I´m a hobbyist too, but I´m playing with Poser and other Software since Poser4 and 2002, nearly daily. With Poser7 and different adds of scripts, top class materials and textures and the know how what I really can do with Poser, makes most images very photoreal.
Perhaps a week ago someone asked me if my images really would be renders only or if I did use real persons as characters. So I think the images are very photoreal.
But my render settings are always very high and not standard or preset only.

I think most beginners with Poser make the mistake to use the probs, hairs or figures as they are. But to make an image real, you also have to look that hairs or clothes are falling with the pose, and this you have to do by yourself.