Canon 18 200 Is
Canon 50D package that is better? please advise.?

I have a difficult decision to make. with a limited budget, is Canon 50D + Speedlite 580EX body 18-200 lens flash better or 50D body + £ 700 / £ 800 lenses better? both cost me around £ 1300. thanks

Right. The 18-200mm lens is not better, and is an EF-S lens, so when bullets range of more than a full sensor lens. However, the EX 580 is an animal. Meanwhile, you could get a lens L or similar. I have the 17-40mm F4L, and I can attest to how good the lens is a good level of zoom for the crop sensor 50D. The Sigma 24-70 f2.8 level is also a good option zoom or the Canon 24-105mm F4L. Finally it is worth considering other lens is the Sigma 18-50mm f2.8 EX DC, but this is also a sensor lens crop. This is a step above their standard lenses, and are definitely more sharp if used well. The team will get really depends on what you do. The 17-40mm lens is a good landscape, and a decent ride, but it is useful as an 24-70mm or 24-105mm (zoom covers a very wide range, comparable to the 18-200, but much better quality). I like wide lens (17-40 or similar) but that's because I like to do landscapes. But then again good lighting is very important too, so the EX 580 is also useful, but useless landscapes.