Upgrade to 7d? Accessories or new lens?

[Lor]

I've had a canon rebel Xti for 3 years now. I have a canon EFS 18-200mm lens and a canon EF 70-200mm 1:28 L IS/USM lens. I shoot mostly sports photography-outdoor lacrosse and soccer, indoors college swimming. I also enjoy travel photography, I'll be taking my camera on a trip to China next month. Finally, I've recently been shooting theater productions for local theater groups during their dress rehearsals...with very bad lighting. I'm a complete amateur, but I'm enthusiastic and want to learn and do more. I've been thinking about upgrading to a Canon 7d. Any suggestions? A 7d will stretch my budget, I can't go beyond that. How about accessories? Should I have a lens extender? If I get a 7d should I invest in a battery grip? I have one on my xti. I'm thinking about upgrading for speed. Often my xti slows me down as it "freezes" while processing (it says "busy" on the display), especially in bad light. I appreciate suggestions and advice. Thanks in advance.

 

[Overread]

Just a question but when you are shooting in bad light is the popup flash being used? An external flash would give you much more power and faster recharge than the popup on the camera.

In the end the choice is very much going to depend on what you feel is the bigger weakness in your setup; an 18-200mm lens isn't the optically best option out there and you could consider adding one or two more lenses into that focal range for travel to allow you a greater quality over those focal ranges instead of a new camera body

 

[dakkon76]

If you find you're not getting enough light with your 70-200 f/2.8, then you'll either need to add a flash, or increase your ISO. Since flash won't help you at the long end, you're left with increasing your ISO. I have and XSi, and I'm guessing your pics look about like mine if they're over 400 ISO - total crap. I don't even bother shooting 800 ISO because the pics are almost completely un-usable. I'm also saving for the 7d. In addition to better performance at high ISO, it's got a much better auto-focus than just about any other canon on the market - according to the multiple reviews I've read, and lots of video reviews I've seen of the camera in action.

If I were going on a once in a lifetime trip and I wasn't happy with my setup, I wouldn't blink at upgrading. Also consider what Overrated said about your 18-200 though too. You're going to want a wide angle in China, and I'd guess most of your shots there aren't going to be of action. That being said, maybe you should consider adding a 24-70 f/2.8 or the 24-105 f/4 with IS. That will compliment your 70-200 perfectly, and give you a lot more versatility on your trip. It solves some of your lighting problems with a wider aperture, but you're still stuck with crappy ISO performance on your XTi body, so you're going to need good light.