A whiz-bang flash gun was announced by Kodak for the 1952 market
Toronto. Post WW2, photography literally blossomed with new ideas. Flash bulbs became the rage for solving lighting problem allowing for snaps at night or indoors. Soon all cameras came wth flash synchronized shutters. Many included the soon to be ubiquitous flash gun – mostly connected to the side of the camera, or slid into the accessory shoe.
Some makers determined that the greatest need to ‘improve’ the flash gun was to solve the weak or old battery issue; allow off-camera capability; and provide a multi-flash capability. Kodak was no different. It came up with solutions for each in this one marvellous flash gun!
Many makers (including Kodak) solved the weak/old battery situation by switching to a higher voltage, lower current battery plus a suitably sized capacitor (condenser). The so called B-C flash guns simply took longer to charge as the battery weakened from use, making it possible to use the flash long after the battery’s terminal voltage faltered.
In practice, the battery ‘charged’ the capacitor which in turn ‘triggered’ the flash once a tiny pilot light indicated the capacitor was ‘fully charged’ and the shutter was released.
A cord between camera and flash gun allowed off camera use while other cords allowed multiple flash guns (and bulbs) to be used.
The advent of cheap electronic flash units within a decade spelled the end of flash bulbs – except for special occasions – like Polaroid consumer cameras, and inexpensive small cameras (their initial cost was much cheaper with flash bulbs – and infrequent use). Before a second decade passed, flash guns and flash bulbs all but disappeared from the consumer market when the built-in electronic flash era began.
A tip of the hat to my good friend and fellow PHSC member, George Dunbar, for discovering this January 1952 ad and sharing it with us.
