[Anonymous]

I'll play devil's advocate here and buck the trend. I prefer Canon's, but like some have said, it's like the Ford vs Chevy debate. Whatever you're comfortable with and what works best for your style. I used to shoot motorsports (CART Indycars back when those two words went together) professionally and always used Canons. The L series lenses worked the best for that particular type of work. A couple of years ago I decided to pick up the camera again and I shoot motorcycle races and trackdays semipro/hobby. I still had about 20K in Canon lenses so it was an easy choice. I use a 20D with a 400mm 2.8 L series and the pics are excellent, they have to be or I don't sell any. For messing around at the lake or out wheeling, a 300D usually with a 70-200mm 2.8 IS to get a clear shot of the subject with a good background blur (bokeh). Sounds complicated, and it can be, but once you start shooting more, you begin to see the differences in quality.

I'd say go with something you won't outgrow and can expand, a digital SLR. Any of the major brands will be fine, all are great quality. Tim, if you want to check out some of my equipment, let me know and I'll meet up with you sometime and you can try it out, take some pics out near Sycamore or something.