Good to see some familiar faces here and several discussions. Hoping we can continue the wonderful vibe we had at DPR. I'm just off on a trip to Europe with my Sears KS Auto (Ricoh XR-2s) and a few rolls of FP4 and HP5. Fretting whether I can get my film hand-inspected at Charles DeGaulle......
Aaron
Have fun during the trip, Where are you going in Europe?
And welcome 😉
Hello Aaron.
I lived and worked on the West Coast of France for a couple of years, and as I’m sure that you already know, most people speak English but they do appreciate your attempts to speak their language. lol
fyi… many museums and art galleries in Paris also employ X-ray scanners nowadays.
Downloadable 'DO NOT X-RAY' Labels
www.kodak.com/en/motion/page/transporting-storing-film
Bon voyage.
Enjoy. Looking forward to seeing some photos
I’ve always carried film canisters and their flat boxes in a clear Ziplock bag.
Saves time for… if and when they swab them for explosive trace detection.
Ditto. And I always throw some 3200 speed film in so they don’t question it.
Hey Aaron
Throw me a message if you get to Copenhagen and I'll show you around here :). Just don't expect the Danish airport security to hand check your film - they won't.
There was a YouTuber (Australian, don't remember his name) that put his film through 17 x-ray scanners and didn't see much difference. There was some difference with ISO 800 in the deep shadows. He said he didn't know how many of those scanners (if any) were the newer CT scanners. I recall his advise was try to get film hand inspected but don't fret if its not.
You will be just fine Aaron...don't fret. I travel all the time and have never had an issue with film....just returned from Australia and nothing went wrong. enjoy the film cameras now! jim
The newest CT scanners do harm exposed film. And multiple passes do impact even 400 iso films with X-ray machines.
petapixel.com/2021/07/06/what-happens-if-your-film-goes-through-the-tsas-ct-scanners/
The channel is called Pushing Film and Hashem is the one running it. Here is the link to the video:
Ah yes, that's right.
Thanks for the reminder.
Interesting comparison in that article. Thanks for sharing.
I tried to find a comparison of radiation dose between x-ray and ct scanners but could only find comparisons in units meant to compare effective dose on different human tissue, which doesn't apply for film obviously. However, I did find out that eating 100g of Brazil nuts exposes you to twice the dose of a dental x-ray 😁
There was a bit of discussion about that on DPReview and I found a document comparing the two (see www.dpreview.com/forums/post/65452413 for the original)
This document - hps.org/publicinformation/ate/q12361.html - suggests that the X-Ray dose from standard hand baggage systems was around 0.04 millisievert for 36 passes (so 0.0011 millisievert per pass), whereas for checked baggage systems it was 1.56 millisievert I.e. 1400 times higher, and that the newer CT systems are expected to be similar to checked baggage systems.
The CT-type systems are expected to ruin film, Kodak and Fujifilm have released warnings about the new types of scanner for carry on luggage ( rps.org/news/groups/analogue/2020/september/kodak-and-fujifilm-issue-warnings-about-airport-scanners/ )
“Earlier in the year Kodak announced a warning on its Facebook page about these scanners and how they may affect Kodak negatives, claiming that Eastman Kodak Research facilities had experimented placing Porta 400 film into JFK Airport’s CT Scanner and noted the results:
‘The initial results are not good. Just 1 scan shows significant film fogging, leading to smoky blacks and loss of shadow detail. This will be more significant for higher speed films. Although it’s possible that a roll of 100 speed film would show less degradation, we strongly recommend against putting any unexposed or exposed but unprocessed film through a CT Scanner.’”
A Kodak document from the turn of the century has some sample photos after putting film through baggage scanners ( www.kodak.com/global/en/service/tib/tib5201.shtml ). The CT scans would be most like the checked luggage scans, although it may be more patterned than a full fogging.
ABSOLUTELY Ulrik, I will take you up on that offer!
Soooo, I managed to get a hand inspection at Charles DeGaulle (Air France inter-Europe, I think it was terminal... 2E? 2F? in the biz class line). No questions asked. Not sure if the machine was a CT scanner but it was not round. And, surprisingly, at BLQ, Bologna, Italy. They said the scanners were safe up to 800, and I told them I had some 1600 film. No problem. Both places they were super nice.
I returned through Frankfurt, where I've had poor luck before, but I was going from one Lufthansa flight to another so I didn't have to pass through security on my connection. Next month I have a Lufthansa flight connecting in FRA to a US-bound United flight, so we'll see if I have to pass through security there and what happens.
Aaron
I had forgotten what a PITA it was traveling with film (even before 9/11). Kudos to you for continuing to do it despite the hassle. I’m sure that the results you achieve are worth the extra hassle at the airport.
Hah! Thanks. Honestly, I don't find it that big a hassle. I travel a lot for work, and here in the US it's pretty easy since TSA policy is to hand-inspect film when needed. I also have PreCheck which speeds things along. There's a consumer site called Elliott.org and his recipe for handling consumer complaints is "polite persistence". I don't kow-tow to people in uniform; I just treat 'em as civilly as I would anyone else. I always allow extra time for security, though at LAX (the airport I fly out of the most) I rarely need it. Can't remember the last time security at that airport took me more than five minutes. (Watch, for my next flight it'll be an hour!)
But yes, definitely worth the hassle. I really do enjoy the surprise-and-delight when I develop my film... and if traveling with film is too much of a pain, I also enjoy what I photograph with my digital Sony! :)
Aaron