Flying with film.
San Luis Obispo Airport
Oh the joys of going to the airport, from the overpriced coffee ($8 for Starbucks from a can?!) to the stresses of making it to your flight on time. But wait, if your reading this your probably a film photographer. In that case buckle up buttercup because you have an added layer of going through the airport. Keeping your precious film from the threat of those nasty x-rays. I’m going to help you with this guide navigate the airport so you can take those vacation pics on film.
Unbox those rolls.
Over my time of flying with film I’ve found it to be much easier to fly with 35mm film in canisters. 120 film stays in the box since it’s easy to open and for all the large format shooters out there your going to be stuck to the box too. These experiences only apply to American airports so your mileage may vary abroad but for the most part unboxed but canistered 35mm film raises few eyebrows.
Loaded Olympus Infinity Point & Shoot with several rolls of film for a trip to the coast.
Avoid film in checked luggage.
Every bag that goes through checked luggage is subject to x-rays much more powerful than what’s used during the security checkpoint. Keeping film in checked luggage is a guaranteed way to get it exposed to x-rays. Keep it in your carry on or personal bag at all times.
Ask for a hand check.
A hand check is what’s gonna keep your film from ending up at the mercy of an X-Ray or CT scanning machine. Most airports that I’ve traveled through comply with a hand check request but sometimes push back if you only have film that is 800 speed and below. If you're apprehensive about getting into an argument with TSA you can always pack a roll of Ilford Delta or Kodak Ektapan 3200 film to defeat that argument and guarantee a hand check. Any cameras that have film loaded with them also need to go through the hand check process. I personally try to avoid loading a camera before going through security so they can stay in the bag protected instead of trusting them with a stranger.
That’s it.
That’s pretty much it. Once you’ve shot your film the process is much the same for traveling back home with your exposed film. If you wanna avoid the hassle for the return trip you can always mail your film into Undead Film Lab and we’ll get those rolls developed and scanned by the time your suitcase is unpacked.