If he's concerned about the shot-to-shot time, i.e., the amount of time it takes for the "picture" to come back in the viewfinder (or display) after clicking the shutter, I don't think anything but a DSLR is going to give the results he's after. With a DSLR, you're literally looking through the lens the entire time and your view is only interrupted for a few milliseconds while the mirror flaps up and down. You can shoot continuously on the faster DSLRs while still getting a good representation of what you're shooting at, like in sports photography. I've owned some fast fully electronic and mirrorless (micro 4/3) cameras and none of them came close to the performance of a DSLR. They are great walk-around and travel cameras though, having nearly all the features and quality of a DSLR.
For SD cards, get at least a Class 6 for photos. If you're doing video too, spring for Class 10. And check the advertised transfer rate because Class doesn't always mean the same thing between manufacturers. I always buy Sandisk Extreme Class 10 with 45 MB/sec transfer rates.