The greatest name in camera(s) & lenses for 3/4 of a century is .. LEICA !!

things to consider when buying a camera

- budget
- type of camera DSLR or Point and Shoot
- LCD size ease of use
- type of batteries that used
- if your going for manual (DSLR or SLR type of camera) or an (Point and Shot, Prosumer Camera's) automatic settings
- Lenses if they have one specially the DSLR types
- other accessories ex. tri-pods, carrying bags, camera battery charger.
- storage how fast it can transfer images from camera to your computer or laptop
- filters (very important)
- external flash depends if the camera has the option to mount an external flash
- another is the shutter counts (this one involves around 2nd hand DSLR camera) and ISO level the lower the ISO the better and the lower the shutter counts much better

Hope this helps you out

i agree with Majiek that photography is a skill and that your camera is merely a tool to showcase your talent. it does not matter what kind of camera you have, because in the end, your skills will be the one that matters the most.

If you're not really a PRO, a point and shoot camera will be fine, say Canon or Sony digicams. For an DSLR I prefer the Nikon D60.