Film exposed in hand inspection

[Deniz Merdanogullari]

If you are doing 4x5 or 120, just stuff your pockets of your cargo pants and walk right through the metal detector.

35mm film wont work, but then if you are shooting 35mm, chances are you don't care too much for image quality anyways, get it nuked.

[eddie]

josh,

keep the exposures as low as possible. i think they can handle many many many runs through the machines. please be sure to come back here and let us all know how it ended.

i have had film go through like 20+ x ray machines....just to see. it was on multiple flights to and from SE Asia. i even left the secure area to get a few more runs through the machine....and to kill 8 hours in taipei.

[joshdaskew]

Thanks so much for the responses and yep, will let you know when I see it.. Eddie, I have had the exact same idea but never actually put it into action so it is good to know.. Deniz, what do you mean that 35mm "won't work" when going through the metal detector? Ok, thanks again. Cheers Josh

[Merg Ross]

Deniz, what do you mean that 35mm "won't work" when going through the metal detector? Ok, thanks again. Cheers Josh

Probably the metal canister. I had an experience with 120 film in my pockets going into Mexico a few years ago. The alarm kept going off. Turned out that my film was on the old metal spools, not the current plastic.

[Brian Ellis]

If you are doing 4x5 or 120, just stuff your pockets of your cargo pants and walk right through the metal detector.

35mm film wont work, but then if you are shooting 35mm, chances are you don't care too much for image quality anyways, get it nuked.

Before I stopped worrying about the carry-on xrays that's exactly what I used to do (except I didn't wear cargo pants). You can get about 40 sheets of film in a 25 sheet box if you remove the inner foil, cardboard, etc. Fill two boxes, put one in each of your back pockets and you have about 80 sheets of film free of xrays and inspection. If that isn't enough fill another box or two and put them in your front pockets. That's about 160 sheets which should be enough for most trips.

[eddie]

stuff in your pockets generally does not work any more.

the last overseas flight i took they felt up my pockets.....and me...

[BetterSense]

If you rolled your bulk film in plastic 35mm cassettes, you could get it through the metal detector in your pocket if you think it's important. I don't stress about (carry-on) xray damage, but I don't shoot a lot of delta 3200 or anything.

[Kimberly Anderson]

Here's what I just did coming from Salt Lake City to Stockholm:

I put all of my 120 film, 40 rolls, still in the factory wrappers/packaging into big zip-loc bags.

I put my full Tri-X 5x7 box that *HAD* been opened into another big zip-loc bag. On that box I put a printed sign that said: "STOP! Unexposed sheet film! Do not open! Please swab! STOP!"

I also printed out the 'Traveling with film' sheets from the TSA website and included them with the 5x7 box, printed side out so that the TSA personnel knew that I knew what their responsibilities were.

I was pleasant, cheerful and they could see that I was trying to make their job easier. They immediately took the three bags from me, asked if I wanted a hand-check and took them straight back to the swabbing machine. No problems at all.

They were very nice to deal with and I would give them an A+ on the Salt Lake end.

[Rakesh Malik]

Hmmm, you have to ask what the average intelligence level is of these people. Let's see....."DON'T OPEN THE BOX".....so they open the box.

I don't know about you, but if they can't follow a simple instruction like that, I don't feel any safety at all in the hands of those people.

The TSA is about theatrics, not security.

[philip964]

Film in boxes and asking for hand inspection didn't work well even before 911. Certainly wont work since. I use a lead pouch, sure they cant see though it and they bump the exposure to try, but it seems to work. I have never noticed anything unusual using the pouch. Its certainly better than trying to have them not look inside the box and have an entire trip ruined.