Camera ISO question

[ksphotography]

It seems like I shoot a lot of indoor/low lighting events lately. I love to rent cameras and lens before I purchase them. I shoot now with the Nikon D7000 and I find I really have to up my ISO at sporting events and receptions to get the speed I need. I was going to rent the Nikon 810. Is a high ISO always going to be super noisy or if I do upgrade do the higher ISOs really perform that much better in low lighting? I love sports photography and saving up for the 70-200 2.8 but don't want to waste money on a new camera if there isn't that much difference. Thanks in advance!

[Crystal Felton]

is the D7000 a crop?  there is quite a bit of difference in noise handing between lower end models and higher end models.  Check out the D750, it's really great for noise handling.

[Christina Keddie]

As this is a camera body question, not a post-processing one, I've moved it over to Ask Brian.

[Brian]

Keep saving up for that 70-200 f/2.8G VR II. 

YES, High ISO and sports go hand-in hand. Especially if you want to keep your shutter at 1/500th or faster. Football Games are tough. You think with the bright lights on the field, you could keep the ISO down. Well, think again.  I found that I live at ISO 3200 and want to be at 6400 (or more). The only other things that's tougher to shoot in my personal experience is an indoor basketball game.

Newer technology almost always trumps older tech. The D750 is a good choice, but since you are shooting sports, you might want to hold out for the new D500. The D7000 isn't that great at the high ISO range and it's not much better than my D300s.