.

Some snippets from the D50 conclusion:

"Unlike Canon when they produced the EOS 300D (Digital Rebel) Nikon chose not to cripple their affordable digital SLR. Instead the D50 while lacking some of the D70's features doesn't compromise performance or photographic flexibility, most important for first time buyers who (surely) the manufacturers hope will progress to a more expensive D-SLR later."

&

"The nicest thing about the D50 however is that it just feels right, build wise it's a step above the Canon EOS 350D and Pentax *ist DS, it's also not too small, I'm all for making cameras lighter but there's a limit as to how small you can make an SLR before the hand grip feels cramped and controls begin to get in the way. The D50 feels as responsive as any film camera and is a pleasure to shoot with. The only change I would make would probably be a larger viewfinder view (like that of the Pentax *ist DS).

I'm quite happy to give the D50 our highest rating, Highly Recommended, there's little to dislike and for anyone looking for an affordable digital SLR it has to be seriously considered. My only advice would be to research lenses and decide if you want to go with the Kit or spend a little more on a slightly better lens."

The following links will give you a guidline as to price and say a little something about lenses.

Nikon D50

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/nikond50/

Nikon D70s (Just some info not a full review)
http://www.dpreview.com/news/0504/05042003nikond70s.asp

And not to be completly biased.
The site also reviews the 350D that someone else has mentioned.

350D
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canoneos350d/

From the conclusion:

"when we reviewed the EOS 300D we were disappointed that they had chosen to effectively cripple it by 'coding out' certain features such as metering mode, AF mode, flash exposure compensation, flash sync curtain, mirror lock-up etc. These features were removed in software and it wasn't long before hackers began to restore them in the form of unofficial firmware updates. Thus we should remember that quite a few of the 'new features' available on this camera are there just because they've not been removed.

We did have some control issues too, I was surprised to see settings such as ISO, metering, AF mode and white balance moved from the status LCD to the LCD monitor (which means you have to be able to see it to make changes) and with the requirement of an extra press of the SET button to make changes stick. Lets hope a firmware update can take care of that. We were also disappointed with the 'new' Kit lens, it effectively cripples the potential of the 350D with softness and ghosting at small apertures, do yourself a favour and go for the body only option along with a good lens (the EF-S 17-85 mm IS is good but expensive)."

Though remember the choice of DSLR is also that of personal choice so try and give whichever cameras you are considering a trial run. Also remember not only does the Body (camera) make a difference but also the choice of lens.

Good luck in your choice.

PS

As I am sure you are aware the Cybershots & Powershots are not DSLRs.

PPS

The KODAK P850 is also not a DSLR.
People he asked about DSLR's not any old digital camera.

Love you softbox for your speedlight. Is there also something like that for the Nikon’s speedlight SB900 that you know?

Thanks in advance.

Cheers, andré from Holland

I also agree with the recommendations above. The Olympus E Series cameras are quite good. You may want to get the larger cameras like the E510 or E500, and stay away from the E410. This is because when you attach heavier lens to the camera body it will be unbalanced if you choose a smaller lighter body. You should also look into the Nikon D80 or the Canon 30D. They are also very nice cameras, and they look professional, which means your clients will trust you to take their pictures.

When choosing a lens, don't skimp on the quality. For instance, if you are going with Olympus I recommend the 14-54mm F2.8-3.5 lens which retails for about $400. This lens is one of the best quality to price lens available. You need to get lens which have a large maximum aperture because you will mostly be shooting indoors. Also a large aperture will give you good blurring of background for portraits. You should also buy at least one prime lens. A prime lens gets you sharper images and normally have a large maximum aperture like F2.8. Consider getting the 50mm F2.0 lens which is great as your main portrait lens.

There are also "accessories" (more like fundamental gear) that you need to consider like a tripod, flash units, spare batteries (at least two extra for backup purposes), another camera body (again for backup if the first one fails), portable lighting units, a laptop (for mobile work), etc.. It's going to be costly all the equipment you need to purchase but that's the startup recommendations you need to look at.

Anyway, here is a link:

http://www.rokkorfiles.com/Wedding101-page1.html

Also http://www.photo.net, look for the beginners section in the wedding and event forum.

If you decide to do it, be sure to get backup equipment of some sort. Cameras do fail, so you need to be able to continue shooting. I have given many tips to first time shooters, just look at some of my past answers and you will find my sage advice repeated many times. Good luck.