We have landscape and portrait mode with the camera. So a close up of a tall lighthouse is probably 'portrait' in order to get it all in frame.

Beyond that: Landscape is anything on land - seascape is anything with seawater

Send the same image to several labs and see how they vary......then decide 'who' will print 'what'. They all will have a colour difference that YOU can Take Advantage Of (or not). The file format of a finished image should not matter as far as 'what you see', it will in what you get printed so go with what they want and decide that too.

Try being a town councillor........Mustn't lose the buzzwords.......you have to be in step and singing from the same song sheet!

There are lots of advantages of using a smart phone as a camera. The drive for extra megapixels in a crowded market-place is just one. Ease of use without worrying about aperture or DOF is another.

The 'downside' is often pointed out as being when images are printed. But then 'how many' get printed and hung on your wall (or others)? You save images on the cloud (where size is costly) you send them via the internet where often they get resized down, or display them with an electronic picture frame. To many size is irrelevant.

Post processing is probably less used by cell phone photographers (other than the in-phone options) So in a sense they are comparable to SOOC that so many judge as 'best' work practice. Plus they are 'always to hand' another work practice often quoted.

What you may not have to wade through is the minutia that is attached to DLSR's.....no lens choice Prime or otherwise. No aperture ratio to decide, little choice as to flash attachments or extra 'goodies'. In a world full of cell phones - no approbation over the biggest lens or the most costly camera (unless you are an I-phone addict). Possibly why 'tablets' seem to have been a passing phase. Bigger is not best!

But I wanted to learn 'photography' not necessarily take hundreds of thousands of photo's. I like the history of the camera. I love experimenting and pushing boundaries. But most of all...I like to take long walks at interesting places and produce an image that CAN be enlarged to fit on a wall. I do like hanging my pictures up at home (and changing them). I am also in my 60's so not that tech attached.

I can see that there is a great deal of interest in taking 'smaller' images using smaller cameras. What I cannot see is the ending of the harping about 'what is better'. Go back thirty years and 'everything' has changed.....Better ceases to be the objective of the exercise - merely being 'the latest' is.

In a photography forum - we should care less about 'the camera' and more about the image and why one thinks it is iconic....fantastic.....exciting or any other adjective you want to supply.

Photography is about 'an image'.....not the size it is or could have been....Polaroid knew this. It isn't about the 'kit used'.....that can be seen as obvious....to another photographer. It is about How and Why you chose to take it in that way (From ignorance to artistic license can be discussed constructively then).

We are moving into an era of Gender Homogeny....Time to stop stuffing handkerchiefs into our clothing and strutting like peacocks!

Have fun ....with whatever you do

Considering the size of the US and the amount of cross country freight I am surprised there are so few. The UK probably have more coming in from Europe, but we also have a fairly long history of female HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) drivers. Pre and post War. From public service vehicles (Buses, Library buses) to Recovery vehicles and Heavy industry transporter vehicles.

Driving may be long hours but the actual 'physical strength' needed is well within the average ability.

have fun

I think it is to do with 'aiming' at something.
Footballers 'shoot' at the goal. You give things 'your best shot'.
Guns are a modern invention....we had slingshots and shot arrows. To suggest it is all about guns is a stretch. Maybe because there was a movement to encourage photography over trophy hunting.

English - as so many people point out....is a funny thing. The choice of a word in a sentence can totally alter it's sense of meaning. You wouldn't want to go out with a broad broad when a slim lady is available. In Norfolk a Broad is a stretch of water! Are we always calm when we compose or whistling a tune?

have fun

I used Gimp on a 086 PC....you could watch your image appear 'line by line'...! ANY adjustment repeated the same line by line change. You just let it get on with it, and made a cup of tea.

Fast computers now make me thirsty!

have fun

That is why I don't do portraits.....I get the same problem.
You will need to investigate Portrait Photography. The skills for doing this well...isn't necessarily the same as landscape macro etc...
Each aspect/genre of photography needs different settings/lens/aperture range/light source etc.

At family events I use my point and shoot rather than the DSLR. As the majority of images will be of people I simply set it to the portrait option and leave it for anyone to pick up and shoot. That way there is no 'formality' about photography at a family gathering. In fact the choice of what to photograph by family members can be very amusing!

If you are setting out to do lots of Portraits etc - you probably need to 'read up' a bit as members giving you 'their thoughts' will not allow you to fully engage in portraiture.

Have fun - all 'problems' are learning experiences.

A pre set is a number of slider changes.....how many similar images do you produce that all need the same slider change?

If you shoot a variety of different shots why would you expect the same preset to improve them all?

I remember looking at 'Landscapes' improved (?) with Topaz at the camera club. Apparently it was a 'must have program'.....The images did nothing for me. They seemed overcooked. My taste is not yours and your taste is not the same as many others....why attempt to average out your post processing skills and decisions. Ease is not the same as reason.

Try by all means but prepare to be disappointed.

have fun

The only reasons I bought the Sony was that I could control the timer longer and the live view was an advantage when resting the camera on my foot shooting fungi. (The Eos has a live view but not very good)

My photographs improved as I learned more. Post processing explained a lot too.

The kit I added was driven merely by need rather than GAS.I love tinkering!

You cannot buy experience and there are no shortcuts to achieving what you aspire to.

My advice is have fun with what you have and make sure that you understand 'what its limitations are' and what you need to overcome them. That isn't GAS that is getting the right tools that you need.

have fun

You have been a member here since 2012. You are obviously 'interested in photography'. There have been many arguments regarding copywrite : but few about emulation....(creating something similar)

You may not be in the position to travel far and wide - however doing something 'in the style of' can improve you perspective and shooting ability.

Dissect the images that appeal to you .....What exactly makes them shine and then look for your own 'versions' in your own location. People who make great photographs do so in different places.....BUT they have a formulae that works or identifies their work - Copy THAT!

imitation is the highest form of flattery.....

Have fun

When I delete unsolicited mail (Promotions) Google asks me why - having read the options I ignore it now. I just delete everything. Google is obviously spamming us - as well as limiting us where we shop.

Thanks all.....The files opened in Linux !!!!
Before I got around to renaming the images, my wife tried again (as she does) and lo and behold windoze worked and she could open copy and save.....what the glitch was ????

It is time I weaned her off windoze...it is getting more and more frustrating. Often she can't even get online whereas Linux connects without a glitch from the same connection....Her updates are up to date and all. As time goes by I am forgetting much of the little I knew about Win....

Thanks all
George

Most lenses have a sweet spot around the centre of their range. You can check this with a tripod' timed shutter release and moveable object. use a single fstop and move the object further away between shots..repeat with every fstop.
Sharpness or lack of has quite a lot of reasons from shake to atmospheric conditions. wrong aperture giving too short a depth of field or too long a foreground for the DOF.

You can Post process 'sharpness' with a slider or by creating a 'high pass' filter in a new layer and then combining. High pass is like a fine line drawing of the image (bit like the teacher did with your drawings to 'keep the scribble' inside the shape). layers allow you to alter your image by 'tracing an area' onto a transparent layer and overlaying them on the same image or a new image.

Look at tutorials on how to achieve sharp images from various sources.

Chances are it is technique not lenses.

have fun

Got some images of my daughter's wedding taken by a pro photographer. Now need to sort out the album, BUT none of the programs on my wife's windows 10 PC will do anything but open the image on screen. Several will not recognize file type.
Checked file properties and read write are ticked, as is authorized user as shown by Windows image viewer.
Obviously ._ is a file default. Will simply (?) deleting ._ on each image do the trick?
Do not want to lose the files or I will be in Doggy Poo with the wife.

Thanks
George