Let’s Talk! – Torpedo Lights

Are you ready to switch off your screens and ponder or discuss another writing/conversation prompt from my friend Tyrean Martinson’s book ? Here’s my take on it.

This is one of those terms that teach me something: torpedo lights. No, torpedoes are obviously not lights on torpedoes – why would these underwater bombs need light to find their way, as they have no eyes?! My second thought was that, maybe, it was a brand, like Hella bulbs in Germany. It turns out that it describes their shape. It reminds of a torpedo. In some cases, the socket is at the slimmer end – that’s what they look like when in use for vehicles, such as fancy bikes or trucks. In some cases, the slimmer end is the actual light element, fit to decorate a candelabra. They come in all kinds of sizes and even in different colors, some with LEDs.

And then, there is another kind of torpedo light – the torpedo lights that photographers and filmers are working with. If you have ever been in a real photo studio, you will have seen these lights with their four black flaps. They are extremely bright and create an environment that can be filmed flawlessly. The colors will come over as naturally as you wish. There won’t be any underexposed areas.

My wild guess is that these are also the kinds of lights that are used to light up stages at concerts. At least, often they have those flaps, too. Any dark area will be bright as day, even if it is darkest midnight, when hit by the beam of a torpedo light.

Forensic police teams are on call at all times. If a crime scene contains a body, they will be there even at night to secure the facts by photography. High Color Rendering Index (CRI) lighting helps taking photos of all the details of the scene as one would see them by daylight. Usually, they are set on tri-pods for stability (many a forensic team have to work with lesser, handheld equipment), and light up the entire scene. Just like you see it in the movies – only, this is the real deal. Now, these are NOT torpedo lights. I’d consider them to be the bomb.

I have never even had as much as a torpedo light for my photography. A flashlight in the camera and maybe some ring light are all that I ever had. But I definitely had something similar to a torpedo light on my bicycle, more than most bicyclists have on their hard-to-be-seen, hard-to-be-heard vehicles these days. It came in handy when riding to school on early winter mornings or coming home back late. I saw, and I was seen. I never had a specific term for it, though. I can’t even remember the brand. To me, it was simply my bike light.