One thing that hasn't been mentioned yet about manipulating photos. If you're spending that much time fixing images, be sure your monitor is properly calibrated. In fact, using a system that also has hardware as the sensor, is good investment. Calibrating a monitor by eye is not precise and often turns out wrong. If you are even more picky or are dabbling into pro or semi-pro photography, you need to use a good monitor, not the cheap LCD monitors. Use a CRT monitor or an LCD that is NOT made using a TN panel. IPS panel LCD monitors are becoming more popular, available, and cheaper.