Airports and 4x5 film

[dikaiosune01]

I've been traveling with my 4x5 camera for about a year now. And I've read this thread many times over. I've traveled across south-east asia and a few places beyond that. I haven't had any problems yet, but it doesn't hurt to be prepared. a brief summary of my conclusions

1. X-ray scans are cullmulative. The more scans, the more damage it will do.
2. Most people say; ISO 400 or under can withstand up to 5 scans before any noticable drop in quality (says kodak)
3. If you fly in the US, and have to adher to the TSA rules, you can request a hand inspection and they cannot say "no". If they do, you need to speak to someone higher up who knows the rules a bit better.
4. In you are flying through London, everything will be scanned.
5. MOST IMPORTANT: be polite about it. No need to sound like a drunken loon spouting rights and invasion of privacy. That will cause more harm than good.

Personally: I get my film hand-checked when ever I can. I arrive at the airport early so there will be no problems. I haven't had any problems in (Canada, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Australia).

Some airport security has said that 400 speed film is safe for x-ray use. I've gave the following explainations, and before I could finish... ...
1) "Actually, the x-ray process is cullulmulative. The more x-rays it goes through the more likelyhood that it will damage the film. I will be traveling through multiple airports and I'm trying to minimize the exposure to the film. THe reason is because X-rays are actually light. Albiet a small amount of light. When enough light hits the film, it will ruin the film. It is like jabbing a thumb into someones throat. For the first inch there will be no noticable damage, the skin is quite plyable. But eventually when the thumb punctures through the neck, there's going to be blood everywhere. I'm just trying to minimize that margin of error officier."
2) "Actually, I plan on devloping this film myself using something called 'pushing'. Put it simply, I can develop this film as if it were rated for ASA 6400. I also have a few sheets of film that I have experiemented on. The ASA equivalent would be closer to 25000. This is accomplished by enlongating the devlopment times and it can achieve a variety of different effects that I may utilize in the future, officer"

[chassis]

I just passed through TSA checkpoints at PHL and SFO and my carry on bag went through the scanner with no additional inspection. In the bag is a metal 4x5 field camera, lens+board, light meter, loupe, and two film holders with 4 unexposed sheets of film.

We will see how the journey home goes next week, and when I process the film 10 days from now.

[chassis]

Just went through the TSA checkpoint in PDX with no extra inspection, and no hassles. Gear was the same as above: 4x5 camera, lens, film holders, meter, etc.

[Steve Goldstein]

This first isn't 4x5 film but, I recently flew home from Grand Junction CO with about a dozen rolls of 120, half FP4+, half TMY-2. Some were exposed, some were not. All were packed together in a single ziploc bag that I placed in its own bin to run through the scanner. Next thing I know, there's a TSA guy headed my way with the bag and saying that it's better to hand-screen film so if I didn't mind that's what he'd do. <Sound of jaw hitting floor>. I thanked him for his concern and accepted his offer. Since I'd had a hand-scan in Boston on departure, this film never got scanned at all, just the normal high-altitude X-ray exposure that everyone and everything receives.

I traveled to and from Denver CO in late September with about 150 sheets of 4x5 (FP4+, HP5+, TMY-2). Everything went through the scanner on both ends of the trip with no ill effects, based on the 100 or so sheets I exposed and developed. The TMY2 had been scanned twice before as well. I followed the same drill - 4x5 boxes in separate ziploc bags, laid out flat in their own bin. The TSA guys didn't bat an eye at the backpack with the 4x5, 5 lenses, two light meters, regular 4x5 and Polaroid 545i holders, and various other weird items.

[Terry Hull]

My october experience made me happy I had a changing bag. They wanted to open the boxes of 4X5 and would have, but after explaining the supervisor opened the boxes in my film bag.

[John NYC]

My october experience made me happy I had a changing bag. They wanted to open the boxes of 4X5 and would have, but after explaining the supervisor opened the boxes in my film bag.

That's ridiculous.

[Dietrich Floeter]

Opening an old thread but this fits. I just passed through El Paso TSA security with 20 loaded and exposed holders of 4x5 tri-x and two boxes with unexposed film inside. One box contained a couple unopened packets and the other the remains of a last packet. They did consent to hand check but had to open the boxes because they open all boxes. I normally unload all film into boxes prior to flying and got lucky here because the supervisor ok'd just swiping the holders which the checker said would normally have to be opened. The result is 15-20 sheets of fogged unexposed film, 20 loaded holders that I don't believe had the slides slid even a little and a thudding heart rate.
I was told that had I unloaded to boxes as I have many times before, the boxes would have to be opened and no, once through security I would not have been allowed to take them back out. A signed affidavit from the supervisor for my client explaining why I just wasted a week of my paid time, location assistance and travel expenses might have been forthcoming.

Live and learn. It's funny I got here through other TSA checks with no problem.

[Tin Can]

Makes me think shipping film home may be best.

[djdister]

Asking for a hand check is the problem. I let my exposed and unexposed film [in boxes] go through the hand-carry scanners on the way over and back from Scotland and not one bit of fogging or delay at Security.

[Ari]

Asking for a hand check is the problem. I let my exposed and unexposed film [in boxes] go through the hand-carry scanners on the way over and back from Scotland and not one bit of fogging or delay at Security.

Exactly; the machines at security are pretty harmless. You can put your film through 15 times and not notice anything amiss.