Maybe I'm not a camera snob
Neither am I, but I am a realist.
I suppose you think decent photos were non existent before all this pricey stuff came out?
I suppose that depends on what you call pricey, my friend. Even having a picture taking device in the "olden days" was quite elitist back then. And no, I am not so naiive to think that there was never a good picture taken before 2008. I've seen pictures from the 30's and 40's that took my breath away. Doesn't change a thing. Kit lenses today are not the equal of a more expensive lens.
Now, there are a few examples where cheap doesn't mean low quality. Look at the 50mm for either Nikon or Canon. However, if you think that a kit lens is the equal of something like a 70-200 F/2.8 or ANY lens of higher quality... thats where you are in for a rude awakening once you learn for yourself.
I am not knocking you or your setup, but there is a good reason why good glass is expensive. If there wasn't, no one would buy them. This is not "The Emperor's New Clothes"... there is a very evident and visual improvement.
The kit lens isn't that bad...
Early on, I thought that I had a problem with my lowly and very (locally) dissed Nikkor 18-200 VR lens. I sent it in and as a favor, they gave me that 18-55 kit lens. I used it for about 10 pictures, looked at the results and took it off my camera. Yes, it *is* that bad. If you have nothing to compare it to, of course you might think the results are ok. Put a GOOD lens on that same camera, and it is as if it was a totally other tool. Pics suddenly come out more vibrant, sharper and so much more clearer.
Can it take pictures? Sure, but the quality was so poor compared to what I was used to, that I would rather NOT take pictures for the 3 weeks that my lens was gone rather than use it to take ONE more picture with that lens.
Thats not being a snob, thats a FACT. I would rather NEVER take another picture in my life, if someone gave me a D3 for free with a kit lens on it with the stipulation that I could not use another lens... thats how bad it sucks in my eyes. Thats why I tell people who purchase new cameras NOT to purchase the kit lenses. You get what you pay for.
Whether or not you can afford it is something totally else... but don't think any kit lens will match up to a more expensive lens. Thats just digging your head in the sand to the obvious. This has nothing to do with you or me, how little you paid or how much more I may have paid... its an easily proven fact that has been proven countless times over by more than one person.