how about picture quality. which would affect picture quality more? a better body or a better lens?
how important is picture quality?
are you a billboard poster printer? unless you are using the first generation dslr, or are a night cat, chances are picture quality at low iso is really quite consistent, i personally do not think there is much improvement. maybe more megapixels but that's all.
both affect picture quality in different ways; but pictures are produced by people, and people have different demands, and different sets of skills. for me, i will consider whether LENS or CAMERA BODY is limiting me in any way.
if either are stopping me for doing something i want to do, i get either. if both are contributors, i get both. of course the something i want to do isn't some silly project like shooting xmm in a dark room at night. i make sure it is something long-term, something that justifies the purchase.
if neither are doing that, and i am actually being bored and indulging in some purchase daydreaming, i realise that i can put the money to better use, knock myself on the head, and go out and shoot more.
photogrpahy is about shooting pictures, not investments. the utility derived from getting the pictures you want, pictures you can love, pictures you can be proud of because of their value to you, the statements they seem to make and communicate your viewpoint to the world.. the experience involved in shooting it.. not simply just because it's pretty. and that utility cannot be measured, cannot be given a price. i know i've made my investment in photography (as meagre as it may be up to now) more than worth my while a thousandfold over.
focus on the pictures you want to have, the
photographs, the act of
photography. there is a reason why a photographer is called a photographer, not a cameraman, not a cathayphotoman, not a lensman, not a drycabinetman. if you have to ask people what lens to get, which camera body to buy, one or the other to purchase, it suggests (although this may not be true) that you are just looking for a joy purchase. in that case, just buy both and buy a dry cabinet to go with it too. the more the merrier.