i prefer to use fox farms ocean forest for all my grows, treats me and my ladies just right..
as far as what lighting to use, that really is up to you and what your expecting from a first grow.. i use hps lighting, a mixture of hps and metal halide, and its pretty much the best lighting that you can use to grow mj with.. some cheaper options are cfl bulbs, which work great for seedlings and mother plants, and work decent for flowering so long as you have enough lumens...