I have the Canon Digital Rebel XT (D350). I've been extremely pleased with it and really love the camera. This was my first pro-quality SLR...stepping up from a 3mp point-n-shoot. So, I can speak first hand about the learning curve.
The manual that comes with it is pretty good and the packaged software was better than I expected...pretty decent.
What worked for me is a "graduated" learning scale. I started out with the basics and take a few shots then look at them on the computer. I'd step up to the next section in the manual and repeat. The great thing is that learning is cheap...no film!
Fortunately with the DR, you can start taking pictures right out of the box with the automatic setting in jpeg format. Of course, it also helps if you know a couple of experienced photographers. If not, then there is alot of info on the internet...and I'd also check out the local camera store and there are even community college classes.
As for the DR, I saved $100 by getting it without the kit lens (body only). I used the $100 towards getting a Canon 17-40mm "L" lens. I have to extend some thanks to Mike Hollingshead for his great webpage detailing the difference in quality between the "L" lens and the kit lens. I can't find that on his site though. But, it certainly sold me on getting the better quality lens. HOWEVER....I'll also add that the kit lens will still do a good job. So, don't sweat it if you don't want to fork over the extra $600 or so.
I strongly recommend getting a good haze filter and leave it on all the time....even with lightning shots. It serves an additional important function of protecting the lens..something to think about considering how expensive they are. I'm always getting the filter dirty and cleaning it too, so if I screw up and scratch it, it's alot easier and cheaper to replace than the lens.
In addition to filters, by all means get a circular polarizer. It's excellent for sunny days or filming clouds or storm structures in bright conditions. I get better detail in the cloud elements as well as bringing out the blue skies much better. It's the same as putting on a good pair of sunshades.
Stay away from the cheap stuff. I personally use Hoya "Super Quality" filters which are towards the high end, but not outrageously priced.
Other than that, if you are using it for stormchasing, get at least 1gb of card memory. You can burn through 1gb of images pretty quickly on an active chase day and shooting in RAW mode. Myself, I've got 3 1gb cards. However, if you only want to shoot mainly jpeg, a 1gb card will hold LOTS of photos. One more thing...get an extra battery! Nothing like having a battery go dead in the middle of a tornado.
That's a pretty good shopping list. LOL!! But, you can add as you go along. Like I said, you can start taking great photos right out of the box with a very small learning curve. Then you can proceed at your own pace.
To see some of the shots I'm getting, check out:
http://texastailchaser.com/2005blog and
http://stevemillergalleries.com
