flash-bulb

A photographer changes the flash-bulb on his camera.

Definition

1. Noun:
   • Photographic light source: A "flash-bulb" is a glass bulb containing a filament or combustible material that produces a brief, intense flash of light, used in photography to illuminate a scene momentarily.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • The photographer attached a new flash-bulb to the camera before taking the portrait. (A glass bulb used for bright, brief illumination during a photo.)
  • Old-fashioned flash-bulbs were replaced by electronic flash units in modern cameras. (An earlier technology for photographic lighting.)

Advanced Usage

• "Flash-bulb photography": The technique or practice of using flash-bulbs to take pictures.
  • Flash-bulb photography was common in the mid-20th century before the advent of LEDs. (The use of glass bulbs to produce light for photos.)

Variants and Related Words

• Flash-bulb (also spelled flashbulb): The same word without a hyphen; both forms are correct.
  • He used a single flashbulb for the entire shoot. (A single glass bulb for lighting.)
• Flash (n): a sudden brief burst of light.
  • The flash of the bulb startled the subject. (The brief light burst.)

Synonyms

• Photoflash: a device that produces a flash of light for photography.
• Strobe: a device that produces rapid, repeated flashes (though often electronic, not glass).
• Flash lamp: a general term for any lamp that produces a flash, including flash-bulbs.

Related Idioms

• Flash in the pan: a sudden success that does not last (not directly related to the bulb, but shares the word "flash").
  • His fame was a flash in the pan, fading quickly after the award. (A brief, fleeting success.)

Phrasal Verbs

• None directly associated with "flash-bulb" as a noun; however, the verb flash can be used:
  • Flash (something): to emit or cause to emit a brief light.

    • The camera flashed, and the bulb lit up. (The bulb emitted a sudden light.)