The Term "Bulb"???????

[Sandspur]

Andrew, are you sure about that? I always thought Bulb referred to the use of a flash bulb.

You know ... you open the shutter, the bulb flashes (but it takes time for the filament to burn completely, so you want to hold the shutter open for the duration).

I well remember the smell of burning flashbulbs. (And, no, I'm not kidding! It's a very fond memory I have of the years when I was a kid and would help my dad - who used a lot of flashbulbs.

I used to always enjoy waiting for the bulb to cool (especially the ones that had the blue plastic film over them) so that I could sit a peel the plastic off.

 

[Helen B]

The meaning that Andrew gave for 'bulb' is the one I believe to be true. The use of the term 'bulb' in reference to a shutter predates the invention of the flashbulb.

Edit after re-reading Andrew's explanation: Early shutters (famously the Packard shutter) were pneumatic - air pressure opened the shutter via a pneumatic piston. There was no timing mechanism and no other way of operating the shutter. Later shutters, with timing mechanisms, kept the term 'bulb' for similar operation (ie press something and hold it to keep the shutter open).

Best,
Helen

 

[Sandspur]

Helen,
Thanks for the clarification. i knew some early shutters were pneumatic, just never put it together that way.

 

[Socrates]

Andrew, are you sure about that? I always thought Bulb referred to the use of a flash bulb.

You know ... you open the shutter, the bulb flashes (but it takes time for the filament to burn completely, so you want to hold the shutter open for the duration).

I well remember the smell of burning flashbulbs. (And, no, I'm not kidding! It's a very fond memory I have of the years when I was a kid and would help my dad - who used a lot of flashbulbs.

I used to always enjoy waiting for the bulb to cool (especially the ones that had the blue plastic film over them) so that I could sit a peel the plastic off.

You've described the timing for M-class bulbs but SLRs worked better with FP bulbs. An FP bulb was long-burning with a reasonable flat response. The bulb starts burning and then the shutter opens and closes and finally the bulb finishes burning. That concept is mimicked by some of today's cameras and flash heads (e.g., D80 with SB600/800).