HP, I think you'd be better off not worrying so much about noise. I tried looking at those images in larger sizes on Flickr to diagnose what I'm seeing, but you don't post your Originals (which I understand). Still, there seems to be a slight OOF element all over your sunset images. Perhaps it's the PS layers that you mentioned. Could you post one with no post other than RAW conversion and setting of levels? Upload the Original size if you can.
You want big DOF for most scenics and sunsets, so f/11 is probably called for, despite low light. I can hand hold these, but it's probably due to months of shooting my 500mm hand held. Still, I keep the tripod in the trunk of the car and pull it out when sunsets get spectacular and I don't want to cut corners. Tripod, remote release, mirror lock up, low ISO, but still Expose Right.
Dave
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