Definitely the Sigma, more light, all sky...

That's less than I paid for it a couple months ago and I only bought the upgrade, and only got 1 disc. I'd say that's a really good price...

None of the more sophisticated image editing software is user friendly for a novice but Paintshop Pro is probably far more friendly than any of the Adobe software packages.

Is the $27.88 the cost for a full blown copy of Paintshop Pro X8 or the price of an upgrade from a previous version?

I have Paintshop Pro X8 and I subscribe to Adobe creative cloud and I probably use Paintshop more often for routine post processing that any other software package.

Yes it has several ways to edit digital noise. It probably has 95% of the functionality Photoshop has but for a whole lot less money.

Kind of limits ones horizons by using only manual focus. Personally I only use manual focus when the situation demands it. The advanced technology in my Canon cameras and lenses is far faster and just as accurate as I. For example, just the other night I heard some noise on a tree near where I was standing. There was little ambient light, not enough that I would have been able to see clearly enough to manually focus. By using the available technology I was able to capture a really nice image of a flying squirrel on the tree. What enabled me to do that was being in the right place at the right time and having the right technology when I needed it. So I guess it's the camera, lens, location and human element combined...

Li-Fi cannot replace Wi-Fi as we know it because it is strictly line of sight. Place the Li-Fi access point in a room and that's pretty much the only room you can link to it. Wi-Fi on the other hand, goes thru walls and floors and although it may be slower, with todays technology, a slower connection is better than no connection at all.

My main body is the Canon EOS 7D II, my second body is the EOS 6D for when I need full frame. My other second body is an EOS 70D which is used primarily for video. All my EF mount lenses fit all my EOS bodies.

A second body may be a back up to your primary body, in which case it may as well be the same body, or you may want different bodies for different applications. For example, the 7DII is quite versatile but although there's no reason why you couldn't use it to shoot a wedding, the 6D is much better suited for that. On the other hand, the 6D sucks big time at action photography. The 7DII and 70D are similar in the video department but the 7DII is better suited to high speed stills.

Choose your second body based on what you plan to use it for, and choose wisely.

I photograph Turkey Vultures quite often because they're great 'bird in flight' practice plus all too many people dislike them because they're not visually appealing like most other raptors; the unattractive bald red head thing; and Black Vultures can be almost as social as Gulls as long as you have treats for them. One day last summer I was at Conowingo Dam in Maryland photographing Cormorants and Great Blue Herons and Bald Eagles and while I was eating my lunch, a couple Black Vultures walked up looking for a hand out. I tossed them a few pieces of meat and they invited their buddy's, it was actually quite humorous. Here's a photo I took that day...

Raptor School - class in session

Beautiful head shots. I like the way you captured the birds facial expressions; you can almost tell what they're thinking.

Speaking of raptors on poles, near where I live there's an unmanned turnpike interchange that's located between a large water filled quarry and an old land fill. Some days, all the light fixtures and overhead equipment supports and communications antenna's at the interchange are occupied by numerous Black Vultures and Turkey Vultures; it's like a scene from an Alfred Hitchcock movie...

I've never done a Bucks County covered bridge tour but I've done a Chester County covered bridge tour on my motorcycle. Must do Bucks County next year...

Not all EF-S lenses are "kit" lenses. Some of them are as good or better than some L lenses, I just wouldn't take one out in the rain...

Love the pups; you never mentioned what lenses you need to carry with you. This always determines which bag I'm going to use; have a few of them, one for each occasion so to speak. My every day bag is a Canon back pack style bag. It will hold 2 DSLR bodies, several small primes or zooms, a large flash and lots of other stuff and it cost around $70 at Best Buys. My motorcycle bag is also a back pack; heavy duty canvas with lots of padding. I don't recall the brand name off hand but it's got lots of internal and external storage space and just fits in the trunk of my Honda GL1800. My "big" bag again is a large back pack branded National Geographic. I've packed over 70 pounds of gear into that bag, strapped in to my back and it was still comfortable. It was a bit pricy but it's amazing how much stuff you can carry with it. My storage bag is a big old Tamrac bag that I use to put gear in when it's not being used. When packed properly, it will hold several DSLR bodies and numerous lenses and it's got 3 large external pockets for stuff. All my flash gear is in its own bag...
Good luck on your pursuit of the perfect bag, just make sure it's sturdy and will protect your gear. Again, love the pups; I had 2 Maltese's, Teddy bear and Angle Bear. Teddy Bear went to the big doggie play ground in the sky last Thanksgiving at the age of 15. Angle Bear is 14 now and still hanging in there...

I don't have any of the lenses you are asking about but I do have a couple Sigma lenses and several Canon L lenses. I like my Sigma lenses, and for the money, the 105mm is an excellent choice. The Canon may have a slight edge with stabilization and keeping the elements on the outside of the lens, but as long as you're not shooting in a rain forest or tropical jungle a dust storm or a tropical storm, the Sigma is the way to go. Also, since you are shooting with a 70D, you really don't want to have your camera out in nasty wet or dusty weather conditions, it's not made for it. Go with the Sigma...

Tripods, another hole we throw money into... I have acquired several tripods over the years and there are 4 cheapies in the collection. I found the perfect application for the cheap tripods, time lapse photography in a protected environment. You set up the tripod, set up the camera, push the proper button and walk away. No sense tying up an expensive tripod just to hold a camera pointed at the same object for an extended period of time, sometime several months.

You say your tripod has a 15.4 pound capacity; you planning on mounting small artillery on it, that's a lot of tripod for a camera, sounds quite versatile.

I have a Manfrotto compact for carrying on the motorcycle, a larger Manfrotto with a gimbal head for the heavy lenses and an over priced Promaster carbon fiber tripod for when I venture out to the beach or into the salt marshes or wetlands.

My favorite tripod is my Vixen M-178V. I bought it to use with my Vixen Polarie but it turns out it's quite the versatile light weight tripod, and actually fun to use.

Best of luck with your photographic (ad)ventures; take some stunning photos...

For the money, I'd go with a Canon SX50. You can pick one up new for around $300 to $320, it has EVF and 50X zoom and it's not a bad looking camera either.

Since the battery comes with a 1 year warranty, you are covered. I own several cameras that use the LP-E6 battery and I own a few Watson 2000mAh batteries, and several other brands and capacity LP-E6 batteries. Over the years I've had only one fail (not a Watson) and it probably just wore out.

If Watson batteries were crap then they'd probably only have a 90 or even 30 day warranty, but they come with a 365 day warranty. Even when the best manufacturing processes are used, occasionally faulty or potentially faulty product makes it past quality control and into the hands of the consumer.

Since it worked for 7 months then I'd guess whatever failed was something that initial testing would not have detected and you'd be doing Watson and its consumers a service by returning the battery, since it is under warranty, so they may determine what failed and work to prevent this from happening in the future.