Vongon Polyphrase as a looper.

The Vongon Polyphrase is a great pedal for creating short loops. There are restrictions (no undo, no octave function and a max length of 22 seconds) but the workflow can be easier than a conventional looper. And if you’re already got Polyphrase as your delay, you may not need to add a dedicated looper pedal. This article shows you how.

Current Pedal Obsession: Strymon Brig dBucket Delay.

It’s the Bucket Brigade Hall of Fame pedal.

Based on the Brigadier delay, Brig is the second in a new line of smaller, higher-quality pedals from Strymon. It’s an exploration of three legendary analog delays using Strymon’s dBucket technology. For this article we’ll approach the pedal from three familiar analog voices: Boss DM-2, EHX Deluxe Memory Man and Roland Space Echo, each with authentic characteristics and quirks.

Pedal Tricks: Landscape Stereo Field + Strymon Cloudburst.

Instant Bernard Hermann.

The Landscape Stereo Field is a touch-sensitive atonal synth (aka noise box). The Strymon Cloudburst is a reverb with an Ensemble mode that creates synthetic strings from whatever you put in it. And Bernard Hermann was the composer and conductor of the music for Hitchcock’s Psycho, known for his suspenseful, discordant scores.

The iPhone 15 Pro Max Camera and iOS 17 Photos app upgrades for photographers.

If you’re wondering if it’s worth the upgrade to iPhone 15 Pro. As someone who depends heavily on my iPhone camera, I can only give you my personal perspective. Each new iPhone has been worth the upgrade for me with Apple doing a lot of small improvements that adds up to a better overall photography experience. Starting with the introduction of the Pro models in the iPhone 11, the difference between cameras in the regular/Plus models vs Pro models in terms of practical use and performance—gets greater. This year, even the distance between the 15 Pro and the 15 Pro Max cameras is notable. With each new model, more-and-more photographers and videographers leave the DSLRs and prosumer video cams behind for the iPhone Pro Max in their pocket. And for them, this year’s phone has features that add up to an another worthwhile upgrade. Here’s some of what’s new.

The Crap-Free Guide to iPhone Photography v9.0 just released.

The Crap-Free Guide to iPhone Photography, now in its ninth year of publication, is available for $2.99 (US) from the Apple Bookstore. For those who have previously purchased the book, upgrades (as always) are free and available directly in your Apple Books app.