Air Travel

[Sharkman]

Anybody got any advice on the best way to transport a full digital SLR outfit (2 bodies, 4 lenses, 2 flash, etc) when travelling by air?

I have a top notch backpack that carries all the gear but with everything in it, it is far too heavy to take as hand luggage. I will get away with one body and two lenses as hand luggage, but what about the rest? Is it ok to put camera gear into the cargo hold of an aircraft and if so what is the best case to use. I assume it will be a hard case something like the Pelican range?

Also I remember a thread a while back about taking compact flash cards/ micro drives through airport x-rays, did we every get a definitive answer if it was safe to take them through (ie, taking them through did not corrupt images stored on them)?

Thanks in advance for any help or advice you can offer.
Sharkman

[canonut]

I haven't had any problems putting checked gear in Pelican cases, and all my CF cards travel in carry-on. I request hand-checks always to avoid the scan. Your backup device should be find in either.

[Ken Fong]

Michael Reichmann has some pretty good tips at Luminous Landscape:

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/essays/photo-travel.shtml

[robertwgross]

canonut wrote:
I haven't had any problems putting checked gear in Pelican cases, and all my CF cards travel in carry-on. I request hand-checks always to avoid the scan. Your backup device should be find in either.

I requested a hand check of some photo stuff, and the security people agreed to a quick one. Once they finished, they stuck the photo stuff through the x-ray machine!

---Bob Gross---

[Jorge]

I have carried my camera and CF-cards as hand-luggage and had it checked in x-ray machines several times without any problems (Images were still intact on the CF-cards).

As for proper transportation of gear I don't know, but I do know that I would never check in sensitive and expensive gear as normal luggage that takes more than a fair beating on its way to and from the airplane. Also it could be lost, stolen or end up somewhere else. Carry it onboard by yourself and find a way to store it in the cabin.

[dlhammer]

The carry-on x-ray machine won't hurt magnetic media as x-rays are a wave length of light. However, the metal detectors you walk through are giant electromagnets. Don't leave a mini-drive in your pocket when you walk through!

I'm on about 150 to 200 flights a year and my D-60 and all the stuff goes with me as carry-on and through the machine. Last year I had my camera bag opened a total of once with me standing there guarding my stuff. A concern I have now with any checked baggage is, at least in the US, they are asking that they not be locked for security checks. I don't know, but hose heavy-duty x-ray machines may also have a strong magnetic field from the power supplies to the tube.

I guess if I had a bunch of gear, I'd break it up into two bags and carry them on. I can visualize some TSA guy with my lenses in their hands trying to figure out what they were!!

[robertwgross]

dlhammer wrote:
The carry-on x-ray machine won't hurt magnetic media as x-rays are a wave length of light. However, the metal detectors you walk through are giant electromagnets. Don't leave a mini-drive in your pocket when you walk through!

I'm on about 150 to 200 flights a year and my D-60 and all the stuff goes with me as carry-on and through the machine. Last year I had my camera bag opened a total of once with me standing there guarding my stuff. A concern I have now with any checked baggage is, at least in the US, they are asking that they not be locked for security checks. I don't know, but hose heavy-duty x-ray machines may also have a strong magnetic field from the power supplies to the tube.

I guess if I had a bunch of gear, I'd break it up into two bags and carry them on. I can visualize some TSA guy with my lenses in their hands trying to figure out what they were!!

Don, let me add something here. The metal detector doorways use the principle of a magnetometer, which is not exactly like a giant electromagnet, as you suggested. It generates a very weak EM field, not a stong one. If it generated a strong one, your metal belt buckle would go flying off!

The carry-on bag detector does not have a strong EM field either, so it should not be able to disturb magnetic media. However, some of the conveyor belt motors may not be shielded as they should, and that stray EM field could possibly play games with magnetic media. Semiconductor memory is unaffected.

The older X-ray machines are almost gone now, and you may see them only in third-world countries. They were the worst for film but would not affect magnetic media.

The newest scanner machines are kind of unknown to many. If the baggage checker operators scan your checked baggage and see anything remotely suspicious, then they "turn up the juice" to scan harder. As a result, vitually any film in your checked baggage will be toast. Magnetic media should not be affected, but anything is possible. Semiconductor memory is unaffected unless you got some big electrostatic zap that toasts the memory card. Highly unlikely unless somebody sets off one of the military e-bombs.

I'm not sure what to think about the security aspects of checked baggage. I've had equipment taken out of my unlocked baggage before. Fortunately, the airline agreed to pay my demand.

---Bob Gross---

[dlhammer]

Thanks Bob for the clarification on the metal detector. I travel only with digital and have never had any problems with pictures going away with the carryon machines. I have had items stolen from checked baggage and therefore choose to carry on my camera equipment.

Question on the airline paying - Did they pay over and above the $1200 or so baggage allowance or was your loss less?

[mrbobco]

check this one out...the pelican pcs 102

B&H photo/pelican pcs 102 case (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bh3.sph/FrameWork.class?FNC=ProductActivator__Aproductlist _html___228230___PEDBWC___REG___CatID=4463___SID=F 46AA046A70)

it does get by the "one carry on; one personal item rule" (as the top part of the case zippers onto the bottom part for a piggyback...and it slides perfectly under the seat in front of you while the bottom part fits quite comfortably in the overhead bin) all of the inserts are velcro and can be arranged any possible way you want...and there are more compartments, zippers and possible ways to configure this case than you can imagine...it's pricey ($264) but worth it...i travel VERY frequently with my D-60/10D, 5 L lenses, laptop, headphones, cd player...and it all fits nicely into this case...best part is...when you're tired of dragging it around...both the small case and large case can be used as backpacks...all with the excellent pelican build quality...and some nice sturdy nylon wheels...

ok...so i'm a camera bag junkie (my office is littered with domke, lowepro, etc) but this setup by far is the easiest to travel with...i used to drag a lowepro magnum aw around...but it was killing my shoulder :)

and lastly...i haven't had any problems with cf cards on x-ray machines...although every 3rd or 4th trip the bag does get hand inspected (i guess all the lenses and batteries look suspicious on the x ray machine)

bob

[robertwgross]

dlhammer wrote:
Question on the airline paying - Did they pay over and above the $1200 or so baggage allowance or was your loss less?

I had checked one small duffel bag that was not lockable, and it contained a tool kit with about $150 worth of tools. When I picked up the bag, I noticed that the zipper had been moved about two inches, but I was in a hurry. About 100 miles away, I discovered the theft. I contacted Continental Airlines and they said to furnish a receipt for tools for $150, which I did, and they paid it immediately.

I've never had to travel by air with more than twenty pounds of camera gear, so I put it all in my carry-on.

---Bob Gross---

[Longwatcher]

Sharkman wrote:
Anybody got any advice on the best way to transport a full digital SLR outfit (2 bodies, 4 lenses, 2 flash, etc) when travelling by air?

I recently bought a Tamrac 612 soft case for travelling. The catch is I have not flown since I bought it, but it is very close to the same dimensions as my usual carry on (except in width, which I always had room left for)

It carries, 10D w/16-35L and BG-3D attached, D60 w/50 f1.4 attached, 100-400L IS, 28-135 IS, 2x extender, and 2 550EX flashes in easy to get to compartments. It also carries a 75-300IS below the D60. and there is room for one more small prime in the main compartment.
Side compartments have my Delkin Picture pad, the battery charger for the D60 along with AC adapters and other cables. There are detachable see-through net bags for film (or in my case for CF cards). I almost forgot, it also has a pocket for a small notebook computer (I use it to hold model releases)
Lastly it has a pass through pocket so it can be placed onto one of the handle of one of those extending handle carry on wheeled luggage bags.

I upgraded from a hard case when I got my fourth lens and it just would no longer fit in the smaller hard case.

I too feel really nervous about putting my camera into check-in luggage, but I have professional camera inurance on the euipment, so it would only be the loss of the opportunity that would annoy me, not the equipment.

As to CF cards and the like. As of the last trip I took and I have taken over 20 round trips with my equipment since going digital and have not yet lost an image or file to airport security machines. It is always with my carry on and I just let it go through the machines. Note though that all but one have been within the US, the one exception was Jamaica.

[Photo-4N6]

I travel extensively in the US and have carried my Canon G2 and Elan 7e, along with 2 additional lenses, gear, memory, etc. in a Lowepro Mini Trekker backpack camera bag. I has lasted like iron and fits nicely under all airline seats, including commuter/regional jets. I don't hand-check any of the items and haven't had any problems with film for 10 years or digitial items over the last 6 months.

I now have a Canon 10D and have reconfigured the bag to fit the 10D, Elan7e, Tamron 28-105 f2.8, and two additional smaller lenses.

I strongly recommend the bag, which is available through many online sources. See the specs at www.lowepro.com under backpack camera bags.

I'm also considering the Stealth backpack to add my laptop.

Have fun.

Ken