Most powerful on-camera electronic flash?

[BetterSense]

I have a speed graphic but not flashgun, and even if I did, I don't think I could afford to practice with flashbulbs. I suppose I could get a potato-masher style electronic flash that would fill-in for a flashgun. What's the most powerful battery-powered flash you can get?

[Lopaka]

Lumedyne can be built up to 2400 ws. Big, heavy and expensive, but reliable.

http://www.lumedyne.com/products/Kits.asp

Bob

[Lopaka]

Other high-end portable flash you can look at are Norman and Quantum.
Perhaps someone will have some ideas for getting close to the power without taking out a second mortgage.

[David A. Goldfarb]

Second-hand Norman portables are usually pretty affordable. The least expensive would be a 200B pack and LH-2 head, but the older batteries may need to be replaced, and it's kind of a heavy pack. The upgrade to new Delta V batteries and charger can be costly, and is worth it in my opinion, but replacements for the old style battery aren't too expensive.

This is a 200B pack hanging on my shoulder and an LH2 head with a tele-reflector and bulb spacer mounted on a Norman bracket. I'm using it as fill in full daylight--

http://www.echonyc.com/~goldfarb/photo/selfjb.jpg

I've since replaced it with a 200C pack, which is smaller and lighter, and I have an 202 AC pack that I use with a pair of these heads on a copy stand, and I've also got an LH-3b head, which uses less power, offers more control of power level, has a swivel head, and has fairly accurate non-ttl auto flash with the range of Norman reflectors.

The 200B & C packs are 200 W-s, and there is a 400B pack, same size as the 200B, which can output 400 W-s.

These were shot on 4x5" with a Norman 200C/LH-2 setup using a plain 5" reflector for a hard Weegee effect--

http://www.echonyc.com/~goldfarb/photo/halloween/index.htm

[BetterSense]

What does that LH-2 head look like, in the vicinity of the flash tube? I'm only familiar with simple shoe-mount flashes. I like the idea of using a dish reflector, flashbulb-style, but I couldn't think of a way to do so with the flashes my brain is familiar with. Apparently these style of flashes are something different.

[David A. Goldfarb]

The flash tube is like a spiral covered by a plastic bulb and it plugs into the head, and the reflector or diffuser has a cylindrical fitting that attaches around the tube. The head has a 1/4"-20 mount, like a regular tripod screw but deeper, and you can adapt that to a shoe if you need to.