Whatever blows your skirt up!! I'm my own worst critic and I pixel peep shots I like to check if I've captured enough details to make the image interesting. You can discover details in a photo that you don't see in real life. I think that's why I enjoy macro work.

Canon ink can and does clog but you use the printer often enough to keep the print head clear. Frequent use is the best prevention. I purchased Qimage for it's "scheduled purge print" maintenance app because I don't print weekly. In 15 months, I've only ran 3 cleaning cycles on my ET-8550 to clear up one or two nozzle clogs each time. After hundreds of prints the most used ink is gray but it is still at 25% full. The only paper this printer doesn't print extremely well on is canvas. I'm still experimenting with canvas

Not all aftermarket inks are created equal. Precision Colors (PC) and INKOWL are very close to OEM. I've used PC in an Epson and couldn't tell the difference. There's beaucoup information on inks and refilling on JToolman's YouTube videos and Jose's fb group.

I've tried both RR metallic papers. I prefer the luster and I love the way B&W looks on it.

I think it partly depends on the market value of the photos. If you sold the photo for $1000 then $100 shipping w insurance may be appropriate. If the value is $100 the hardboard is probably overkill and adds a bunch to the shipping cost. I recently mailed (USPS) some 11x14 prints across the country in a large paper envelope. The prints were sandwiched between sheets of mounting board and the envelope was marked "photos - do not bend". The photos arrived unharmed. The mailing cost was less than $10.

A CPL filter has two filters. The first is a rotatable linear polarized filter to block light entering which is at 90 degrees from the alignment of the linear polarizer plane. The second filter is a Quarter wave plate which retards/changes the polarized light into unpolarized light so that auto focus and metering can function properly. The film surface or digital sensor wouldn't know the difference. Don't ask me how quarter wave plates work. I just viewed several videos explaining the physics and my head exploded.

The purpose of a CPL is to give you control over strong reflected light entering the lens because reflected light is highly polarized. Think sun reflecting off a pond or off a glass window.

Welcome! How are things in Mason? I grew up in Xenia and dated and married a girl from Morrow before relocating to upstate NY.

CG Canon gave you a pretty good summary. I started in photography in 1965 with a film SLR. A few years after digital hit the scene I got my first DSLR, a mid range Canon APS-C. About 3 years ago I downsized for weight considerations to a MFT mirrorless and it far exceeds my needs. I have to add that, other than my first camera, all my other cameras and lenses were purchased used in excellent condition. Asking what brand camera to buy is like asking what brand car to buy. Find something that feel comfortable in your hands. It will also help if you feel comfortable with the menu format. Buying refurbished with warranty is like buying new. If you go with used, be selective and careful.

Hip C did a good job talking about improving. Re: making your image comparable to a D850, the short answer is NO. You can't create accurate pixels where none existed in the original capture. The real question is can your eyes notice the difference? The latest AI software can do a reasonable approximation to fill the gaps but it's never going to be equivalent. Your camera is perfectly capable of producing beautiful 16x20 enlargements using post processing software and up sizing. If you pixel peep you may tell the difference. MFT shooters do that all the time.

My goto charger for AA and AAA is the OPUS BT-C2400. I have 3 of them. I have 150 AAA's and 41 AA's. I also have an OPUS BT C-3400 that I use for C's, D's, 16340's, 18650's and 26650's. I use an adapter for the C's and D's due to size. Most of my AA's and AAA's are ENELOOPS but I also have good luck with EBL and Tenergy. I have PIR motion sensor puck lights all thru my house which is where most of the AAA's get used. I use a spreadsheet to keep track of charging history (date, current, mAh & Volts) and identify where each of my batteries are installed. I'm considering buying more EBL's because they hold 30% - 50% more mAh's than ENELOOPS which are rated conservatively.

[quote=User ID]I always process ALL cameras output to my liking. Any differences between cameras, lenses, filters, and such have zero effect on the results of my doing that.

When I hear about "Canon color" or "Nikon color" I feel really dismissive of those who concern themselves with stuff like that. Ive witnessed sales staff talking that trash to customers who I know damnt well will use AWB for everything, forever, no exceptions.

The only differences driving me nuts is all those batteries !! I guesstimate I use about ten different batteries.

Look below and then tell me how many different brands of "corporate color" youve found there:[/quot

I see you were in Albany NY!

Does depend on who you ask. I've done it both ways. I've had better success doing denoise and sharpening last because sometimes you can introduce some noise during editing.

"Partly my fault" leaves part of the fault to someone else, who? A better assessment would have been "My fault".

I use a "low vision" keyboard with letters nearly 1/2" high. The problem I'd have with the PS keyboard is the text is so small I'd need a magnifier to read it. I'd be better off using a tablet with custom dedicated buttons for frequently used commands. The complexity of commands in PS is why I use LRC 95% of the time.

I recently finished a large project to make digital copies of my deceased mother-in-law's massive photo collection contained in two storage bins. The goal was to save the image files to stick drives to distribute to my wife's numerous siblings and their children. Some of the photos dated back to the early 40's (frilly edged B&Ws). Some were old 11x14 professional linen finished portraits (requiring multiple scans). Some photos were curled, torn, dog eared or creased. I'd used the camera on a copy stand with side lighting method before but I had challenges ajusting for varying print sizes and keeping prints perfectly flat and aligned (square). I found it easier to use a scanner so I used the scanner on my Epson ET-8550. It took me quite a while but I got excellent results. I only needed to edit a few prints (damaged originals) and stitch the multiple pass images. At the end I had about 1,300 images saved into logically labeled folders on 20 2GB memory sticks.

What CHG_CANON said. RAW is what you start with. I'm assuming you want to compare the "lenses" at each f stop. Unless you want to compare something other than the Lense's performance such as editing capability of software.