Flying with film

[roteague]

Today, the machine just turns up the juice until it sees into the lead bag.

I believe they only turn up the gain on the machine, not the power. The power level is fixed.

 

[Markauf]

I was going to keep the 2-3 rolls of 3200 on my person and let the film go with the camera bag on the belt. But after additional thought, it really won't be that hard to put the film in a plastic bag and keep it with me and request a hand inspection. Do they require you to open the foil wrappers (120)?
Joe[/QUOTE]

Occasionally they will tear open the 120 foil pack just to check as security isn't usually as familiar with 120 as they are with 35mm.

I wouldn't depend too much on lead bags anymore either as I've seen security remove film from the bags of others and run them back through the machine.

Hand checks can be pretty interesting too. Once in Warsaw, srcurity brought in a 200 lb German Shepherd to do a "nose" check on my bag of film.

Mark

 

[joeyk49]

Hand checks can be pretty interesting too. Once in Warsaw, srcurity brought in a 200 lb German Shepherd to do a "nose" check on my bag of film.

Mark

200 lbs. !!! That's a BIG dog!!!

I don't have any problems with inspection; dogs or not.

My 35mm canisters are pretty hokey looking, with lots of making tape and marker. I just like to keep the 12o in their foil wrappers until they're used.

Thanks all.

 

[Jim Chinn]

A couple of years ago I made 4 quick round trips between Omaha and Chicago and Dallas. I kept a roll of TMY in my carry on the whole time. After the 4th trip (8 passes through carry on x-ray machine) the film was fine.

 

[pentaxuser]

FWIW I took 3200 to the Isle of Man for the TT races. No problems. Unless U.K. x ray machines are different from the U.S. then I'd assume no problem there either.

Pentaxuser

I went to bed and woke up this morning with a nagging thought. Occasionally we take the car by seacat to the Isle of Man instead of flying. Racking my brains, I now think that the 3200 was transported in the car by ship. So no x ray machines involved.

So apologies. I suspect that my 3200 was never subjected to x rays. Sorry about that.

pentaxuser

 

[ChrisW]

Realizing this thread should be dead, I will venture another entry. Last spring I experienced the TSA method of cutting open my 120 Tech Pan foil wrappers to make sure it was film. I protested very politely, and they seemed empathetic. I wrongly stated that the introduction of air would accelerate the demise of an already doomed film. Regardless of whether the film could have endured the carry on x-rays, the agent said they were required to open anything they couldn't see. I asked very nicely "what if you just exposed my film? How do you handle sheet film?" The look I got was one of child-like confusion. Further inquiries to the TSA manager resulted in similar confusion. Upon my return, I consulted the TSA website. Again, no reference to opening film. Removal from the cannister, yes. A phone call to TSA resulted in a circular conversation of comical proportions. Twenty minutes of multiple consultations with the supervisor produced nothing.

This will no doubt generate responses noting my missing the obvious: ISO25 film is completely safe for carry on x-ray. Really? I don't care. I don't want to take chances. Am I supposed to trust the TSA's knowledge on highly complex x-ray specifications and operation? These are the same people who detained Catherine Stevens, the wife of Alaska Senator Ted Stevens. Why? Because Catherine can be shortened to Cat. And the notorious flake singer Cat Stevens is on the no fly list. Ergo my logic.

I digress.

 

[kwmullet]

Hopefully, Jeremy will chime in on this. He took lots of hard-to-find film (I believe 3x4) with him to Japan and it all got fogged before he even exposed it, so he had to lean on his DSLR to ensure that he got some useable images, since he'd be back in the US before he could find out how bad the damage was.

I've become a big fan of shipping film to my destination. That only helps, though, if you've got a friendly face waiting for you on the other end of your trip.

Does anyone (at least in the US) have any experience with using the postal service's general delivery service? Let's say I'm going to San Diego and don't know anyone there, so could I just ship my film to my name c/o general delivery, at some zip code in San Diego, then go to the post office, produce ID and pick up the package?

Oh -- maybe the USPS irradiates the mail even more than airports irradiate luggage these days.

Thoughts on whether general delivery is a good tool for getting film to the other end of a trip safely?

-KwM-

 

[Dave Parker]

Hey Kw,

I have shipped film via USPS with never a hint of problems, if your going to ship to a destination in a particular city it is always best to contact the main postal office in that city and find out what their policies on shipping to a general delivery address, it seems to vary by city and city size for some reason, general delivery seems to be very popular in smaller towns and cities, but I have heard that sometimes the post master of a certain city may not be pleased with the system and can make it difficult to use.

When shipping film, I always lable as un-exposed film, and again have never had a problem with fogging and such.

Dave

 

[roteague]

Hopefully, Jeremy will chime in on this. He took lots of hard-to-find film (I believe 3x4) with him to Japan and it all got fogged before he even exposed it, so he had to lean on his DSLR to ensure that he got some useable images, since he'd be back in the US before he could find out how bad the damage was.

I've become a big fan of shipping film to my destination. That only helps, though, if you've got a friendly face waiting for you on the other end of your trip.

If Jeremy had problems with fogged film, I suspect it wasn't caused by the airports, but something else. I've made a lot of international trips, and never had any fogged film. My last trip, my film went through the airport security x-rays 8 times, with no ill effects.

 

[kwmullet]

If Jeremy had problems with fogged film, I suspect it wasn't caused by the airports, but something else. I've made a lot of international trips, and never had any fogged film. My last trip, my film went through the airport security x-rays 8 times, with no ill effects.

Could be, and bear in mind this is a second-hand story from me, but at one of his security stops, a security person took particular interest in his bag with the boxes of film in it, and stopped the bag inside the xray machine and kept running it back and forth to see something in lots of detail. As I recall, all of jeremy's fogging starts at a common edge of each sheet and gets gradually less toward the opposite edge.

-KwM-

 

[df cardwell]

I guess every time roteague says he has never had problems with XRAYs I should be sure to say I HAVE and let reasonable people decide what to do.

As for opening the bloody foils to let the guards see what you've got, why not ? What does it hurt ? Not the film ! As for winding up a security guard, that REALLY helps photographers, doesn't it ?

Buy a bunch of nice plastic things from J&C, take your film out of it's wrappers and play nice. This is how we did it in the old days, and it really doesn't hurt.

My routine is to pack my naked films in a nice fat freezer bag ( with an enclosed business card, flight info, etc, instructions where to send the films if I'm seperated from them ) and have them in my hand with a smile. I say "Good Morning, I'm a professional photographer, this is all professional film: please inspect it by hand. Thank you." Amazing how well that works.

I also go through security in a lull. That helps a lot.

On the plane, I pack the film into it's little plastic containers.
.

 

[Dave Parker]

I have always found the nicer you are to the security guards the nicer they are to you and perhaps the next photographer behind you, the people at security counters and lines have a tough job now a days, being rude or mean to them will never make them be nice to you, and it does vary by airport and take into mind every once in a while, your going to run into the gorilla that just does not want to be nice and will throw his or her position around...it happens..I know when I fly, I take every precaution to make sure the inspection of my film is easy for them..

 

[roteague]

I take my 35mm film out of the boxes and place the canisters into small plastic bags, then put it back into my camera bag. I leave my sheet film, mostly QuickLoad, although some cut fim as well, in the camera bag. I don't bother with asking for hand inspection. I've flown to Australia (7 times), New Zealand (2 times), England, Germany, Jordan, California (4 times) in the past 7 years, all with no fogging problems. In fact, the only problem I have ever had was when I asked for hand inspection - a security guard in Melbourne (Australia) decided he needed to see into my cut sheet film box, if I wasn't going to put it through the x-ray.

 

[df cardwell]

When TMZ came out, I ended up with a bunch of it in plain yellow boxes on the way to airport. This was some years ago, and had no trouble with hand inspections on the way. After shooting a good deal of it, and sweating bullets on a connector from Prague to _ _ _ , I had to beg the _ _ _ inspector to look at the film himself. I had a few phrases in his language, and did my very best, so he switched to english and he explained in a kindly way that his machine was absolutely safe for film up to 800 !

I unwrapped a fresh box ( his curiosity was piqued by a plain yellow box with numbers ) and I showed him the film, and a chatty enclosed sheet for journalists who were trying this stuff out. He said, "You know, I am a member of the _ _ _ camera club, and we haven't heard anything about this ! ". I gave him 6 rolls to share with his club and he was the second happiest man in the airport.

Another era, yes. But nice always counts double. And having as much time as possible. I've hyperventalated a few times ON the plane, but thats fine.

 

[Helen B]

I've flown between 50,000 and 125,000 miles a year for the past six years, and I can't be bothered with hand inspections (except for inspecting the nice TSA person's hands before she pats me down, of course) for still film. I tried a roll of Fuji Natura 1600 through the scanner a while ago, and have carried that ever since without any problems. My camera bag often goes through twice, so that they can have a good look. I only take film out of the boxes if I am short of space.

Hand inspection of canned movie film is a problem, but that's another story.

Best,
Helen

 

[gr82bart]

Like Helen, I fly a lot - at least once a week somewhere. I always take my Hassey and a few rolls of film - all carry on. No probs.

Regards, Art.

 

[df cardwell]

I hope I'm the last photographer to have film killed.

 

[joeyk49]

Easy going...

Well the report is:

The TSA was just fine...I strolled into Newark Liberty just shy of 2 hrs before my flight time. Checked in and ID'd myself at Security. Everything went into the gray wash tub that they hand you (save, of course, for my dozen rolls of film in a zip lock bag). I smile at the somewhat harried looking female TSA agent behind the metal detector and held up my plastic bag. I nicely asked for a hand inspection and she replied, "Sure, no problem."

She handed the bag off to another TSA agent while I collected my carry on stuff and put my shoes on. I met her at the explosives screening instrument, where she swabbed my cannisters, two at a time, and analyzed them. Didn't open the foil on my 120 stuff and she was even friendlier than the other agent; what gives?

She finsihed, hands me my film, smiled and said, "Have a nice flight."

"Okay", I thought, "something HAS to go wrong..."

Well it did...but it had nothing to do with the flight or the TSA...

I burned through my first roll of Delta 400. The camera switched to rewind mode and promptly stopped! I know all to well what the flashing "help" message on the lcd screen meant...the tape securing the film to the spool let go and my exposed film is sitting quite patiently all rolled up at the wrong end of the camera!

Do you think I could find one photographer with a darkroom or a changing bag in all of Lake Lure or Hensersonville, NC??..Nooooo! So into the camera bag it goes there to wait till my arrival home.

The TSA agents in Greenville were everybit as friendly and courteous as those in Newark and easily accomodated my request. The gentleman checking my film in South Carolina started a conversation about photography and his DigiRebel purchase. He said that he came to the realization that auto-digi stuff is nice but it doesn't substitute for learning the basics. I suggested a photo course and that he try film photography to get the "basics". He nodded his head and said, "Ya know, yer probably right. Ya'll have a good flight and come back and see us."

Now before someone jumps all over me for relying on hand loaded film, let me just say that:

A) I'm cheap.
B) This wasn't a paying job or special vacation/trip. Photo ops were when and where possible in between other business.
C) I'm cheap.
D) It doesn't happen that often (2x).

"Souping" the 1 roll tonight...

 

[AeisLugh]

I flew domestic (USA) recently and asked the security to hand inspect it. They were very nice about it as long as you have the film ready in a bag for inspection. They did ask me to take them out of the little boxes. The funny thing is that most of the film I brought was bulk loaded in plastic cannisters. It would have been so easy to smuggle drugs in those cannisters because they can't open them. I wouldn't recommend doing that if you're flying overseas; you may end up in a Midnight Express-type situation.
Ara

Myself, I was thinking more along the lines of explosives. What with the huge concern about terrorism after 9/11, I'm wondering why nobody has thought of this before. Not that I know anything about demolitions, but I would think that it wouldn't be to hard to pack a film can with enough high grade explosives to do some damage inside a plane. even worse if you carry the "film" in bulk.

 

[joeyk49]

Myself, I was thinking more along the lines of explosives. What with the huge concern about terrorism after 9/11, I'm wondering why nobody has thought of this before. Not that I know anything about demolitions, but I would think that it wouldn't be to hard to pack a film can with enough high grade explosives to do some damage inside a plane. even worse if you carry the "film" in bulk.

.....She handed the bag off to another TSA agent while I collected my carry on stuff and put my shoes on. I met her at the explosives screening instrument, where she swabbed my cannisters, two at a time, and analyzed them.

 

[AeisLugh]

.....She handed the bag off to another TSA agent while I collected my carry on stuff and put my shoes on. I met her at the explosives screening instrument, where she swabbed my cannisters, two at a time, and analyzed them.

lol, ok, serves me right for skimming.

 

[Dave Parker]

Joey,

If that ever happens again, it has happened to me on self loads, a coat a darkend room and three larger rubber bands serve as a small changing bag really nicely, rubber bands around the sleeves and the neck, zip up the zipper, put the camera in the coat, pull it tight to your torso and open and remove the film and place in a light tight canister...it has saved me more than once, just make sure your coat is a lined coat and not a wind breaker..

Dave

 

[joeyk49]

That's a great idea! I'll definitely remember that; thanks.

 

[dxphoto]

What about postal services.

I am thinking, if you mail your film to the places you are going to stay in advance, is it going to be ok? Do you guys think the mail will be x-ray'ed if you mail it domestically and internationally. Anyone has tried this???

Post office can stamp the package saying 'do not x-ray'. I remember film from JandC they have that stamp on their packages. Film/paper I bought from freestyle and b&H packed normally. I've never had a problem. Of cause the highese speed I have bought from them was 400.

Also some places in NY (like the mesuems) also x-ray your bag . I asked from hand inspection but they ignored me. Those were bulk loaded tri-x film in those used cassettes I got from the local labs. I pushed tri-x to 1600 due to the low lighting.. they came out alright.

 

[roteague]

I am thinking, if you mail your film to the places you are going to stay in advance, is it going to be ok? Do you guys think the mail will be x-ray'ed if you mail it domestically and internationally. Anyone has tried this???

Someday this paranoia over x-raying film has to end, it is really getting old.

Like Helen B, I am not going be bothered with hand inspections, and mailing film is also no big deal - since there are no processing labs for E6 where I live, I have to send my film, via good, old USPS Priority Mail to the mainland. The same goes just for buying film, I buy all my film from the mainland.

Once again, this paranoia over x-raying film has to end, it is really getting old.