I've said it before, but real respect flows the other way. If you look like you know what you're doing out there, people are more likely to think there's something special/good about what you're using, than they are to really be impressed by the marketing backwash of 'Pros use this camera.' Whereas of course, 'pros' often choose things out of business concerns, even if they'd personally rather be shooting something else.
Real pros know better than to be impressed by someone calling themself a 'pro,' anyway, never mind having the same brand name, especially if they're looking at someone standing around looking bewildered by an expensive rig.
People always seem to think my old Lumix FZ-7 is some kind of fancy pro camera, even if you could get em at Wal-mart and the workings are no different from many other such things. (Does look pretty sharp, mind you, but all other things being equal, I like a nice lens hood.
)
There's always been a certain status symbol factor to a lot of things, (back in the 80's, shooting Canon FD basically was seen as meaning, 'You must not be good enough to afford Nikon, or smart enough to know better,' )
But if someone has poor stance or just doesn't act like they know what they're about, no amount of brand prestige can cover that.