possible fogging from airport x-ray

[Nuff]

I also think you might find it that some rolls might be effected and others are not. Hope it all works out well, it's not like you can repeat the trip next weekend.

 

[Poisson Du Jour]

I did not know they were such a difference of X ray exposition between the carryon X ray machine and the checked baggage CT.
Damned, I have 30x 120 rolls I used in Antarctica and last summer in France to develop. They all went through the checked baggage CT

By the way, do the courier and USPS shipping go trough powerful CT too?
This would imply that any film & paper ordered from B&H, Freestyle... by non-US clients receive a bad dose of XRay?

All items destined for Australian ports controlled by Customs (Perth, Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne) will have inspection ranging from passive to active; passive being sniffer dogs that scan all packages on a conveyor. Active is any parcel going through xray (and all parcels do, it is a continuous process) that turns up something that requires a stop. It is then set aside. If it cannot be identified with standard xray procedure, it is elevated to a more penetrative contrast view. Manual interrogation of the parcel is next (including scrutiny of value), but this would be most unlikely for photographic materials which are clearly and correctly identified and valued as such, but everything still goes through inbound xray examination. This is why I would not be ordering photographic materials like film or paper from the USA.

 

[peteyj10]

I can't speak for other countries, but I actually work at the security checkpoint at O'Hare airport. As mentioned, NEVER put film in your checked bag. When you hand carry your film, even if it's 800 ISO or under, I still recommend getting it hand checked. It's really no big deal. If the officer tries to give you trouble because you want slower film hand checked (and he really shouldn't be giving you trouble for that), just say you pushed it to 1600. He won't know you're lying.

If you have sheet film, you may have to explain what it is for a hand check, especially if it's still in the film holder. Some officers know what it is right away, but because large format isn't all that common these days, many do not.

Now, if you have a roll of film in your camera that you want hand checked, finish shooting the roll, and pull it out. You won't always be granted a hand inspection for a camera because that's one of those things left to be interpreted by the supervisor. You may very well have to send that camera through the x-ray.

And DO NOT use lead lined bags. You're film will get to go for a second ride through the machine, guaranteed.

 

[wiltw]

If you have sheet film, you may have to explain what it is for a hand check, especially if it's still in the film holder. Some officers know what it is right away, but because large format isn't all that common these days, many do not.

I still recall when I travelled with medium format SLR and many rolls of exposed 120 film, and the security guy wanted me to break the outer seal on some of the exposed rolls and unroll them!!!

As for hand inspection, the guys at Heathrow must be deaf...they have never, never ever complied with any of my many requests for hand inspection of 'fast film' whether 135 or 120 format. 'Hand inspection' must look to their lip reading like 'thru the Xray', as I can find no other reason for the no-verbal reply to requests for hand inspection at Heathrow.

 

[37th Exposure]

Never ever put film in checked bags. It is guaranteed to get fried. In the US the TSA website also mentions this. It also mentions that film in carry ons IS safe. I've never had problems with all the hundreds of rolls I've put in my x rayed carry on luggage over the years. Popular Photography magazine did an article years ago. It took something like a few dozen passes through a carry on scanner before any noticeable fog showed up. Even "safe" x rays will fog your film, it's just how much you can accept. Common environmental radiation fogs your film while you're shooting it. The heat from your hands while reloading adds some more. I give up.

 

[TimFox]

I still recall when I travelled with medium format SLR and many rolls of exposed 120 film, and the security guy wanted me to break the outer seal on some of the exposed rolls and unroll them!!!

As for hand inspection, the guys at Heathrow must be deaf...they have never, never ever complied with any of my many requests for hand inspection of 'fast film' whether 135 or 120 format. 'Hand inspection' must look to their lip reading like 'thru the Xray', as I can find no other reason for the no-verbal reply to requests for hand inspection at Heathrow.

Unfortunately, only the USA has actual regulations that allow hand inspection of photographic materials. The FAA has a sign for this, which is often (but not always) posted at airports. I don't believe any of the EU nations allow this liberty. Also, the FAA explicitly warns that one should never put photographic materials in checked baggage. There is a large technical literature about the effect of carry-on scanners, but one should remember that the dose to the film is cumulative if you need to go through checked-baggage x-ray many times before development.

 

[skysh4rk]

Unfortunately, only the USA has actual regulations that allow hand inspection of photographic materials. The FAA has a sign for this, which is often (but not always) posted at airports. I don't believe any of the EU nations allow this liberty. Also, the FAA explicitly warns that one should never put photographic materials in checked baggage. There is a large technical literature about the effect of carry-on scanners, but one should remember that the dose to the film is cumulative if you need to go through checked-baggage x-ray many times before development.

I personally always put my film in a clear plastic bag and remove it from my carry on when going through the x-ray scanners. I figure that this prevents any problems should the inspectors decide they want to rescan or randomly search my bag for any reason.

When I did this in Beijing airport recently, the security personnel spotted my bag of film in the tray on the conveyor belt and immediately insisted on hand checking without even being asked.

I found southeast Asia to be very accommodating to film shooters. My bag went through 15-20 x-ray scans, but my film didn't go through any.

I don't even bother asking for hand checking in European airports, however.

 

[Athiril]

I personally always put my film in a clear plastic bag and remove it from my carry on when going through the x-ray scanners. I figure that this prevents any problems should the inspectors decide they want to rescan or randomly search my bag for any reason.

When I did this in Beijing airport recently, the security personnel spotted my bag of film in the tray on the conveyor belt and immediately insisted on hand checking without even being asked.

I found southeast Asia to be very accommodating to film shooters. My bag went through 15-20 x-ray scans, but my film didn't go through any.

I don't even bother asking for hand checking in European airports, however.

I went through Beijing in 2008 right before the Olympic games when security was tight and they were marching through an army of police. I asked for a hand check and still got it. I have more trouble in my home country (Australia) on trying to get hand checks. Though imo it's unnecessary. Just all film has to be carry on.

You should have put 1 roll through that many carry-on scans, it'd be interesting to see if that many scans have an effect.

 

[skysh4rk]

I went through Beijing in 2008 right before the Olympic games when security was tight and they were marching through an army of police. I asked for a hand check and still got it. I have more trouble in my home country (Australia) on trying to get hand checks. Though imo it's unnecessary. Just all film has to be carry on.

I agree that it's typically unnecessary. I ordinarily wouldn't even bother with hand checks—I've never had any fogging that I've been able to see—but I knew that I'd be going through far more scans than usual while in Asia, so I'd planned on asking a few times as I didn't want to risk it. I didn't realise that I'd be that successful!

You should have put 1 roll through that many carry-on scans, it'd be interesting to see if that many scans have an effect.

Hmmm... That would have been a very good idea. I might try to do something like that in the near future.

 

[amsp]

I tried to get my film hand checked when flying in Europe a couple of times, but have given up on that notion after being told repeatedly that my options are either to have them x-rayed or unrolled and exposed to light. Not much of an option, and the fact that I had ISO 3200 film made no difference to them.

 

[mexipike]

I tried to get my film hand checked when flying in Europe a couple of times, but have given up on that notion after being told repeatedly that my options are either to have them x-rayed or unrolled and exposed to light. Not much of an option, and the fact that I had ISO 3200 film made no difference to them.

How did the 3200 ISO film fare after the X-rays?