Questions about the AB B800.

I would like to purchase 2 B800s, with my primary intention being for using them as strobes during basketball, as the gymnasium is horribly lit. My questions are:
Is this particular model good for freezing action?
If so, will 2 do the job?
And, most importantly, besides basketball, what could I use these for? I need another circumstance in which I would use them in order to justify purchasing them. Thank you for any and all input.

T&I or portrait shots. You can use them there.

bobbyz wrote in post #11447748
T&I or portrait shots. You can use them there.

And what the heck does "T&I" mean?

Do a search here on the forum for MT Stringer. Mike uses alienbee B1600's to good effect lighting a gym for b-ball games. His posts are very informative on the whole subject of not only shooting the games, but transporting the gear, setting up, etc.

Believe me, once you start shooting with strobes ( as opposed to available light, or to a lesser extent, a speedlite ), you open up a whole new world of creativity to your photography. You can have endless fun shooting "product" ( like small things you have around the house or shop ) and of course loads of fun taking portraits of your family and friends.
One fair warning however: it's addictive. So don't come back on here and make the statement, "I'm done buying lights and modifiers !" LOL....you will keep finding excuses to buy and shoot with different pieces and parts !

SkipD wrote in post #11449410
And what the heck does "T&I" mean?

Team & Individual -- what most all sports teams have done.

cokethenwpepsi wrote in post #11447560
I would like to purchase 2 B800s, with my primary intention being for using them as strobes during basketball, as the gymnasium is horribly lit.

With the AB's, you've got to worry about power cords, light stands (unless you are mounting them some other way). If using light stands, worrying about people tripping or pushing them over. Insurance is a must.

A better solution is to get a couple flashes and mount them with super clamps to the railings. Much safer and faster to setup/teardown.

Gatorboy wrote in post #11449718
Team & Individual -- what most all sports teams have done.

Thanks.

I typically don't follow or photograph team sports (other than automobile racing and most of that many years ago) and thus don't typically have contact with some of the terms used - especially the abbreviations.

Very true, all of that. See Mike's posts about how he deals with all that, because he has some good solutions, including having a tether attached to the light so it cannot fall to the floor. Agree on the insurance too.
I have seen, literally, at a horse show a guy that routinely has a B1600 up on a 13' stand, free standing where people walk thru the area, with not even sand bags on the base. That's crazy....there is no way I would do the setup the way he does it.

Gatorboy wrote in post #11449728
With the AB's, you've got to worry about power cords, light stands (unless you are mounting them some other way). If using light stands, worrying about people tripping or pushing them over. Insurance is a must.

absolutely.... I dont agree with flashes being a better solution but the first part is dead on...

OP, there is also this:

https://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthre​ad.php?t=814915

Great write up Dave, and very nice results as well.
To the OP, look closely at some of the photos there in Dave's post and you will see the safety tether he has in place. That is a critical ( IMO ) piece of the setup that I think is overlooked all too often.
All this stuff is just fine and dandy....but the bottom line is, safety has to be first and foremost.

canonnoob wrote in post #11450146
absolutely.... I dont agree with flashes being a better solution but the first part is dead on...

Yeah, I should have replaced "better solution" with "an alternative solution."