You can also get the Nikon D3000 or D5000, which come with a pretty good kit lens, but they're more expensive than the D40. If you like Canon, the Rebel is also a great camera for a pretty low cost. I would definitely stick with either Nikon or Canon, even though there are some great cameras made by other manufacturers.

The most important thing in my opinion is selecting good lenses. Ken Rockwell has a pretty good site covering both camera body and lens selection for the lowest cost. I agree with him on a lot of points, but not all. His site is: http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/recommended-cam...

I would check out Ken Rockwell's site to help narrow down your choices based on your needs, then check out http://www.dpreview.com/ for more detailed info. Then I would head to your local camera store to see how they feel in your hand, and how the controls operate for you. It's personal preference whether you go with Nikon or Canon, but you should stick with one or the other because as you add lenses, it can become expensive to switch brands.

For buying camera gear online, I would stick with either B&H Video Amazon. Be very careful dealing with any of the other camera dealers in New York. There are a lot of very unethical dealers out there. If a price sounds too good to be true, and is much less than B&H, you're probably going to get taken. You can never go wrong with B&H. Hope this helps.