After a 30 year lay off I took up cycling, again, in 2006. I bought Durace SPD-SL pedals and hated them. I had a hard time getting in or out of them. On hills the pedals would hang in a way that I needed to kick them with my foot to try and get in. I went down a few times with them and put a few new scratches in my bike and my arms. I sold them on eBay and bought Speedplay Light Action pedals and I haven't had a problem getting in or out of these pedals since. You don't need to look down, just step down and your are in. SPD-SL require that you hook the pedal with the front of your cleat and then step down.

I use Look cleats in my spin class and they are fine for a stationary bike but I prefer Speedplay for my road bike.