I've never really been able to interpret close-up pics very well, but those look to be nicely taken.

Here's what I think. No one has a problem with a grit progression when honing. Start with a low grit (large particle size) to take off lots of metal. Then progressively work your way up to a point on the hones where you are polishing the metal with a very very fine grit.

So what's the next step? Polish the edge with the finest of grits - no grit. Leather.

That's stropping.

James.