Mitch:

Good choice! Nikon is a great camera.
I did the same thing..... to prepare for Roar 2, I got the Canon Xsi (the new Rebel). (and a couple of lenses!) Then I took it on CAVIAR & tried to learn it.
I took some great shots and some downright awful ones!
My take away: When your new baby arrives, play with it a lot. Make mistakes.make lots of them...your ROAR shots will be the better for it!

Hope to get some time together with you guys in Africa, Doug