What is your budget? That will more or less dictate manufacturer(s) and then that will limit your selection of styles and possibly finishes, particularly if you want levers.

Black is not a particularly classic finish, for metal knobs or levers it is relatively recent, but brushed nickel has been used more or less continually (especially in commercial buildings) since right after WWII.

That’s what I was thinking… black is a current trend. No budget as these will hopefully be the last doors and fixtures that we would replace :) However, I don’t need gold plated;)

I like Emtek or Baldwin. Baldwin Estate would give you the most flexibility because you can lever, backplate and finish all separately. It's pricey. You would get the same quality at a lower pricepoint with fewer options in the Reserve line.