Taking D-SLR & Lenses On a Plane

[White_van_Man]

Im off to New zealand at christmas and im planning on taking all the camera gear with. What is the best way of getting it out there safely. Is the bestway to buy a good camera backpack and take them on as hand luggage or a peli case and stick them in the hold? cost is a bit of an issue so the cheepist method would be good. I need to buy a new camera bag anyway.

Thanks
WVM

[fergusd]

Hand luggage, if the current daft small hand luggage restrictions are ended by then you should be fine.

If you check it, make sure it's covered for theft while unattended.

I wouldn't check gear if I had the option . . .

Fd

[UKBob]

Im wondering the same thing myself, and hoping we'll be allowed to carry onboard as I dont fancy checking my gear either.

[J111]

It's surprising how much you can get in the current carry on size.

I have a CCS bag that will hold a 5D, 28-70, 70-200, and a compact as a back up. A less structured bag like a Crumpler would probably hold more.

[doodah]

whatever you do DO NOT CHECK IT IN THE HOLD. unless it's in a pelicase.

don't let them con you with special check in and fragile stickers, don't have any lenses connected to bodies. cost me a 24-70 2.8l that little trick. idiot i was.

[CVP]

If you do go and put your kit in the hold (personally I would only do this with a hard case like a Peli) make sure you know what the airline compensation limits are for missing baggage. Most are really low and it will not cover your kit. I beleive the current limit operated by BA etc is apporx gbp800 per item of luggage.

Some airlines allow you to pay an extra 1% or so of the value of the kit to raise your coverage, or alternatively check your travel and home contents insurance and check coverage and limits there, especially for checked baggage.

They do seem to be reviewing the carry on limits now, so hopefully by the end of the year we will be back to being able to have a decent size carry on.

Chris

[White_van_Man]

ok lets hope they slacken off the hand luggage allowances and i will have to go and buy myself a nice backpack case. does anybody have and suggestions on these? im guessing lowepro is a good place to start

[elderly]

I flew back from Paris to the UK on Thursday and at check-in they were
saying 'NO CABIN BAGGAGE'. But you could take things in one of their clear
plastic bags; so ......
I unpacked the contents of my camera bag leaving it empty and checked that into the hold,
I then put all my stuff into their clear plastic bag and carried that onto the 'plane.

Does that make ANY SENSE AT ALL ??????!!!!!!!!

[fergusd]

Et Voila ;-)

This is the problem . . . the UK staff know the rules, outside the UK nobody really knows . . . I flew back from SFO last weekend, they were trying to get everybody to check everything, and their hand baggage sizer was the wrong size, despite them handing out printed copied of the latest regs . . . usefull . . . thankfully I had no problems as I made my hand baggage . . . but if just one jobsworth baggage thrower decides you have to check (and you know what they can be like) then you're in the position where you have to check gear in a bag that is totally unsuitable for the hold . . .

all a bit of a farce really . . .

Fd

Edited by fergusd on Saturday 16th September 14:28

[White_van_man]

The time has come.. i fly on saturday and im still not quite sure how to get my lenses out to NZ im going to kae the D70 and kit lense in the hand luggage i cant decide what to do with the other 2 lenses (70-300 and 10-20). Im thinking about buying a peli 1300 case and packing it in my main bag. i have individual cases for the lenses but i know even hand luggage gets knocked around quite a bit in the plane.

Whats the best thing to do?

Edited by White_van_man on Monday 4th December 18:59

[F1sh]

Hand luggage, not a problem.

F1sh

[fergusd]

Airport security and luggage seems to be back to pretty much normal . . . huge suitcases, duty free, highly radioactive toxins from your local nuclear reactor . . . all allowed no probs . . . oh yeah . . . drinking water is still too dangerous . . . but you'd expect that . . .

Fd

[ehasler]

I always take my gear on as hand luggage, packed in a Lowepro mini Trekker backpack. You can easily fit a body (inc lens), plus several other lenses and accessories quite easily.

Normally it gets through x-ray without a problem, although I was stopped at Naples airport recently and they made sure my camera worked, and they also examined everything very closely, but once they'd satisfied themselves that my 100-400 wasn't a missile launcher, they let me go

[White_van_man]

Hand luggage it is then hmmm i wonder if tokeyo duty free will have any nice nikon toys i could bring home with me

[jezza l]

[redacted]

[White_van_man]

im just packing mine in my main bag

[te51cle]

My tripod goes inside its padded bag and then into my suitcase at the back, usually with a pair of jeans underneath it and something similar on top. Never had a problem with it doing that. I've put small fixed focal length lenses and extension tubes inside my walking boots or trainers and padded them with socks and had no problems.

[crmcatee]

Only last month I took (whilst the restrictions were tight) Camera, three lenses, laptop and a monopod all as onboard luggage in my Lowepro rucksack. The only thing I put in the hold was the sensor cleaner (chemicals).

Not a problem.

If it was me I wouldn't put anything I value in my hold baggage. Point in case that BA managed to leave both our bags in Heathrow when we turned up in Dubai with nothing but my camera gear. For three days Useless tossers.

[jezza l]

Thanks for the replies.
I've bought a padded bag and i'm going to put that in my suitcase unless i can blag a way of taking it as hand luggage!