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Taking a trip to Las Vegas next week and was looking to take my camera (HVX) with me to do a little work. Never had to fly out of town with camera gear before, so anyone have any input they can share. I presume I'd have no problems with taking the camera as a carry-on bag (NO WAY I'M CHECKING IT)? Any personal experiences anyone can share on this subject would be much appreciated. Thanks.
Steven Gladney
Sometimes the obvious is hidden in plain view.
hey steven. i check my cameras all the time in pelican cases. youve seen my big 1650 that i used to keep my xl2 in. ive checked cameras in that case at least a dozen times (both local US and international flights) and never had a problem.
but if youre dead set on carrying on. you might look at the kata backpacks. really handy and they even sell accessory trolleys to make things even easier... they sell them here in town at the camera co-op on durham (over by my house) and maybe at the camera exchange. they had the one i want (the 207) in stock at the co-op last month, but i went in friday to buy it and it was gone. check B&H they have them. im told that the 207 is fine for all but the little puddle-jumper planes, and in those cases they fit under the seat.
I second Wayne's motion... a Pelican Case is the absolute way to go. Not only are they indestructable but they are fully customizable for the camera and accessories through the tear out foam blocks. Just FYI, use a very sharp knife to cut out your foam. It will ensure the integrity of the pieces you don't want to take out.
As devil's advocate... I always carry-on. I'd rather have it where I can keep an eye on it. Your HVX should be no problem. I wrap my Z1U up in a couple of tshirts and pad it carefully in my rollaway. They may want to see it outside of the suitcase through security, but if you don't declare it, about 4 times out of 5 they won't notice that it's in there. (And about 1 out of five they'll make you take it out and scan it separately.)
When I carry bigger cameras (Beta in the old days, XDCam lately), it typically falls outside of the size requirement for carryon, but the airlines let you carry it as a professional courtesy. In all the trips I've taken (a few dozen over ten years), I've never been denied, but they have drawn it out such that I thought that I would once or twice. Since 2001, I make it as EASY AS POSSIBLE for them to let me through without a hassle -- I check EVERYTHING except me and the camera -- no bag, no newspaper, no laptop... so that at least I don't LOOK like I'm carrying on twice as much baggage as everyone else. Then I wrap it up in a sweatshirt and put it in the overhead.
Southwest will let you early board (after the disabled and the youngsters) if you ask at the gate.
Lithium Ion batteries are strictly controlled onboard , and arguing that the battery on your camera is the same as the battery on everyone else's laptop, cell phone, and iPod will get you nowhere. Your camera battery has the word "Lithium" on it; it must be a bomb. Check any sizeable battery with the words "Lithium" on it. The more nefarious of us would recommend covering those offensive words with a sharpie or a piece of gaff tape. But I would never do such a thing. What, you think I'm a terrorist?
Hey,
The pelican case sounds all sweet and great, but I'm not looking to buy a case. I already have one:
I'm assuming I won't have any problems carrying this on, but we all know what happens when you assume. That's why I'm looking for other peoples' experiences. So keep em comin', please.
Steven Gladney
Sometimes the obvious is hidden in plain view.
steven do you have business insurance on your camera(s) yet? if not, thats as much or more of an important purchase.
Thanks Mike,
Really good information (particularly the lithium battery part. May definitely have to prep for that). Hoping I shouldn't have any problems with my case, though. Just check the batteries with my other luggage.
Steven Gladney
Sometimes the obvious is hidden in plain view.
No, but I have an appointment with my agent this week as a matter of fact. Will incidents in an airport be covered (guess it depends on the policy)? But that's definitely on my list to ask about.
Steven Gladney
Sometimes the obvious is hidden in plain view.
i have a policy with the hartford. covers everything involved with production work. $500 a year. $1000 deductible, covers any in transit problems. its not a 100% foolproof safety net, but its one hell of a hammock!
Damn, $500 bucks. That's great! Glad to have that information. Gives me something to compare to when I meet with my agent.
Steven Gladney
Sometimes the obvious is hidden in plain view.
Steven,
I've used a camera bag very similar to yours with DVX100s in the past. It fits into the overhead of most commercial jets, no problem. Security is usually not an issue, although I have been stopped a couple times when the xray guy didn't like the look of something else in the bag (shotgun mic, cables, battery) so just be prepared to pull things out on request. Sometimes I take the camera out and put it in a plastic tray like with my laptop, just depends what the guy says. When I travel with my partners we always laugh about the huge caravan of trays and bags we have: camera, camera bag, laptop, laptop bag, shoes, jacket...
JK
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SCQT! Self-contained QuickTime ? pass it on!
Thanks John. Glad to hear someone with a bag like mine with some experience. Just to clarify, you were able to carryon your batteries as well, with no problems? Good to know. Thanks again.
Steven Gladney
Sometimes the obvious is hidden in plain view.
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Just to clarify, you were able to carryon your batteries as well, with no problems?
Yes, but it's the smaller battery type that comes with those cameras (and only one batt). Not sure what would happen if you had multiple batteries. Are the airlines really cracking down on lithium ion batts? I've never seen anyone stopped for having too many batteries in their carry-on...
JK
_______________________________________
SCQT! Self-contained QuickTime ? pass it on!
Hi there,
I've traveled a bit and I always carry gear onboard. The problem is less that it may be damaged in flight, (and I agree with the pelican case theory), than that your stuff, (which you will presumably need sometime before your tickets expire or you do), may end up in New Dehli instead of New York or in a video chop shop in the basement of the terminal.
I''ll take my chances buying new underwear and a toothbrush at my destination rather than attempting to find cameras, filters and the rest of the accessories I've spent the last decades figuring out I needed.
If you haven't lost your stuff, it ain't a matter of if...just when.
FE Meek
FE Meek
If they can tell that your battery is a lithium ion, and it doesn't have a weight printed on it, they will tell you to check it. This is a hard-and-fast rule, that is applied equally across the board, in perhaps 1 in 50 flights. These rules brought to you by the same people that frisk little old ladies in wheelchairs. Thank you, Kip, for saving us from the terrorists.
The previously mentioned "gaff tape" solution works wonders.
I totally disagree with checking the camera. You can't lock boxes so everyone will be rifling through a pelican case - rest assured (magnet for trouble). I personally just got back from Europe (Ukraine) - took my HDV cam / PB G4 / Nikon digital SLR / iPod / batteries / cables / etc... as a carry-on in this pack:
http://cgi.ebay.com/WENGER-SWISSGEAR-MAXXUM-COMPUTER-BACKPACK_W0QQitemZ300006236289QQihZ020QQcategoryZ52358QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItem
I carried it everywhere & it was tough as nails. One of our drivers actually dumped our cart full of suitcases (with this pack on the top) right on the sidewalk in front of the Kiev Borispil airport (heart in mouth). No problem. Also a piece of our luggage was lost by Delta - had to file a lost bag report & the bag was delivered to our house a week later. I wouldn't want to have to sit around waiting for MY camera to be returned.
Good Luck 
Joey
When life gives you dilemmas...make dilemmanade.
Excellent point, Joe. A Pelican case, instrument cases, flight cases...thief magnets.
Fortunately, in the few cases when I'm the shooter and I had to fly, I've been able to travel light and put my camera in my carry-ons as well.
www.derekmok.com
Joe: That case has everything except a holster for the baby!
On a separate note -- now that we're talking about Pelican cases -- has anyone tried the trick of packing a starter pistol with your cam, and then secure locking it? Allegedly, it prevents TSA from opening it to search it.
I was just going to suggest that!
A cameraman I know does that. He packs a starter pistol in each checked bag. He declares firearm in his luggae, goes through a separate TSA search that he observes, and the bag gets locked and he is given the only key. From that point, no one has access to what's in his bag.
It adds time to his travel day, but the peace of mind is worth it to him.
deb
That's great...but who has the time for the extra searches or $$$ for starter pistols? Maybe for larger camera packages this technique might be worth it but not for smaller camcorders IMHO.
...that still won't prevent a piece from getting lost by the airline, folks.
- Joey
When life gives you dilemmas...make dilemmanade.
thing about lost luggage to me is that when i travel with gear, its usually not just a camera. its often multiple cameras, tripods, lights, sound, crane and various other kit. cant carry it ALL on.
if ANYTHING gets lost from that scenario, youre frequently more or less dead in the water. you'll have to rent or buy when you land or reschedule the shoot. as long as youre properly insured, a camera is really no different than anything else.
this probably sounds really fruity but i find that worry is like a karmic magnet for problems. I just refuse to worry and just assume that these professionals will do their jobs properly. and in well over 10 years of flying large volumes of gear all over the world (and into some pretty skanky south american and mexican airports) i think ive had one fire wire cable get crushed and one tripod in a hard case was misdirected for an afternoon. pretty good odds in my world.
but as our friend joey here often says "that's just my 2¢"
Starter Pistols are available on the internet for $99. (Ironically, in a google search, the second return for "starter pistol" is an article about packing one with your camera gear!)
I imagine one could be had at WalMart for less than that.
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wayne g says:
and in well over 10 years of flying large volumes of gear all over the world (and into some pretty skanky south american and mexican airports) i think ive had one fire wire cable get crushed and one tripod in a hard case was misdirected for an afternoon. pretty good odds in my world.
I am not as big a shooter as you are being a Post Production Specialist so I am not carrying as much gear. The peripheral stuff is less important to me (personally). The camera / tapes are the thing. If there's one camera & it's small enough, I would carry it on.
That's wonderful wg. Glad to hear you have had such great luck with your gear in your world travels. I flew for the first time to Europe and one of my bags went missing. Guess the baggage gods decided to claim a sacrifice and my number came up. 1 for 1 - not good odds at all in my world. Just posting my experience with Delta. They did deliver the package to my home undamaged so I have to give them props for that.
...that's my friendly neighborhood 2 cents
- Joey
When life gives you dilemmas...make dilemmanade.
yeah, that very well may be the key to historic good fortune. i show up with piles of gear that all kind of looks industrial. so maybe it gets a bit more attention and maybe it also stays together that way (that tripod case looked likda like golfclubs - maybe why it went adventuring on its own)
if youre traveling on vacation and all your camera stuff is in one bag, carry-on may indeed be the way to go
I carry my GL2 on a lot. Going through security they now make you take all camcorders out of the bag yes they think of your camera as a camcorder as well.
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Dean
"When I see you floating down the gutter I'll give you a bottle of wine."
Captain Beefheart, Trout Mask Replica.
They did not make me take my cameras out in any airport - just the laptop.
When life gives you dilemmas...make dilemmanade.
Joe
From Atlanta to Fort Lauderdale to Orange County Ca. include LAX and Providence RI they announce to take the cameras out of the bag they may let you slide but they do tell you to remove them. I do it cause I hate going backwards or seeing my Macbook go through while I have to take something out.
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Dean
"When I see you floating down the gutter I'll give you a bottle of wine."
Captain Beefheart, Trout Mask Replica.
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