Having a bit of a debate with a friend about this subject. We both have strong feelings about our "favorite" photographers. However, he feels that one should try and develop a completely unique style, while I think that as someone new to taking photos, one should choose a role model and try to emulate them.
So--let me know, do you have a favorite? And, if you do, do you try and copy their style? What do you do to emulate them? Shooting style or PP?
My favorite photographers are undoubtedly David Lazar and Steve Mcurry.
http://davidlazarphoto.com
http://stevemccurry.com
After looking through their photos over the last year, I have tried to incorporate more scenery into my portraits. For PP, I've bumped up my contrast and use a lot of highpass filtering like lazar appears to.