For some gear is of the utmost importance. While I don't claim to feel the same way, I will say that I love my gear. I can't say as to why I chose what I chose for any reason other than I like how it felt in my hands. So for those of you who are eager to know what I use, here is my gear list (hover over each item and click to be directed to a page where you can get my gear):

Nikon D300
Nikkor 18-200mm Lens
Sekonic Litemaster Pro L-478D
SanDisk Compact Flash cards
Manfrotto 190XV tripod (I have not been able to find this tripod in production anywhere, though I highly recommend any Manfrotto brand tripod)
Manfrotto 222 joystick tripod head
Vivitar VIV-RC-200 remote shutter release
Kelly Moore "Mimi" camera bag