MiJa
Good evening everyone,
We’re planning a tour of China next year – a guided tour, of course, with the necessary chaperones…
And now, naturally, I’m worried about all the slide film I want to take with me and bring back with perfect exposure :-)
What precautions should one take when flying, just to be on the safe side? Any radiation-proof boxes? Do the films need to be declared? The camera and so on as well?
Who has any experience with this? And wouldn’t mind sharing it??
I’d be grateful for any tips!
Greetings from Cologne
Michael
TiMo
Put films in your hand luggage; depending on its size, the camera should go in your hand luggage too.
I’ve never had any problems (except in North Korea, where I had to swallow the films to get them out of the country). The scanners at the airport shouldn’t damage films anymore.
piu58
> The camera and so on as well?
>
> If possible, don’t have any film in the camera, especially with manual focus. They do check whether there are any explosives inside the body.
wosis123
I always carry my cameras (KB) in my hand luggage too; they’re checked for explosives almost every time, but they’re wiped with a sort of paper strip which is then inserted into an analyser that apparently detects traces of explosives – it only takes 1–2 minutes.
At German airports, at least, I’m already expecting to be asked to undergo ‘special treatment’.
Urnes
So when I went to India, carrying the films in my passport wasn't an issue. It all worked out fine. The three packs of ten were just too bulky for my hand luggage.
Regards, Sven.
KaiKlindt
It seems to me that the real danger to our films lies less in airport security checks than in the constant security checks at museums and other tourist attractions. These have increased significantly in recent years, and it appears that the standards here are not as high (or as film-friendly) as at airports. A friend of mine recently had this experience after a trip to India. The painstakingly exposed black-and-white roll films, especially the higher-speed ones (ASA 400), had clearly been damaged. Very annoying.
Best regards, Kai
bernhardmangelsgmxde
I haven’t had any problems so far with the hand luggage scanners at the airport or the scanners you find, for example, outside every train station, bus station and underground station in China. Film in my camera has never been an issue for me. I have, however, been through the explosives check quite a few times… Praktica seems to be more popular with terrorists than with tourists.
I’ve had traces of X-ray exposure on film in my checked luggage before. Three out of ten rolls of film had marks, particularly at the start, which were clearly visible. The second half of the film was fine.
Morte
I’ve never had any problems (except in North Korea, where I had to swallow the films to get them out of the country).
TiMo, are you serious? How do you do that: a big spoonful of custard, then a film, then another spoonful...? That sounds downright life-threatening! (Though certainly better than a few years in a North Korean prison...)
MiJa
Greetings to everyone!
Well, hello there – that’s what I call a quick update! Thanks to you all!
I hadn’t heard about all those scanners in China – learnt something new again!
Bottom line: no worries – plenty of films!
@TiMo+ Morte: I’m not that keen on vanilla custard...
Greetings from Cologne
Michael
AchimBauer
Hi Michael,
It’s been a long time since my last flight, but I used to pack my films in film protection pouches just to be on the safe side – these are plastic pouches with a special coating inside. I never had any problems, even when the security staff insisted on an X-ray scan before the hand search.
Have a look to see if they still sell them.
Best regards, Achim
thomas_l
Why do you want body scanners? Be glad if you don’t have them or don’t have to go through them.
I’ve never had a bad experience with body scanners, not even in China.
In China, you need to be more careful about other things, though that depends on where you are. If you’re in Shanghai, Beijing or elsewhere, the police will normally leave you alone as a foreigner. In Tibet or Xinjiang, things are a bit different. Things that are genuinely dangerous for the local Ministry of State Security include, for example, maps where the national borders aren’t drawn as China deems correct (e.g. Indian maps are banned because of the Kashmir border) or an apple that doesn’t have the required import permit (it happened to me; the border police ordered me to eat the apple immediately before I crossed the customs line, which was right where the customs officer was standing....). You might need to be careful here if you’re taking photos of sensitive subjects, such as train stations or the like... No, don’t let yourself be intimidated; China is a great country to travel in and, as I said, outside these politically sensitive areas, it’s pretty hassle-free for tourists
Best wishes, Thomas
pittyman
Hello Michael,
The advice given so far regarding hand luggage is correct. Suitcases are screened with a higher dose of radiation. I travelled to Iceland this year with 50 roll films of Tri-X 400 in my hand luggage and, out of curiosity, asked at security on both the outbound and return flights. In both cases, I was told that the scanner is definitely safe up to 1000 ISO. After the development of my films, I couldn’t detect any defects or fog either. So you have three options: take digital photos, trust the technology, or put all your films in 3200 ISO packaging and insist on a manual check :spudnikshooter:.
Best regards,
Dirk
thomas_l
They do manual checks in China too; I’ve tried it myself. However, I soon gave up because the discussions were too much of a hassle. Not a single official was willing to go out of their way any more than was absolutely necessary.
