I own four twelve gauge shotguns, my favorite animals to hunt, after bowhunting elk of course, is birds. I love to hunt waterfoul and upland game. Anyway the 12 gauge shotguns I own are as follows.
Winchester 1300 black shadow 3"
Benelli Nova 3 1/2"
Browning Gold 3 1/2
Remington 1100 3"
If you are on a budget my favorite less expensive shotgun is the Win. 1300, I have had no problems with mine. Windriver is correct in his statement. The only thing it lacks is the 3 1/2" capacity, but with heavy-shot you really don't need it (3 1/2") for waterfouling. I like the Nova, but I have had problems with it, shells not ejecting out of the magazine tube. The Remington, its from the mid 70's my late grandpa's shotgun, a ok gun but todays autos are much better. And I realy love my Browning Gold auto, again no problems, but you are looking at $800-$1000 depending on what features you want. Thanks and I hope this helps let us know what you decide!