In My Camera Bag

Go To Equipment:
Nikon D700
Nikon D300
14-24mm f/2.8G
50mm f/1.4G
70-200mm f/2.8
60mm f/2.8 Macro
SB-900 AF Speedlight Flash
SB-80DX Speedlight Flash (x2)
Pocket Wizards (x2)
Various Strobes & Modifiers

I have other lenses of various brands and focal lengths that are used as back up resources when working photography jobs. However the ones listed above are my general use, go to lenses.



Editing:
Lightroom 3
Photoshop CS5
Mac
Jesh Actions

Bags:
Think Tank Airport Security Bag
Shoot Sac



Q & A

I'm just getting into photography, what camera would be good for a beginner?
Canon or Nikon?

When it comes to Canon or Nikon, you really can't go wrong either way. I shoot Nikon, but feel there are benefits to both brands. When someone asks me what camera they should buy, it's kind of like asking someone "what kind of car should I buy?" There are so many variables and with personal preferences thrown in, buying a camera is really a unique decision every photographer has to make for themselves. The difficult part of that is, you really won't know what you need/want until you have a little experience and knowledge under your belt.

So where do you start? If you're interested in pursuing photography as a serious hobby or possibly a career in the future, I suggest starting off with an entry level dSLR such as a Nikon D5000 or Canon Rebel series. Generally these are not camera bodies that a working professional photographer would use, however they are a great beginner camera that you can learn on without investing an arm and a leg right off the bat. A great lens to start with for either Nikon or Canon would be a 50mm 1.4. It's a great standard, all around lens that will work in many different situations. (One thing to remember is that you can not use Nikon lenses on a Canon body and vice versa. However there are 3rd party brands such as Sigma, that offer budget friendly lenses that are compatible with Nikon and Canon bodies.)

My advice:

* Photography is an expensive hobby and extremely expensive business.
Pace yourself when making purchases and don't bury yourself in debt getting the latest and greatest gadget just because it's available. Take advantage of renting lenses or camera bodies to test them before you commit to purchasing. Once you catch "the bug" for photography, it won't be long before you have a LONG wish list of equipment that you want.
(That said, if you ever shoot a wedding for someone, always, always, always, have back up equipment even if you have to rent or borrow it. The wedding will go on whether your equipment is working or not.)

* Learn your current equipment inside and out and master it, once you've mastered it, if it still doesn't meet your needs, then it's time to upgrade. When you are ready to make investments in equipment, do invest in quality.
Especially lenses. You will benefit more from a quality lens than a high end body.

* Do yourself a major favor: Learn to shoot in manual mode! I can not overstate how much your images and work will benefit from understanding how to create a proper exposure manually. Shooting in manual will bring consistency and creative control to your images.

A wonderful book that I recommend as a place to get started learning to shoot in manual mode and understanding the benefits of different types of lenses:
Understanding Exposure: How to Shoot Great Photographs with a Film or Digital Camera by Bryan Peterson

Happy Shooting!