial release.

Upgrade Your Backup System - Are your hard drives beginning to budge at the seams? Maybe it's time to research new hardware and update your archiving system.

Make 12 Fine Art Prints - The ultimate backup system is committing a dozen of your finest images from the last year to paper. Printing is a great off-season project. And the level of satisfaction that you'll experience is off the charts.

Digitize Negatives and Slides - Since you can't be out taking pictures, how about leveraging images that you've already captured? By digitizing selecting film shots, you can put that work to use.(Maybe even add them to your upgraded photo management system...)

Catalog Your Photo Gear - Most likely, you've added a few items since your last inventory. Maybe this is the year you'll finally create that gear inventory system.

These are all projects that you can initiate, then work on them as you have time. But the most important part is getting started.

In the News

New MacBook Pro 13-inch and 15-inch likely announced by the end of October. If you're ready to update your laptop, you might want to hang on just a couple more weeks. Word on the street is that we'll see an announcement soon, and considering that there hasn't been a substantial update since Spring of 2015, this one could be good. The top rumored feature is the OLED touch bar being referred to as the Dynamic Function Row. We also might see Touch ID, Thunderbolt 3, and of course, lots of upgrades under the hood.

Drobo Dairies

So, once you've backed up your Capture One Catalogs to a new Drobo 5Dt, can you run them straight off the drive? The answer is yes!

How to Up Your Instagram Game, 16 Tips from Chris Burkard (2M Followers)

Here are five of my favorites from this cool article by Chris.

• Focus on telling a great story, write a great caption
• Add a location to your photo for higher engagement
• If you comment, most people will check out your account
• Only use relevant hashtags
• Use editing apps like VSCO & Snapseed

Follow Us on Apple News for iOS Devices

I'm happy to announce that The Digital Story, The Nimble Photographer, and theAnalogstory are all available on the Apple News App for iOS devices. Just click on the following links on your iPhone or iPad, then save us to your Favorites.

• theAnalogstory.
• The Nimble Photographer
• The Digital Story

Updates and Such

I'll be announcing the 2017 TDS Workshop season by the end of October. And I have to tell you, this is our most exciting lineup to date. Keep eye peeled!

B&H and Amazon tiles on www.thedigitalstory. If you click on them first, you're helping to support this podcast. And speaking of supporting this show, and big thanks to our Patreon Inner Circle members.

And finally, be sure to visit our friends at Red River Paper for all of your inkjet supply needs.

See you next week!

More Ways to Participate

Want to share photos and talk with other members in our virtual camera club? Check out our Flickr Public Group. And from those images, I choose the TDS Member Photo of the Day.

Podcast Sponsors

Red River Paper - Keep up with the world of inkjet printing, and win free paper, by liking Red River Paper on Facebook.

MacPaw Creators of CleanMyMac 3 and other great software for Apple computers. Visit www.macpaw.com today.

Hedge for Mac - The fast solution for moving photos and videos from memory cards to drives, or drives to drives for that matter. Learn more at Hedge for Mac.

The Nimbleosity Report

Do you want to keep up with the best content from The Digital Story and The Nimble Photographer? Sign up for The Nimbleosity Report, and receive highlights twice-a-month in a single page newsletter. Be a part of our community!

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Capture One Pro has arguably the best Aperture library import tool available. You can simply open a new Capture One Catalog, go to File > Import Catalog > Aperture Library, and begin the transition from Aperture to Capture One Pro.

After doing so, how do your Aperture images look in C1? Is the library structure retained. How does the RAW processing compare?

In this 6-minute video, I show you how an Aperture library looks in Capture One Pro. And without giving away too much, I'll tell you now that the transition is pretty darn smooth.

If you've been procrastinating making the move from Aperture to Capture One Pro, this movie should provide some motivation. And since we are going into the off-season for photographers, why not make this your end of year project? Then you can start 2017 with a fresh Capture One catalog.

More Capture One Pro Tips and Techniques

Improve your skills by watching Capture One Pro Essential Training now available on lynda.com. More than 5 hours of tips, tricks, and techniques. Plus many free movies using advanced techniques.

I've also created a dedicated Capture One Pro Training page on The Digital Story. You can follow all of the tips and techniques that I publish in one convenient spot.

Thinking About Making the Transition from Aperture or Lightroom? - Download my free eBook titled, Rocky Nook's Guide to Moving to Capture One Pro. I show you the steps to create a test library, then build the foundation for a smooth transition to Capture One Pro.

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There are quite a few big features in Photos for macOS Sierra, but one of my favorite small adjustments is the return of Places, now debuting as an application album alongside People, Favorite Memories, Last Import, and such.

Since the iPhone handles geotagging for us automatically, photographers who use their smartphone regularly have a thumbnail tapestry of their journeys awaiting them, with each location plotted out on a map. Click on any of those thumbnails, and pictures from that location pop on to your screen.

It's so simple, really. If you want to see all of your vacation shots from Hawaii over the years, you could build a Smart Album with various conditions covering the appropriate metadata, or your could quickly go to Places and click on the thumbnail over Hawaii on the map. Instantly all of your shots from that location appear on the screen.

Want to fine tune your search to a specific location in Hawaii? Simply zoom in by using the "+" icon in the lower right corner of the map, or by pinching outward on a trackpad, to reveal various spots on the island that you visited. Now click on any of those thumbnails to see that smaller group of pictures.

This system does not require descriptions, titles, keywords, and any other user-added metadata. Just let the iPhone (or in my case the Olympus TG-4 also) capture the location information, then use the Places album to find the shots you want.

If you know where a picture was captured, you can find it in seconds in Photos for macOS. (Or you could do it the old-fashioned way...)

Master Photos for macOS

(It's More Powerful than You Think)

VIDEO TRAINING

Want to see how easy it is to apply local edits to your images using Editing Extensions? Take a look at my new lynda training, Photos for OS X: Extensions for Local Adjustments.

And for an overview of all of the great features in Photos, my Photos for OS X Essential Training will get you up and running quickly. I cover everything you need to know to get the most from this surprisingly powerful image management application.

INSTRUCTIONAL GUIDE

The Apple Photos Book for Photographers

For photographers who are more than just casual snapshooters, or who are making the transition from Aperture or iPhoto, The Apple Photos Book for Photographers shines a light on the sophistication of this app and the ecosystem it taps into. Available as an eBook now, and coming to print later this year.

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Dropbox is terrific for photographers. But it can also fill up hard drives if you have complete syncing turned on for all of your machines. Enabling Selective Sync puts you in control of how many files Dropbox copies locally, and how many remain solely in the Cloud.

In this free 5-minute movie from my lynda.com title, Dropbox for Photographers 2016, I show you how to take control of Dropbox local storage on your computer. You'll probably want to have different settings for a travel laptop compared to your home desktop machine. And you can do that just by checking a few boxes... that is if you know where those boxes are.

And remember, regardless of what you do with any particular computer, you can always change your mind because all of your files remain safe and sound in the Cloud.

More Dropbox 2016 Tips and Tricks

Dropbox users who enjoy photography will get a lot out of my latest lynda title, Dropbox for Photographers 2016. Or if you just want to learn more about some of the cool things that Dropbox can do, then watch the free movies and see what you think.

We're on Apple News!

Find us now on the Apple News App for iOS! Just open this link on your iOS device, then add The Digital Story to your Favorites.

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This is The Digital Story Podcast #551, Sept 27, 2016. Today's theme is "Firmware Fantastic." I'm Derrick Story.

Opening Monologue

Aside from pure immediacy, my favorite aspects of the digital age are firmware and software updates. I'm thinking about this because I've just reinvigorated my laptop, iPhone, iPad, and the DxO ONE camera. And what a difference! But sometimes we're hesitant or don't have time for these maintenance tasks. And that's the subject of this week's show.

Firmware Fantastic

I know many folks hold off on OS and firmware updates because they feel that their devices may become destabilized as a result. Although there is always such a possibility, my experience has been that brand name software is usually vetted quite well before sharing with the public. Here are some recent examples.

macOS Sierra - I started using Sierra on my mid-2014 MacBook Pro during its public beta phase. There were very few hiccups then, and the only issues I'm having now is that some of the software I use hasn't been updated for the new OS. I love having Siri on my Mac.

iOS 10 - I've installed it on an iPhone 6S, iPhone 5S and iPad mini 2 without issue. The only challenges I've had are getting used to the new features, such as the change for the lock screen. Overall, I feel like my iOS apps are doing a better job at releasing updates for the new OS.

As an aside, one on my little tricks is to buy a new iPhone case when I update the operating system, especially if I'm not going to buy the latest phone, such as the iPhone 7. The new OS and case literally make my 1-year-old device feel brand new.

DxO ONE Firmware Update 2.0.3 - This is a killer feature enhancement adding WiFi capability, mobile smart lighting, better battery management and more. BTW: if you use a DxO ONE, you should update its firmware before moving to iOS 10.

Lightroom Mobile 2.5.1 - Makes it easy to capture in RAW if late model iPhones running iOS 10.

Photos 2.0 - Even though this is part of the Sierra update, I want to talk about it individually. My biggest thrill is the addition of object recognition, which as totally changed search for me.

Should you hold off on any of these? In my opinion, certainly not!

Drobo Dairies

This week I ran a straight Finder copy to test the speed differences between the Drobo 5D and the 5Dt. I used the Thunderbolt cable included with each device and plugged them into my mid-2014 MacBook Pro running macOS Sierra. Here's how the numbers stacked up:

Drobo 5Dt, 98.53 GB copy, 9:49.
Drobo 5D, 98.53 GB copy, 12:45.

That's quite a difference in speed. Next week I'm going to report on running my Capture One Pro catalog off the Drobo 5Dt.

In the News

The Fotr App Forces You to Shoot 'Film' with Your iPhone, Prints Every Frame, via Petapixel.

Fotr is as close to film photography as you're likely to get out of your iPhone. The new iOS app acts just like a film camera: you have to buy "digital" film, and every single photo you take with that "roll" is printed... even the crappy ones.

Once you download the app, you will have to buy a "roll" of film--there are both color and black & white film stocks available, and each one mimics a well-known film like Kodak Tri-X or Fujifilm Velvia. Once bought, you've got that many exposures to shoot, each of which will be printed and shipped to your door within 10 days... no do overs.

Like regular film, you'll have to pay to play here. The app itself is free, but each set of prints will cost you. 24 and 36-frame "rolls" of B&W film printed 4�6 will cost $17 and $23, respectively. Those prices include all tax, packaging and shipping.

Follow Us on Apple News for iOS Devices

I'm happy to announce that The Digital Story, The Nimble Photographer, and theAnalogstory are all available on the Apple News App for iOS devices. Just click on the following links on your iPhone or iPad, then save us to your Favorites.

• theAnalogstory.
• The Nimble Photographer
• The Digital Story

Updates and Such

B&H and Amazon tiles on www.thedigitalstory. If you click on them first, you're helping to support this podcast. And speaking of supporting this show, and big thanks to our Patreon Inner Circle members.

And finally, be sure to visit our friends at Red River Paper for all of your inkjet supply needs.

See you next week!

More Ways to Participate

Want to share photos and talk with other members in our virtual camera club? Check out our Flickr Public Group. And from those images, I choose the TDS Member Photo of the Day.

Podcast Sponsors

Red River Paper - Keep up with the world of inkjet printing, and win free paper, by liking Red River Paper on Facebook.

MacPaw Creators of CleanMyMac 3 and other great software for Apple computers. Visit www.macpaw.com today.

Hedge for Mac - The fast solution for moving photos and videos from memory cards to drives, or drives to drives for that matter. Learn more at Hedge for Mac.

The Nimbleosity Report

Do you want to keep up with the best content from The Digital Story and The Nimble Photographer? Sign up for The Nimbleosity Report, and receive highlights twice-a-month in a single page newsletter. Be a part of our community!

Want to Comment on this Post?

You can share your thoughts at the TDS Facebook page, where I'll post this story for discussion.

The DxO ONE camera has evolved quickly since its release. With the latest Version 2.0 Firmware Update, WiFi capability was unlocked, allowing photographers to detach the camera from the iPhone and continue to take pictures.

The firmware update can be applied by connecting the camera to your iPhone, launching the DxO ONE app, and going to the message center where you'll have the opportunity to upgrade. Once the upgrade has been applied, go to the settings menu in picture taking mode. You can do that by tapping on the icon in the upper right corner, then swiping down in the menu to "Wireless remote control," as shown in the above illustration.

The section provides you with two options. The first, Connect through a Wi-Fi network, allows you to tap into an existing network. Once you select that, the iPhone will pass the network credentials to the DxO camera. This takes just a few seconds. Soon, a message appears, "You can now detach your DxO ONE and take pictures." Now have some fun.

DxO also announced a new tripod adapter that looks very nice. Or, you can use a third party solution, such as the MeFOTO SideKick360 shown in the image below.

The DxO ONE in WiFi mode stabilized with a MeFOTO SideKick..

Once you've finished, just connect the camera again. The WiFi connection will be terminated, and you're back in connected shooting mode. It's easy, and it works great.

The second option, Direct Option, is currently grayed out. The message states that there's an incompatibility with the latest iOS Update. Hopefully, this will be ironed out soon so we can shoot wirelessly without an existing network.

WiFi connectivity is just one of the many new features in the Version 2.0 update. But it's just so darn sexy, I had to start there.

We're on Apple News!

Find us now on the Apple News App for iOS! Just open this link on your iOS device, then add The Digital Story to your Favorites.

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After the news that Yahoo was hacked on a grand scale, it's definitely time to change your Flickr/Yahoo password.

Start by clicking on your avatar/logo in the upper right corner of the Flickr interface. Choose "Settings" from the popup menu. In the next screen, click on the Personal Information tab, then click on "Edit your Yahoo! password."

You'll see some information about account security there, and will have some options such as "securing your account" and creating a Yahoo! key. I leave it up to you if you want to go that route. I chose the "I'll change my password instead" option and updated my account with a fresh, never been used before, password.

Once that has been confirmed, you're in good shape. Yahoo! will throw a couple additional screens at you. Read them, but you've already accomplished what needed to be done. I then test my work by logging out of Flickr, then logging back in with the new password. If everything works, that's it.

More Flickr Tips and Techniques

Sharing Photos with Flickr is a deep dive into this venerable online photography platform, focusing on how to best use its tools with a Mac or Windows computer. I show you how to configure Flickr to automatically backup your images, organize them, and share your favorites with friends, family, and the entire online universe. This training will show you how to best take advantage of Flickr's 1TB of free online storage and its comprehensive set of imaging tools.

And if you prefer using an iOS or Android device for your Flickr experience, you definitely must take a look at Flickr Mobile: Photo Sharing Anywhere. It's fun and informative.

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While many mobile photographers await their upgrade to iPhone 7, there's a lot you can do right now with the 6S, including a nifty RAW workflow thanks to iOS 10 and Lightroom Mobile. It's easy, and the quality is outstanding.

Lightroom Mobile on an iPhone 6S running iOS 10. Original image captured as a DNG file using the Lightroom camera app. No editing quite yet...

Start by making sure you have the latest versions of iOS and Lightroom Mobile loaded. Then open LR on the iPhone and tap on the camera icon in the lower right corner. At the top of the interface look for DNG. If you see Jpeg instead, tap on it and choose DNG from the popup option. Take a photograph. You've just captured a RAW file with the iPhone.

At this point, you can edit it with the excellent tools in LR Mobile. I spent a couple minutes with this file adjusting the highlights, shadows, and color temperature. I then added some clarity and a vignette. The image looked pretty good on my mobile display.

Since it automatically syncs with Lightroom on my Mac, via the Creative Cloud account, I launched Lightroom and examined the shot on the 13" MacBook. It was still a RAW file, and all of my adjustments from the iPhone appeared on the sliders in the Develop module. I made a couple more minor changes, and that was it.

The image was automatically synced to Lightroom on my Mac, with all changes included.

Since I like to use Photos for macOS also, I saved an edited version of the picture via Lightroom Mobile to the Camera Roll on my phone. Now I have the finished shot in the Apple ecosystem as well.

The entire process was intuitive, and the finished image, even when magnified on the MacBook's retina display, was sharp, detailed, and had excellent tonality and color.

The final version of the iPhone RAW file. Photos by Derrick Story.

You might not want to capture every iPhone shot as a DNG, but it's great to have this option for situations where you want to milk every ounce of quality out of the device. I can't wait to see how this looks with an iPhone 7 Plus...

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Aside from Eizo monitor support and calibration, there aren't a lot of new features in Capture One Pro 9.3. But there are bug fixes, improved metadata handling, and new camera support. You can see the entire list of newly supported optics and bodies here.

I tested C1 9.3 on macOS Sierra, and I'm happy to report that everything ran smoothly. Performance was snappy, and there were no hiccups that I could detect. So I recommend that you update both the macOS and Capture One Pro at your earliest convenience.

More Capture One Pro Tips and Techniques

Improve your skills by watching Capture One Pro Essential Training now available on lynda.com. More than 5 hours of tips, tricks, and techniques. Plus many free movies using advanced techniques.

I've also created a dedicated Capture One Pro Training page on The Digital Story. You can follow all of the tips and techniques that I publish in one convenient spot.

Thinking About Making the Transition from Aperture or Lightroom? - Download my free eBook titled, Rocky Nook's Guide to Moving to Capture One Pro. I show you the steps to create a test library, then build the foundation for a smooth transition to Capture One Pro.

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You can share your thoughts at the TDS Facebook page, where I'll post this story for discussion.