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Thread: Recent XRay Experience

  1. #1
    Kirk Gittings's Avatar
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    Recent XRay Experience

    After thoroughly testing the xray machines at airports from Albuquerque to Chicago and Heathrow last year, I got burned on a recent trip to Chicago working on an upcoming exhibit. My 4x5 color neg and b&w readyload film was uniformly fogged adding .20 on average to the base density. This was true on both checked and hand carried baggage with some slight variations in the fog density. These were opened boxes that I had used a couple of days before the trip with no issues.

    From my post shortly after my UK trip last year testing a similar methodology:

    "In my trip to England this year I took, bought in london, and shipped Acros in every conceivable manner from Denver to Heathrow. The worst got xrayed both ways from and too England. I then shot duplicate negatives of numerous scenes and had Praus develope samples of each in the same batch, tube processed. Densitometer readings showed 0 difference between any of the film regardless of having no xray or double airport xray."

    I guess I will have to go back to buying film on location and Fed Exing it back?
    Thanks,
    Kirk

    at age 73:
    "The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
    But I have promises to keep,
    And miles to go before I sleep,
    And miles to go before I sleep"

  2. #2
    Format Omnivore Brian C. Miller's Avatar
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    Re: Recent XRay Experience

    Do you transport your film in the lead-lined bags? I've always wondered how good they are in actual use.

  3. #3
    Resident Heretic Bruce Watson's Avatar
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    Re: Recent XRay Experience

    I gave up fighting the TSA years ago. Now I ship film outside the system both ways on those rare occasions when I'm forced to fly. Airline travel is so painful these days that I drive when I can.

    I buy film from Badger Graphic Sales. I asked them which shippers they use to ship film and what kind of problems they got. They told me that they've had no problems from either UPS or FedEx. My experience supports theirs.

    Overseas shipping? I'd call Robert White and ask them how they get film from Fuji and Kodak. If you can use the same shipper...

    Bruce Watson

  4. #4

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    Re: Recent XRay Experience

    "My 4x5 color neg and b&w readyload film was uniformly fogged adding .20 on average to the base density. This was true on both checked and hand carried baggage with some slight variations in the fog density."

    I thought that putting film in checked luggage has always been a known problem, at least I've read many many times that it shouldn't be done and I've never done it, so the fact that film in checked luggage was fogged is no surprise. But hand-carried b&w film is very surprising. I've hand-carried TMax 100 in Readyloads for about four years now through xray machines in quite a few different airports without a problem. I wonder if the Chicago xraymachine was perhaps malfunctioning or whether TSA has increased the dosage recently?
    Brian Ellis
    Before you criticize someone, walk a mile in their shoes. That way when you do criticize them you'll be
    a mile away and you'll have their shoes.

  5. #5

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    Re: Recent XRay Experience

    lead lined bags in hand carried baggage- havent had a problem yet domestic or international.

  6. #6

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    Re: Recent XRay Experience

    I recently travelled to NM to cover a concert. I carried my digital and my 35mm. If I'm carrying anything below ASA400, I don't care. This day I had a couple of superia 1600 that I asked the TSA officer to inspect manually. The guy did it with no complain.
    On the way back, I forgot the film in my bag and it went through the xray machine...
    Developed and no fogging at all...

  7. #7
    Kirk Gittings's Avatar
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    Re: Recent XRay Experience

    Some notes:
    1) I have had very mixed results with asking for hand inspection.
    2) I have not tested lead bags as I understood that they would simply crank up the power to see through them.

    This is like playing Russian Roulette with your film. Regardless of the cause, the only really safe thing to do is ship it separately.
    Thanks,
    Kirk

    at age 73:
    "The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
    But I have promises to keep,
    And miles to go before I sleep,
    And miles to go before I sleep"

  8. #8

    Re: Recent XRay Experience

    Kirk, is there any way this was heat fogging?

    I have yet to see any damage to carry-on film in my travels, but of course, things could change at any moment. Accidentally checked film always comes back fogged in my experience, and normally to the point of almost complete image damage, as in, more than .2D and not normally in an even manner.


    ---Michael

  9. #9

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    Re: Recent XRay Experience

    Kirk,

    This has been happening routinely to my film - TriX320 but not Provia 400F. I am in the Midwest and have traveled through Des Moines, Chicago, Detroit, Cincinnati, Denver, Phoenix and Sarasota to name a few. On all of these trips the film was fogged. Most were unopened boxes.

    I am going to try it again next week just for fun and for a test!! - Through Chicago to Pittsburgh and back.

    Jackie

  10. #10
    Kirk Gittings's Avatar
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    Re: Recent XRay Experience

    Michael, I sincerely doubt it. It has not been that hot here and I shot with it a couple of days earlier.

    Based on the very varied experiences here. I think people need to be exceptionally careful.
    Thanks,
    Kirk

    at age 73:
    "The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
    But I have promises to keep,
    And miles to go before I sleep,
    And miles to go before I sleep"

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