Airplane travel, argh!
 

I flew to Toronto from Vancouver last week (still here now) on a discount airline (sigh). The woman at the counter looked at my PortaBrace QuickDraw case (with an XL1 in it) and OKed it as a carry on. When I got in the plane, it would not fit in the overhead compartment. Then I tried to fit it under the seat. It only half fit. The stewardess said that if it didn't fit, it would have to be checked and go into the luggage hold. **snort** No.
Fortunately, there was an empty seat beside me, and I could fit it under both of the seats, but had my legs tucked tightly for 4 hours. Not fun when you are a tall guy.

I need a solution for not having to go through this on the return flight home. I'm thinking of buying a smaller cheap backpack for my Xl1, and carrying it on my person while I check the empty PortaBrace bag along with the rest of my luggage.

Is this the most sensible thing to do? I'm not checking my camera, and I can't sit with no footspace for 4 hours again, and will also likely not have the luxury of an empty seat beside me.

Never had this problem on Air Canada or United who (I feel) have a little more leg space between seats, as well as larger overhead compartments.

Your feedback is appreciated!

Thanks

Take the lens off and put everything through regular luggage, except the camera. Make sure you put all your cam gear (minus the lens-less cam) into a double box with foam. I can't think of any other solution other than sell your XL1 and gear in Toronto and buy yourself Pokey's cam and a Lowepro Nova 5 AW bag.

Note: Pokey's cam is the PV-DV953/MX5000.

Petition to get JetBlue to start flying Canadian routes.
Discount airline with great space between seats and satellite tv on every seat. They use new airbus' with nice large overhead compartments.

I carry on a DSR500 in a Portabrace bag and it has always fit into the overheads. Most of the time I seem to have flown Southwest. I did run into one problem at a terminal--the little hole they want you to stick stuff through for X-ray was smaller than normal. I took the camera out of the bag, mashed the bag through, then sent the camera through .
Portabrace does make a bag that will fit through any airline hassle. It works like a regular bag, but if you need to compress things, you can pull your lens off, and it has a place for the lens to store upright. I think you take the viewfinder off too, and then the bag sort of collapses down and allegedly will fit anywhere. The backpack may be a good idea as well--certainly cheaper.

Since they started inspecting check-through cases, I haven't flown anyplace. I found it's better for me to drive. Even if it's too far to drive in one day, an extra night in a motel is worth it. Plus, when I drive I can take more stuff, like C-stands, foam core, etc.

If you have a body and rear lens cover, it is just much easier to pack it in your carry-on and ship the camera case as hold baggage as you suggest.

I take a DSR-300 with me by taking it apart and carrying all the components in a case I know will fit under the seat or in the overhead compartment. I always carry enough gear to allow me to complete the assignment if they lose my hold luggage. Although I do have to ship the tripod in the hold. (they aren't too expensive to rent at the other end though.

My other solution is to ship the bulk of the gear ahead of time via one of the faster carriers with instructions to hold for pickup at the other end. It almost always works except one time I shipped my cart and heavy gear to Detroit and a local UPS idiot decided that since I wasn't there when the gear arrived, they should ship it back. Which they did.

I'm with Bill. I now prefer to drive if I can at all do so.

Driving? Gas is a buck a litre here in Vancouver. :-((

It is getting close to that down here at $3 a gallon in some places. Still, there are few 'deals' right now and a lot of surcharging going on in the travel industry.

I just make certain my clients can & will pay the costs.

I traded in the old Land Cruiser a few years ago for a small Suzuki SUV, which holds all my gear (except the dolly), and it gets about 28mpg on the highway. Gas is around $1.90 a gallon here these days. It's great fun to park beside a Hummer at a gas station...the other day that happened and I filled my tank, went to the rest room, bought a donut and coffee, went back to my car and drove away, and the Hummer dude was still filling his tank. I bet he was close to a hundred bucks when I left.

Know what you mean. I regularly pull up to a pump with a $80 total on it from the last guy.

I just bought a new Taurus which is getting a real 28-32 mpg (which Ford says is impossible) but it is doing it. Glad I didn't go for the big engine.

Is this a divergence from the thread topic? :-))

OK, Chris, we need an automobile thread!

Don't they sometimes ask you to show that the camera operates? Without the lens, you wouldn't be able to do that.

Dylan, I'm going through the same thing now. I'd like to sit down the people at Lowel and give them a piece of my mind for awhile. $425.95 for a carry-on size backpack?! Gimme a break.

I've just bought a cheap carry-on hard shell roller case (about $45) and some foam inserts and am making my own. Since I'll be carrying it, and it'll be with me the whole time, that'll do.

Costco has nice 22" bags in ballistic nylon that should do with the addition of some semi-rigid foam. Might even slip a thin piece of heavy posterboard or real thin Finnish plywood along the sides to give the camera a bit more protection.

But they use to make blow-up camera lens bags. I think REI has something along those lines. I know I bought a camera bag for my Hi-8 that is totally waterproof from them. It is probably large enough for my PD150.

Another idea might be to use a piece of PVC pipe with screw-ends for the lens. Slide some semi-rigid foam inside the tube, wrap the lens is softer foam and put it inside with the cap on. Should work. Fairly light too.

Of course bubble-wrap works very well too.

I have a nylon and leather case made by Hartman that would hold my DSR-300 if the lens were removed. But it isn't rigid.

How about a lady's cosmetic case? Those are rigid and have enough room to be packed with foam and hold the camera.

Or a fishing tackle box?

Done now.

Ask flight attendants for help. If your bag doesn't fit in the overhead or under the seat compartments, the attendants can put stuff into some closet-like compartments located near the bathrooms on some aircraft. They are usually not supposed to use those closets but if you are real nice and polite they will help if they can. I once did this with a Mac, the all-in-one prehistoric kind.

If you are wise you would have kept the camer on your lp (its not that heavey for a TALL guy HUH) ... simultaneously folding the portabag in such way that it fits under the seat or over head ...if not then you can check it into luggage and keeping the camera wisely & sfely in your lap... !

John, everytime I've carried a camera on board, I've had to turn it on to show that it really works. So you do need the lens and a charged battery. This could get into a Catch-22 sort of thing--I've heard that the larger BPL 90 lithium ion batteries are now not accepted because a knowledgeable person, I guess, could make a bomb with that amount of lithium. Although if it's a battery and on a camera and the camera works, then how could it be a bomb, you ask. Beaurocracy at work. Last time I traveled with my camera, not only did I have to turn it on and show them that it worked, they wanted to go over it inch by inch with the chemical sniffer pad thing. And the person doing it wouldn't let it pass. I was there for probably 20 minutes or so and finally called the supervisor because the person doing the sniffing thing couldn't speak English and obviously had no clue what the heck she was doing. Almost missed the flight even though I had got there an hour and a half early.

Overall, I think it's better to drive or to ship your stuff via Fedex Ground in advance if you can. However, I really hate to ship a camera, even though I have a big shipping case for it. And, now that they open up checked luggage on the airplanes, I wouldn't go that route at all. I refuse to ship a camera or anything else of serious value if I can't lock the case. I've read that lots of people are doing the Fedex Ground thing these days.

There is an approved lock that you can use. The inspectors have a master key for the lock so they can open the case.

Still, I'd not ship anything that can be converted into a fair amount of ready cash.

Bankim, I'm not certain they will allow people to carry hard and heavy objects on their laps during takeoff and landing.

I find it strange they allow people to carry babies instead of having to fasten them down in their own seat because a baby in a crash is a projectile. Hard on the baby and the person it hits.

Why not just get a good camera case and put it in luggage? I've done that for years, including a three year stint of every day flying and never lost or broke a thing.

Well, it may sound like heresy to you guys, but I take a page from the book of rental houses and productions that routinely ship cameras all over the world, and I check my XL1 as baggage, in a well-foam-padded Storm (like a Pelican) case. Been doing that with my cameras and Steadicam for years and never had a problem. I think that back in the tube camera days there were more issues with registration after the camera was flung around, but with a solid-state imaging system, not so much.

Then again, I don't use UV filters, or lens caps once the lens is on the camera, which is probably equally shocking!


addendum:

...and look, Rob just said the same thing! Synchronicity, baby!

Hi Mike, I have been carrying my DVCPRO 610 like this always on my lap fastened on to myself with set belt. I gues now a days the airline staff are much aware of the delicasy of these equipment. A lill persuassion might justy work for us ! Just a thought...

;o)

Charles,

As long as we don't start rhyming it's OK. :)

Hey Guys!
I made it back. I bought a $7 tote bag from WalMart and dismantled the XL1 and put it in. It worked fine as a carry on. They didn't ask me to turn it on, but made me pull EVERYTHING out of the bag for the sniffer test. I was going to get lippy and tell the (this seems to be a common trend) non-englishspeaking young woman that she really doesn't need to wipe every square inch of the lens with her swab.
Grr... anyway...
I checked the PortaBrace bag, and it survived fine, which I expected.


Why don't I check my camera? One time, I had a SLR in a checked bag, wrapped in foam, packaged inside a tupperware container. When I opened the bag at my destination, they had dropped it hard enough that the tupperware container was cracked. The camera was OK, but if I didn't have it in that, it might not have been. I'm willing to take that risk with an extra SLR camera, but not the XL1 that I plan on using to make money with while there.

It is against airline regulations to let you carry heavy objects in your lap during takeoff and landing. I guess babies don't count. Maybe because they aren't as aerodynamic as an XL1. Beats me...

I think that's a job requirement for people who use the chemical sniffers: You can't have any more than a 10 percent command of the English language if you want to work in the U.S. And you have to move as if you're being projected in super slow motion, especially if the plane is getting ready to leave.

Dylan, I've got so many points on my Scare Air flyer's card that I can go almost anywhere. Trouble is, I've go no where to go, and the longer I wait, the more likely Scare Air will be out of business.

I have a padded rugsack for such things. Takes the XL1S neatly
if I dismantle the viewfinder + mic. I can leave the lens etc. on.
Has enough room for batteries, charger, tapes etc. You just need
to be a bit careful not to bang it against anything.

Charles: so you are not scary someone will grab your case of
the luggage system before you get there? I never liked the way
these systems work. I can take whatever bag I want basically.

Yeah, Charles...I've had a couple of bags come up missing. The prospect of that would terrify me. Also, don't they have to be able to open the case to inspect it? Does that mean you leave it unlocked?

I agree with John. I carry the essentials on board, not for fear of damage, but rather the fear of it not showing up. I had this happen for a remote location shoot in Idaho. We lost three days of work, the client and the National Park Service were extremely upset. I could have driven the gear in the time that was lost. The next year when I had follow up work, I did drive.

I've had cases temporarilyl lost by airlines before. It's always a risk when you check your gear, and another reason I prefer to drive even if it takes an extra day on each end of the trip (not always possible for many people, or if you go to a lot of locations all over the country.)

Back in the dark ages I traveled all over the U.S. and Canada shooting 16mm as well as large, medium and small format stills, and I always had to check 8 or 10 cases of gear. One time the only case that didn't show up was the one with all my light meters, lens cleaning stuff, etc. Fortunately I was able to use the reflective meter in my Nikon to get readings for the 16mm shoot, and the case appeared at the airline terminal the next day.

I recently bought a Swiss Army computer backpack at OfficeMax or OfficeDepot or whichever it was. I can carry my VX-2100 in it battery down with the eyepiece folded up. The Beachtec will fit along with the shotgun along side it in a cozy for extra protection. Fits underseat and overhead.

I still have a pistol case with pelican foam if I need the extra protection, but it is not 'mobile'. Now, if I can just get a better bag for the B/M tripod... ;)

Oh, I also took a small laptop on the last trip in the backpack. Did a video at the conference.

Dylan, glad you made it back. This is what I do. I have a hard case for my old 35 mm stuff. I disassembly the Canon, put it in there (it is 1/2 the size of my canon xl-1s case) and I carry this on and use my Canon soft case to carry my clothing. It works great. Bob

Bob, I think that's exactly what I'm going to do from now on. Check the big camera bag filled with extra clothes, and carry the camera on in a small extra bag.

one of the big reasons i use a small camera like the xl1s is because you can carry it onto the plane as a handheld camera, along with your one carry-on bag... i don't think that you can put the camera in a bag, because you only get one carry-on bag... and you can usually get the camera underneath the seat far enuf for takeoff and landings... you definitely cannot put an xl1s in your lap during takeoff and landing.

there is absolutely no way i will ever put valuable camera gear thru the airline baggage check these days... it's an open invitation to damage, theft, and the typical airline lost luggage syndrome.

what i usually put in the carry-on bag is wireless mic gear, small lcd monitor if needed, other camera support gear, etc., along with one clothing change.

while i really don't like having the xl1s banging round on the floor of an airplane for hours on end, i have had to learn the hard way that you should never let your expensive gear out of your sight, period! that's the only way to guarantee that it'll be there for the shoot.

the PortaBrace bag for the XL1s fits perfectly into Southwest Airlines overhead compartments. no worries.

Sure. It fits into LOTS of planes. Just not the crappy ********* ******* that JetsGo, a Canadian budget airline uses.
Remember that airlines use many different aircraft, so you can't judge always based on the airline. I've never had a problem on a Boeing or Airbus plane. Although on one of the smaller Airbus' (I can't remember all their models), I had to hammer my bag into the compartment with my fist. It still went.

I have found that when I absolutely MUST fly, removing the lens, viewfinder, mattebox, etc, allows me to pack my XL1S into a much smaller padded bag that will easily fit under my seat. I don't trust overhead compartments since things will go Bump in the night when you hit turbulence...

And whenever I am required to prove that my equipment works, I quickly plug in the viewfinder (or LCD) and just playback a pre-recorded (x-rated) tape via the VCR function. This usually works great with female airport security but it can back-fire if it's a guy. He might want to watch the entire tape and you'll miss your connection.

On long flights it can be a diversion too if you bring enough batteries... [g]

== Ed ==

I had a portable Sony Playstation PSONE with battery and LCD monitor with me on one flight. The security guards were all in their 20's and we VERY interested in seeing it power up, and play. :)

I have a KATA CCC-1 bag that I like except that my XL1S doesn't really fit very well. The bulging side that is meant to accomodate the viewfinder doesn't line up properly with the MA-200 adapter installed. So, I end up removing the viewfinder/mic whenever I use the KATA bag...

It is also so large that it wouldn't fit in an overhead compartment or under a seat... Maybe I could buy a second ticket and just strap it in? Or is that against airline regs too? [g]

I just bought a Pelican 1660 to house my XL1S with its MA-200 and mattebox, etc. I haven't used the case yet because I nearly got a hernia just pulling it out of the box it was shipped in (weighs about 45 pounds without anything in it). But, it sure is big and strong!

When mounted in my Hummer it should do a great job of protecting my fragile equipment... But, I'd hate to even think about flying anywhere with it though... Maybe it's time to hire an assistant with a strong back???

== Ed ==