So you’ve decided you want to take the next step and upgrade to some nice studio strobes to take your photography to the next level. There are some great options out there: Profoto, Broncolor, etc.
Wait, what do you mean you don’t have $4000 for a pack and two heads?
Enter Paul C. Buff’s line of Alien Bee flashes, which have long enjoyed cult status among enthusiasts and professionals alike for their insane price-to-performance ratio. Their mid-level offering is the B800 which at a price point of $279.95 delivers a max 320 watt/seconds of light. That is fully sufficient for most basic product shots or indoor portraits. Note: These can only be bought straight from the manufacturer.