My personal bias is toward Pentax for the following reasons. My first digital camera was a Canon point'n shoot which performed well for me, but when I decided to purchase a DSLR I chose to go with Pentax as I already had a 35mm Pentax SLR and a number of lenses for that camera. At that time Pentax was the only make that would accept older lenses on their DSLR's and I had always liked the performance of their equipment. I have found the Pentax DSLR's (I now own two) to be easier to use than a similar Nikon I have borrowed from a friend and not being a professional, that was important to me. I think you will find that the Pentax cameras have a significant price advantage while maintaining excellent build quality over other brands. You will also save money when purchasing lenses for this brand as the shake reduction feature is built into the camera body rather than the lens.