guylewis30 wrote:Hey guys,check out what this guy has to say about airport x-ray:
_MODERN_ airport x-ray machines use such low radiation doses, that you would
have to pass something through them 1000 (one thousand) times to equal the
(average) annual "natural" radiation background.
That may have been true before 9/11. Since then, airports have beefed up their security; haven't you noticed? The x-ray machines in use now are much more powerful, and the TSA security guys are much less willing to accomodate your wishes to hand-inspect. They will x-ray your film. Even Kodak is advising against running film through airport x-ray machines now.
If you don't want to risk fogging your film, don't take it aboard airliners.
Not necessarily... last summer going to Hawaii, Japan, then back, I always received hand inspection when I asked for it. Going to NY over Christmas I simply stuck the Plus-X cart in my pocket... K40 went through the machine.
FWIW I don't think the carry-on scanners are more powerful. The checked luggage machines may be, but they weren't really safe to send fast film through before either.
We should get the word from sooper to see how the film looks after he shoots it and gets it processed. Checking for any possible adverse affects from potential x-ray zapping.
thanks for keeping me in this loop, tim. I'm almost done with the B&W carts and of course I planned on posting clips here as usual, but now I have an additional reason to do so. Now, hopefully I didn't expose the film poorly.....ah, what the hell, I got the carts for free! haha j/k I'll post my footage before long!
I have been told (and have personal experience, with 35mm film) that most film that goes through the baggage x-ray WILL be adverly affected. The baggage machines use a far more powerful x-ray, and even one passage through them can fog your film. (1 roll 35mm 400 ASA Fuki Superia, was fogged). You run a much lower rick through the machine that your carry on baggage goes through, although personally, I'd not rick it. When I last flew over Christmas, I had no problem with asking them to hand check all my film, which they did. It just took a long time for them to get through 50 rolls of 35mm film and 5 carts.
Just to clarify what was said about post-9/11 x-rays at US airports.
Basically they now scan baggage properly, as has been the case in Europe since Lockerbie...but they are still using outdated machinery. The way it works, and this is quite logical, is that in your checked luggage (NOT the stuff you carry on the plane)...is scanned and the machinery looks for something that looks electrical or like a rechargable battery (since some explosives can be disguised as NiCad batteries). These areas of your luggage are then scanned more aggressively to see what's really there...is it a camcorder or a bomb?
Now, since your film may well be packed with your camera, you're running a risk of high exposure to x-rays if you put film in your checked bags.
Take them in your carry-on bag and they only go through the x-ray machine that is manually inspected by the security staff. They only x-ray once..as they will manually inspect anything they think needs to be looked at.
While I find US security is bordering on being hysterical these days...the above system is entirely logical.
The government says that by 2010 30% of us will be fat....I am merely a trendsetter
during my last visit to japan i carried 10 of these transistors contained in a box in my suitcase and i think they look pretty suspicious on the x-ray scanner but i was never asked once to open it for check. there were no wires though.
that was Oslo - London - Narita - Narita - Amsterdam - Oslo.
At Oslo Airport they claimed the X-ray scanners to be safe for films up to ISO1600.
I made a trip to Brazil and did carried 3 cartridges of k40 with me. Had no problem. Now I was thinking of buying film from Wittner (64T and B & W). I was thinking of buying a large quantity for save money (super 8 film is more expensive here in Portugal), but now I'm afraid of spending a lot of money and all be ruined. Do you think I should take that risk? I guess sending film by air mail is worse because they can pass to x-ray the number of times they want and we will never know.
j/k I'll post my footage before long!
