For me, the greatest pleasure is in making my own cross or selecting several seedlings (often a flask) of a cross I feel has quality award potential (AOS,CSA), and then growing the plants to bloom. Buying a large specimen plant is not only expensive but I get no thrill in what someone else has done. Besides, I have no idea of how or what media it is potted in or how long it as been in the pot it is in.
I have been fortunate to have almost 30 years of successful award growing and I still get excited to see a first bloom seedling open, especially if it is hybrid I have made!
Do your homework, take Sue's and others' excellent advice and join a local orchid club, take in some shows, talk to the growers, and visit the AOS judging website in your area and see what plants are being awarded and for what. Find a genera that you can grow well and make your first award a Cultural, whether ribbon or AOS. Local growers can tell you what plants of what genera tend to make great specimen plants under your conditions and start with a few small ones. This way you will learn to be a good grower and will learn about the genera that will perform the best for you.
Good Luck
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