What I Use..What I Want

Before I go knee deep into this post let me start with a little disclaimer. Everything I am about to say is simply from my own experience and from the little knowledge I have gained through reading lots of blogs and posts about photography. This is merely my opinion and I will leave it at that.
I have had many people ask me what camera I use or what lens I use. As much as I would love to say I have a Canon 5D Mark II, I don't. My first DSLR I purchased in late April. It is a Canon Rebel T1i. It has served me good. I will probably use this camera for a while. I would highly recommend it for someone who is getting into photography buy doesn't have the money to get a $2000 or more camera. The T1i runs around $800-$900. Of course the camera came with the stock lens, but I rarely use it. I know it's a 18-55mm but that's all I know about it. It is an okay lens, but if you want to bump up your photo quality you need a better lens. I have rented a few different ones to see what I like. I was really happy with the Canon 50mm 1.4 and will be purchasing it the next time I buy a lens. I like the clarity and bokeh it gave me. I tried out the Canon 24-70mm 2.8 and liked it okay, but I think I got a bad lens. It kept back focusing on me and drove me nuts. Then, I found out about the Tamron 28-75mm 2.8 and have really grown to love it. True, it isn't a Canon brand but for the price you can't beat it. It is very comparable to the Canon 24-70mm 2.8 but is lighter and WAY cheaper. If I had $1200 to spend on a lens right now I might get the Canon one but I am just as happy if not happier with the Tamron for a fraction of the cost. The last 4 or 5 photo shoots I have done with the Tamron lens and I think it worked well. I have yet to try an 85mm or larger lens. For now, I am happy with what I have.
I will talk about editing in another post. There is just so much to go into about that. For those of you that are wondering...yes, I still use Picnik. No, I don't have any versions of photoshop at all. I am happy with my editing and for now will continue to use Picnik.
If anyone has any specific questions for me about photography please ask away. I will try to address each question in a future post. I hope this helps some of you with your questions. Have a great weekend, I am off to do another photo shoot this evening. Wish me luck that the weather holds out!!