Going through airport security, what to do?

[aram535]

Well I have been all over the place, and usually I bring one camera body (XTi) with a lens with me onto the flight through security. I very carefully stash another lens, batteries, etc in my check-in.

This was before I got serious and went out and bought a couple of Ls and am now looking at a 5D, possibly a IIIs. Now do I really want to walk through airport security with $10k of camera/lens around my neck? Someone could walk off with the thing as it goes through the scanner/it could fall out on the other side.

What does everyone else do? Do you hang it around your neck? Use your camera bag (which will add up to more than $10k) as your carry on?

[cdifoto]

It's called insurance.

[TheHoff]

Insure it.

Put it in a good bag.

Go through security.

Repeat. That is it. I just got back and had that much in a Domke F-804. Pro equipment is made to go around the world and I would never put anything in a checked bag.

[scotteisenphotography]

insurance and i keep the stuff in a bag and my bigger lenses in their hard cases...no one will run away with it through the security machine. being inside an airport is one of the safest places to be.

[cdifoto]

being inside an airport is one of the safest places to be.
Yeah it's once you get on the plane that you have to worry. :D

[scotteisenphotography]

Yeah it's once you get on the plane that you have to worry. :D

indeed, i am also terrified of flying. but hell ive flown 4 times in the last 4 days.

[sidx001]

Whenever I go through security at the airport, I have a set routine that I go through no matter what. I always have two carryons: my computer bag and my camera bag. The laptop comes out of the computer bag and placed in a bin with my shoes on top. I place my camera bag in another bin and place it behind the laptop bin, then I put my computer bag down behind the first two bins on the conveyor belt. I then stand there and wait until my computer bag has entered the X-Ray machine. Then I'll move forward and walk through the metal detector. If for some reason I am pulled to the side for an "extra special" check, I politely tell the TSA person that I have two bins with very expensive equipment in it that need to be watched while I am being probed! As long as I am polite during the whole process, I have never had any problem with my equipment during a security check in. Hope this helps!

[sidx001]

Sorry, I thought Insurance was a given fact! :D

[cdifoto]

Flying doesn't bother me. It's the crashing and/or exploding part I'm not too fond of.

[scotteisenphotography]

Flying doesn't bother me. It's the crashing and/or exploding part I'm not too fond of.

Well that too!

[cdifoto]

The upside is I wouldn't have to file a claim and eat the deductible. The downside is I bought insurance for nothing.

[Hermeto]

I have two rails, couple of steel plates and a dozen of screws in my neck, so I beep all over the place anyway.. ;)

[cdifoto]

I have two rails, couple of steel plates and a dozen of screws in my neck, so I beep all over the place anyway.. ;)
You really ought to look into padding for your headboard. Yeesh!

[Hermeto]

I spent all my professional life being a ‘hardware guy’.
That expression just got another meaning for me, I guess.. ;)

[pendulum15]

Flying doesn't bother me. It's the crashing and/or exploding part I'm not too fond of.

Yeah, might break an L or two... :)

[Wilt]

Put the stuff in a bag. If you have multiple bags, put that in the middle of your multiple bags, certainly not as the last one...and wait for that item to be within the machine and not backed out for rescan of a bag in front of it. Some theives have been known to take things like laptops that have not yet entered the machine while the owner is already walking thru the metal detector!

[Palladium]

Most thefts happen at the security scan points - watch your valuables

[vkalia]

Flying doesn't bother me. It's the crashing and/or exploding part I'm not too fond of.

As they say, it isnt the fall that kills you. It is the sudden stop at the end.

[hckyguy14]

Great thread, I'm going to Europe soon, so this information is very helpfull.

The X-Ray machines don't harm the camera do they?

[Jon]

Nope.

[Zansho]

Great thread, I'm going to Europe soon, so this information is very helpfull.

The X-Ray machines don't harm the camera do they?

Nah, they don't bother the cameras. If you're shooting film (hey, some people still do!) I'd still have the airport folks hand check your film.

As for me, my gear is always under my watchful eye. I'm also insured, in the even something DOES happen.

[HoRnYTuRbO]

i just got back from a trip to Asia and not one time did they take any of my camera stuff out of the bag, traveled with one body and 3 lenses and a laptop in my tarmac adv 9. this was my carry-on bag

[nicksan]

I flew earlier this year with my gear and laptop and at no time did I feel fear for me gear. I took the laptop out, left everything else in and put it through the scanner. Unless there's a dude inside the scanning machine going through luggage, I wouldn't be too concerned about it.:D


Oh yeah...insure your gear!

[John_B]

aram535,
I just recently flew to Hawaii (Big Island and Maui) from NY with my 40D, 5D, 100-400L, 28-105, 100 macro, 17-40L, 10-22, 1.4tc, 580ex and my tripod, batteries etc..........

I just jammed it all in my Nova5 bag (except my 5D with 17-40L and tripod) and had no problems at all with the 4 different airplanes they were on :)

Took great photos too :)

[Keegan]

Spend a few hours and read everything on my favourite blog! :D
http://flyingwithfish.blogspot.com/
I fly lots every year and it's great to see him promoting smart flying for photographers.

[bildeb0rg]

A recent trip from Newcastle to Amsterdam was fun.
EVERYTHING in the bag was removed and stripped. Lens, flash, batteries, CF/sd cards, the lot.
They kept the AA flash batteries, as "a hazzard".
Still, flight was on time.

[Wilt]

A recent trip from Newcastle to Amsterdam was fun.
EVERYTHING in the bag was removed and stripped. Lens, flash, batteries, CF/sd cards, the lot.
They kept the AA flash batteries, as "a hazzard".
Still, flight was on time.

Gee, you would think that the Dutch, who are so relaxed about things like prostitution and marijuana, would not be so very uptight about AA batteries?! Or was that the Brits who were being Victorian?

[primoz]

Don't be that paranoid :) I regularly fly with way more then $10k of equipment, and I have never been even thinking about someone would walk off with my equipment on the other side of xray. I normally put stuff in backpack and put it to xray machine. Of course it never happened yet, that I wouldn't need to open it on the other side, but you are there already. And on top of that, you are really close xray machines all the time, with bunch of officials around, so if you keep your eye just a bit on your bag, you should just shout if someone would want to walk off with your bag, and problem would be solved. I guess noone is stupid enough to grab your bag and try to steal it infront of 20 cops.
PS: No I don't hang my equipment around my neck unless it's really really necessary... and on airports when traveling, it's not :)

[bildeb0rg]

Gee, you would think that the Dutch, who are so relaxed about things like prostitution and marijuana, would not be so very uptight about AA batteries?! Or was that the Brits who were being Victorian?

How did you guess? ;)
The Dutch didn't even question why I was only in Amsterdam for 11 hours, merely asked if I had a good day.

[nw85887]

what about loose batteries, etc?

Don't we have to tape over the contacts or something goofy like that in US airports?

[DigitalSpecialist]

I travel from St.Louis to New York City almost monthly. I carry two carry ons. My camera bag is a Kata which has my body with lense attached, and maybe one extra lense. Plus flash, ext rings if needed. Ipod and cell phone. The computer compartment has recent magazines inside for reading. My other bag is an essentials kit if I carry two bags!

[DigitalSpecialist]

Never check your camera equipement! Never EVER!!!! Had a fellow Photog from this area that checked her kit, and put camera equipment on the outside of the case. Her kit arrived, minus most of its contents! I will only carry my gear with me from then on!

[pendulum15]

Never check your camera equipement! Never EVER!!!! Had a fellow Photog from this area that checked her kit, and put camera equipment on the outside of the case. Her kit arrived, minus most of its contents! I will only carry my gear with me from then on!

+1, have you looked at what those luggage people do!, I would not want that happening to my gear, even in a super hard case

[Roy Mathers]

What on earth makes you think that someone will lift your gear after it has gone through the x-ray? Aren't you with it all the time (or very near)? That's just paranoia.

[pendulum15]

What on earth makes you think that someone will lift your gear after it has gone through the x-ray? Aren't you with it all the time (or very near)? That's just paranoia.

In us uk aus etc... it is quite unlikely with the overparanoid security there, but in other countries it is a problem.

[Roy Mathers]

In us uk aus etc... it is quite unlikely with the overparanoid security there, but in other countries it is a problem.
In every country that I've flown from and to, you actually walk virtually alongside the stuff on the conveyor belt, so I can't see that it's a problem.

[hastur]

There have been a few cases of people finding their valuables gone after being delayed by the metal detectors. In at least one case the TSA screener was seen on video tape taking the valuables and putting them in his bag. Traveler beware.

Rob

[qtaran111]

In every country that I've flown from and to, you actually walk virtually alongside the stuff on the conveyor belt, so I can't see that it's a problem.

You obviously don't watch enough of those CCTV real-life footage shows on TV. ;) There was one on recently about thefts from airport security line checks. Here's how they do it:

Two guys work the queue as a team. They spot someone (the mark) in the queue whose stuff they want to steal (big bag, laptop etc).

One of them gets ahead in the queue and the other gets in front of the mark. The one in the lead goes through the walk-through xray thing no problem and stands next to the conveyor (pretending to wait for bags, which he doesn't have).

The one in the front of the mark has something in his pocket which he knows will set off the alarm (coins, keys, whatever). He then times his walk-through perfectly; he waits until the mark has put his bag on the conveyor behind, then walks through. The alarm goes off and he gets asked to be searched which he willingly does. This holds up the queue and the poor mark has to wait in line whilst his bag goes through the xray machine and is collected by the awaiting accomplice.

I was absolutely amazed that people would have the balls (stupidity) to do this in the one place where there is more security and guns than any place on the planet.

[Roy Mathers]

My answer to that is that my wife always goes through security well in advance of me and watches the bags!:D

[Longwatcher]

My usual procedure is to have my stuff in a LowePro Mini-trekker backpack. My expensive stuff doesn't go through until I do, I send shoes, jacket and if I have a second carry-on with overnight stuff, that all goes first, then I send my expensive stuff through. If at the larger airports I will wait until the person in front of me clears the detector before sending through. And I watch my stuff as much as possible still to make sure it doesn't walk off, a lowepro backpack that weighs in around 20lbs is rather easy to follow, and since about half the time it gets tagged for visual check that fairly well insures it doesn't go anywhere as the TSA are not supposed to touch the bag until they have identified the person who it belongs to. If I see ANYONE grab it, I go "hey!" followed if necessary, by "STOP, Thief!!!"

And as to airplanes themselves remember;
Landings are always mandatory, it is takeoffs that are optional.

[Quad]

When traveling alone I let my stuff go into the machine and then I get myself through the metal detector. I don't talk to people. I have had a quite a few times where people want to chat with me at this point for some reason. I flat out totally ignore them and get my stuff back in order. You know get dressed again and repack the bags the security people opened. So just keep an eye on your stuff and try to keep it organized. It would be very easy for a bag to walk away at this point in many airports. People do take things accidentally as well but camera bags usually look differently from the bag they got at costco so that is not as big a problem. My bags will usually have a clip on badge or patch or something that makes it easy to spot from a distance. The security people are not there to take care of your stuff.

On a recent trip I left a jacket on the plane and another passenger lifted it. I found her in the immigration line and relieved her of it. The immigration folks had their eye on me but didn't say anything to me. So if something happens try to figure out where the folks that might have taken it would go at that point (it is nice if you already know this as in you have some clue as where you are going to go next) and get there and be assertive but not belligerent.

[happybee]

Invest your money in Airport AirStream;http://www.thinktankphoto.com.

[yogestee]

Buy yourself an el-cheapo non camera bag at the airport to tote your new gear around in..You can even scuff this bag up a tad so it doesn't look new..Take a couple of shirts out of your check in luggage as padding for your new gear.. Carry it on as cabin luggage..

Just keep an eye on it as its going through the scanner..

[yogestee]

In every country that I've flown from and to, you actually walk virtually alongside the stuff on the conveyor belt, so I can't see that it's a problem.

Bingo Roy..IMHO people are becoming too paranoid..

I've been flying in and out of SE Asia from Australia since 2004 without any hint of problems.. I carry most of my camera gear on as cabin luggage including my laptop.. I often pack my heavier lenses etc well padded into my check in luggage..

[FlyingPhotog]

Flying doesn't bother me. It's the crashing and/or exploding part I'm not too fond of.

Funny how perceptions work...

Most professional pilots will tell you (off the record) that flying is great except for the passengers and schedule part...

:lol:

[FlyingPhotog]

You obviously don't watch enough of those CCTV real-life footage shows on TV. ;) There was one on recently about thefts from airport security line checks. Here's how they do it:

Two guys work the queue as a team. They spot someone (the mark) in the queue whose stuff they want to steal (big bag, laptop etc).

One of them gets ahead in the queue and the other gets in front of the mark. The one in the lead goes through the walk-through xray thing no problem and stands next to the conveyor (pretending to wait for bags, which he doesn't have).

The one in the front of the mark has something in his pocket which he knows will set off the alarm (coins, keys, whatever). He then times his walk-through perfectly; he waits until the mark has put his bag on the conveyor behind, then walks through. The alarm goes off and he gets asked to be searched which he willingly does. This holds up the queue and the poor mark has to wait in line whilst his bag goes through the xray machine and is collected by the awaiting accomplice.

I was absolutely amazed that people would have the balls (stupidity) to do this in the one place where there is more security and guns than any place on the planet.

Which is why I never put my bags through the XRay until it's MY turn to go through the metal detector. I've physically restrained the TSA (IOW, not let go...) from putting my stuff through before it was my turn.

Also, I always put my shoes through first and my empty laptop bag through last so my laptop and camera bag are bookended.

I fly (US Domestic) twice a week for 35-45 weekends a year and have never had an issue.

[pendulum15]

Funny how perceptions work...

Most professional pilots will tell you (off the record) that flying is great except for the passengers and schedule part...

:lol:

Or that it is great except for the sitting up there getting bored on long hauls part :)

Or that Airbus is clearly better (i agree) because they can actually eat properly :)

[FlyingPhotog]

Or that it is great except for the sitting up there getting bored on long hauls part :)

Or that Airbus is clearly better (i agree) because they can actually eat properly :)

Nice of Airbus' engineering to include snack trays, eh? ;)

[fishfoto]

For tips on how to get through airport security quickly, easily and safely, I was recently featured on ABC News' Good Morning America detailing the simplest way to deal with airport security, while also protecting yourself from the likely hood of being the target of a thief.

You can watch the segment on Good Morning America here:
http://www.youtube.com/v/8Gm7UZa6FkY


You can also read some of my tips for getting through airport security on my blog for flying photogs, Flying With Fish (http://www.flyingwithfish.com), here:
http://flyingwithfish.blogspot.com/2008/05/airport-security-screening-system-get.html

[FlyingPhotog]

The Fish is Wise .. The Fish is Good

Be the Fish... ;)

[fishfoto]

Flying,

You wanna be 'The Fish' for me this week?

I have a 6:00am flight out of JFK tomorrow (wed) AM for a commercial shoot in DC; a 7:20am flight out of DC Thurs AM for Charlotte for a quick meeting; afternoon flight out of Charlotte on Thurs for San Francisco for a wedding in San Francisco on Friday; a 10:35pm flight out of San Francisco on Friday that lands in Philly at 7:00am on Saturday for a wedding Saturday in Philly starting at Noon to Midnight and a 5:30am Amtrak back to New York to pick up my car on Sunday morning for the 2+hr drive home from New York.............PLEASE be the Fish this week:0)

Tomorrow, checking one bag to DC, then DHL will bring it safely home so the rest of my journey will be done in a North Face Surge backpack and a Think Tank Skin kit



(note to self, schedule in a shower)

[FlyingPhotog]

Flying,

You wanna be 'The Fish' for me this week?

I have a 6:00am flight out of JFK tomorrow (wed) AM for a commercial shoot in DC; a 7:20am flight out of DC Thurs AM for Charlotte for a quick meeting; afternoon flight out of Charlotte on Thurs for San Francisco for a wedding in San Francisco on Friday; a 10:35pm flight out of San Francisco on Friday that lands in Philly at 7:00am on Saturday for a wedding Saturday in Philly starting at Noon to Midnight and a 5:30am Amtrak back to New York to pick up my car on Sunday morning for the 2+hr drive home from New York.............PLEASE be the Fish this week:0)

Tomorrow, checking one bag to DC, then DHL will bring it safely home so the rest of my journey will be done in a North Face Surge backpack and a Think Tank Skin kit



(note to self, schedule in a shower)

Hell that ain't nothin...

I've been living out of one suitcase and (only) a Slingshot 300AW for three weeks now (over half my gear is in the cabinet at home...my wife swears she can hear it whimpering...)

PHX to SFO to PHX (20 Hr Pitstop at home) to CLT to MHT to CLT to DAB to ATL to PHX (for a day) to ORD to PHX and then, FREEDOM!!! :lol:

I bow to your frequency but I'll raise you my weekly duration!! And to think I used to do all 40 weeks of the NASCAR tour.

Travel Safe. I know I don't have to tell you but the airlines are getting really, well, weird these days. I have a sneaking suspicion that by this time next year, we're gonna be down a major carrier or two.

But, while traveling, we get to see things like this:
http://www.pbase.com/flyingphotog/image/99560618/original.jpg

[Analog6]

When my partner and I travel together, I send him through first and he watches the camera and laptop as they come thorugh while I am being 'scanned'. If you have a travel companion this is pretty foolproof. I take a hard aluminium case (it fits in the cabin luggage guidelines) and have never had a problem.

[fishfoto]

I bow to your frequency but I'll raise you my weekly duration!! And to think I used to do all 40 weeks of the NASCAR tour.


After a year of typically doing this every week
PVD-ATL-SFO-LAS-CVG-PVD (in 28hrs)
PVD-ATL-SFO-LAS-CVG-PVD (in 28hrs)
PVD-ATL-SFO-LAS-CVG-PVD (in 28hrs)
(yes I know I typed the same thing 3 times)

or in other terms, 5,856 air miles every other day, each week while shooting, or some variation that was always over 12,000 miles, but usually under 21,000 miles each week for a year I decided I didn't feel like doing it any more. On more than one occasion I ended up scheduling myself to shoot in 3 time-zones in a single day and catch the red-eye home to hang out with my kids the next day......then I'd wake up and do it all over again.

This routine was done with a roughly 70lbs Think Tank Airport Addicted backpack on my back (there was no roller version in 2005) and a fully loaded mobile location studio kit that weighed in at 48lbs in a Pro Roller II to shoot high profile images for the magazine I was working with as the Dir of Photo.

My back was done, my creative energy was completely wiped away from me and I decided I liked my kids more than staring at the back of a blue leather seat every other day and chatting with the very friendly ladies at the SFO Delta Crown Room :lol:

[FlyingPhotog]

After a year of typically doing this every week
PVD-ATL-SFO-LAS-CVG-PVD (in 28hrs)
PVD-ATL-SFO-LAS-CVG-PVD (in 28hrs)
PVD-ATL-SFO-LAS-CVG-PVD (in 28hrs)
(yes I know I typed the same thing 3 times)

or in other terms, 5,856 air miles every other day, each week while shooting, or some variation that was always over 12,000 miles, but usually under 21,000 miles each week for a year I decided I didn't feel like doing it any more.

This routine was done with a roughly 70lbs Think Tank Airport Addicted backpack on my back (there was no roller version in 2005) and a fully loaded mobile location studio kit that weighed in at 48lbs in a Pro Roller II.

My back was done, my creative energy was completely wiped away from me and I decided I liked my kids more than staring at the back of a blue leather seat every other day and chatting with the very friendly ladies at the SFO Delta Crown Room :lol:

I hear you...

I'm very ready to cut up my Frequent Flyer cards and just stay home...

(I hearby acknowledge that Fish is "Da Man" when it comes to boaring holes in the sky...)

Your travel tips are definately worth while. You ought to be your own sticky (and write a book..which you probably have already done...)

[NZDoug]

If its a job you can Puralator or UPS.

[fishfoto]

Your travel tips are definately worth while. You ought to be your own sticky (and write a book..which you probably have already done...)

I have a 1.5 year old who makes enough stickies (where the heck would I put the sticky?My desk?)

......and ask me about the book again in about 10 days............or drop me a PM

[Hogster86]

POTN delivers again! I wanted to find some info about taking camera gear onto a plane as hand-luggage and this thread popped up!

Thanks all :)


David

[gkuenning]

For those of you who think nobody's gonna steal stuff at a checkpoint: it came out in the news in the last couple of days that tens of thousands of laptops go missing in U.S. airports every year. A major fraction of those are stolen at checkpoints. (Surprised me too; I knew about the two-guy scam but thought it was a thing of the past.)

I agree with the advice of not putting stuff through the machine until the detector is clear (the post-2001 security systems make it much easier to keep line cutters out of the picture), preceding and following the "good stuff" with the shoes and coats that nobody wants to steal, and keeping a sharp eye if you're detained.

Two other bits of advice: I avoid being detained by removing ALL metal from my body. I keep an empty Ziploc in my carryon for that purpose. Usually I fill it up with my pocket contents and watch while I'm in the cab to the airport. The belt comes off too, so that when I go through security the only metal on my body is the rivets in my jeans and the frames in my glasses. Then I walk through the detector very slowly (older ones were speed-sensitive, though I don't know about the new ones). I haven't beeped in many years.

My other bit of advice is that my camera bag is locked. Sometimes they want to look inside, but dammit, they're not opening it until I'm present and watching. You don't need the fancy TSA locks, since you're right there, so they have little choice except to politely ask you to open it.

Oh, and as to batteries: some rechargeable types are prone to fire, so you can't check them in luggage unless they're removed from your equipment, but I believe that there' s no need to tape contacts. Carryon is fine; I think they figure you'll notice the smoke. :-) And those Brits who confiscated AA's? Figures; remember these are the folks who wouldn't let you even bring a paperback book for a while. I've resolved to avoid ever departing the UK on an aircraft again, or at least until they develop a better sense of proportion.

[fishfoto]

For details on exactly how many airport thieves operate, and how to protect yourself check out the following links on Flying With Fish. The information I have not only comes from spending quite a while observing in airports,but also speaking with law enforcement and most importantly.......actually seeking out and speaking with people who make their living working as airport thieves.

03/03/08 - Theft At Airport Security Check Points - Don't Be A Victim!
http://flyingwithfish.blogspot.com/2008/03/theft-at-airport-security-check-points.html

06/04/2008 - Protect Your Bags & Property With Two Simple Items
http://flyingwithfish.blogspot.com/2008/04/protect-your-bags-property-with-two.html


11/04/2008 - Protect Yourself From In-Flight Theft
http://flyingwithfish.blogspot.com/2008/04/protect-yourself-from-in-flight-theft.html

6/05/2008 - Protecting Your Bags In The Airports 101 – Part 1
http://flyingwithfish.blogspot.com/2008/05/protecting-your-bags-in-airports-101.html

7/05/2008 - Protecting Your Bags In The Airports 101 – Part 2
http://flyingwithfish.blogspot.com/2008/05/protecting-your-bags-in-airports-101_07.html

21/05/2008 - Airport Security Screening System : Get Through Security With Ease & Safety
http://flyingwithfish.blogspot.com/2008/05/airport-security-screening-system-get.html

2/07/2008 - Anatomy Of An Airport Security Checkpoint
http://flyingwithfish.blogspot.com/2008/07/anatomy-of-airport-security-checkpoint.html



..........these links should get any traveler started on planning out their time in an airport, or train station, and how to best protect their equipment.

Happy Flying!

[WaltA]

Fish, you provide lots of good info on your blogs and you've helped a lot of people.

As someone who works for airlines and airports (security systems, baggage systems etc)and has done it for 20+ years I have 2 things to add:

1 - Common Sense tips as handed out by seasoned travellers like Fish are MUST READ.

2 - Every airport and every airline and every country is different and has different technology and different rules. Be prepared for what you thought to be true to be false.

For example, on trip to Beijing in January, I was told to remove all locks from both my carryon and my check baggage. ????