How does one get these looks/colours with natural light?

[djentley]

Well, actually there are three different looks that I wish to know how to get, are they achieved via metering modes, post processing, good lighting or specific lenses (I have just bought a 24-105L Canon and am on the prowl for a good prime for full body shots on a 1.6 crop)? Would be nice if more people left the Exif data visible.

First I just really love the look of photographs in this colour/exposure style (someone mentioned specific filters once?), they appear slightly overexposed and a bit old-school but the colours are so rich;

Untitled | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Bea....photographer | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Untitled | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

(Lingerie, may be NSFW)

Untitled | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Second is this very photorealistic tone with deep, saturated colours and wonderful contrast by Eric Lafforgue, primarily with a Canon 85L f/1.2 to pull spectacular DOF. Personally I'd like to get slightly warmer tones as SE Asia struck me as ever-so-slightly warmer than these pictures suggest.

Novices Laos | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Yao baby Laos | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Khmu boy with catapult on is head - Laos | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Akha Pala girl tribe North Laos | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Thaphanongpafa cave - Laos | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

And finally the utter sharpness and clarity of images like this;

IMG_2380 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Sorry to be such a pain but now I have correct exposure pretty much covered (not a natural by any means, but I think my way through it), I want to step up from just having a picture of something to having a picture that tells the story in the way I want it to. I am on the lookout for courses, too.

[RichardTaylor]

For the people pics, I think it is all in the lighting + using relative wide apertures. Possibly a bit of PPing for the first group as well.

For the car pic it is the Canon 135 F2 lens - super sharp even wide open. I own one.