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  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

Who has tips for flying with Red & gear?

Raul Gonzo

Raul Gonzo

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I've been driving my equipment all over, but not this time- I have to fly and haven't done this with my gear before.

I need to fly out my R1- I have the big case Red sells- I'm thinking of getting a Porta-Brace and putting it all in there.
Then, there are the Red Primes- (in the BIG red case). Here is where I am most concerned. I am pretty worried about them being lost or dropped. Is this a real concern to have?
Some other things I need to transport are my matte box & tripod.

Any advice/wisdom from my fellow traveling redusers is most definitely wanted (and appreciated).
 
Raul Gonzo said:
I've been driving my equipment all over, but not this time- I have to fly and haven't done this with my gear before.

I need to fly out my R1- I have the big case Red sells- I'm thinking of getting a Porta-Brace and putting it all in there.
Then, there are the Red Primes- (in the BIG red case). Here is where I am most concerned. I am pretty worried about them being lost or dropped. Is this a real concern to have?
Some other things I need to transport are my matte box & tripod.

Any advice/wisdom from my fellow traveling redusers is most definitely wanted (and appreciated).
Click to expand...

I have done this several times. I try to carry as much on as possible. Do you have an assistant traveling with you? I have used large camera backpacks, the kind that stills guys use. If you have two big bags (this is where the travel companion comes in handy) you can get most of a camera kit in them. I only take 2 or 3 of primes or if I don't need the speed, the 17-50 and maybe one longer prime. Other gear I check or pack in my luggage. This set up works for me because I often am shooting guerilla style out of the packs. BTW I never check the hard drives especially when coming back from a shoot. Bottom line, I find it hard to check something that you can't rent easily or afford to be without.
 
Hey Raul, I travel the planet with my gear all the time. Granted its a smaller setup than a full feature shoot but a basic long lens, 17-50mm Red and a few other sorted lenses for special use Arri R8 matte box and filters, etc..... Anyway the thing Im most protective about is the camera, body a couple of bricks, viewfinder or monitor, and a drive or a card. I figure if I can have the camera as carryon Ill be able to get just about anything else if it comes up missing or broken anywhere in the world in a day worst case. You need to carryon batt's now days or have them shipped out special pkg, before you travel if you have a bunch, to where your going. Read some on line info and you will get up to speed. IE Anton Bauer has a full breakdown of what is TSA safe and what is not. Its still a gray area but at least youll come armed with info to the security desk.
You should buy the TSA locks for all your cases that will not prevent loss but at least its one more step for whoever wants to take a look. And youll want to get you a case for the camera and batts. I use a Pelican 1510 for my camera and batt and monitor cables etc. This case is the one allowed by size to travel as carryon. You may get away with a little bigger case but I would not feel safe that some polyester pants TSA agent will get in to a pissing match with you on the exact size or a airline person.
The rest is that you should try to pack as light as needed and if you can break the kit up a little so if something like the RPP kit goes missing you have at least one lens that traveled in your briefcase or in a different case form the set. I know it sounds lame but if you can at least get through the morning with out maybe a rental house will get you what you need by the time you break for lunch. I travel to some of the most remote places in the planet and you know you got to have a good vibe when traveling, at least its worked for me. Put a little faith in the system and have something worked out incase it doesnt go as planned.
There is only so much you can do and then its in the hands of the travel gods...
Good luck.
Russ
 
Thanks for advice guys.
I'm gonna pick up a 1510 pelican and see if I can make that work. How about for the RPPs?
Is there a solution out there for getting those on board as a carry on?
Or are people checking them in?
I may be flying with one other person, so we are looking at trying to get the lenses and camera as a carry on between the two us.
 
One of the problems with carrying on gear is that despite the size restriction, carry on is increasingly weighed as well. A backpack camera bag with my shootable minimum kit of a R1 body ,3 primes, a drive, 2 batteries, battery plate and cables is well over the weight limit which seems to vary by airline and airport. Silly as this sounds I've been wearing a coat with large pockets into which I stuff the batteries drives and 1 prime. No one ever weighs the coat, it just goes through the xray ( sometimes I take the taped over batteries out into the trays ). It makes for a lot of unpacking and packing and quite a bit of comedy explanations but always seems to work. With two people all the sound gear and chargers filters extra lenses etc can be carried on too.
 
I'd recommend ground shipping with cameras to avoid atmospheric radiation when possible, this was common when using CCD based cameras, not sure if CMOS is more prone or less when considering radiation.

You may also wish to check if your insurance policy covers equipment damage or stolen in transit/traveling.
 
Marcus Struzina said:
One of the problems with carrying on gear is that despite the size restriction, carry on is increasingly weighed as well..
Click to expand...

I'd be interested to hear if anyone ever has has their carry-on weighed. I know that it's airline policy but I've never had it happen. ( damn now I've just jinxed myself).
 
Southwest for production companies with camera gear

Southwest for production companies with camera gear

I try to fly Southwest as much as humanly possible. If you are a production company with a business card and have your credentials you can fly SW, each additional case up to 100 lbs, NOT 50 lbs is only $50, they give you TWO free checked bags, carryon is unrestricted from the size wise for media and production companies. Info is right on their website. Domestic only. no international. Best deal for the traveling image maker.

http://www.southwest.com/html/customer-service/baggage/special-luggage-pol.html


Media cameras are exempt from the sizing box restriction imposed on other carryon luggage, and, if carried onboard, must be stowed in accordance with FAA safety regulations. If the camera is to be secured in a seat, however, a ticket must be purchased for that seat.
Camera, film, video, lighting, and sound equipment will be accepted when presented by a representative of a network or local television broadcasting company or a commercial filmmaking company. A fee of $50 will be charged for each item in excess of the free baggage allowance. Media equipment will not be assessed oversized or overweight charges.


Southwest for me if at all possible every time...
 
Frazier Nivens said:
I try to fly Southwest as much as humanly possible. If you are a production company with a business card and have your credentials you can fly SW, each additional case up to 100 lbs, NOT 50 lbs is only $50, they give you TWO free checked bags, carryon is unrestricted from the size wise for media and production companies. Info is right on their website. Domestic only. no international. Best deal for the traveling image maker.

http://www.southwest.com/html/customer-service/baggage/special-luggage-pol.html


Media cameras are exempt from the sizing box restriction imposed on other carryon luggage, and, if carried onboard, must be stowed in accordance with FAA safety regulations. If the camera is to be secured in a seat, however, a ticket must be purchased for that seat.
Camera, film, video, lighting, and sound equipment will be accepted when presented by a representative of a network or local television broadcasting company or a commercial filmmaking company. A fee of $50 will be charged for each item in excess of the free baggage allowance. Media equipment will not be assessed oversized or overweight charges.


Southwest for me if at all possible every time...
Click to expand...

Seems like Delta has similar policies:

http://www.delta.com/traveling_checkin/baggage/special_baggage/fragile_bulky/index.jsp#media


Also, I recommend that every video professional get set up with delta cargo as a "known shipper" which just means they check you out to see that you aren't a security risk. This allows you to use delta DASH (Equation for international) airport to airport package service which is the fastest AND cheapest way to transport gear around. I often ship our underwater housings between 45 and 65 pounds around the country - same day service between $85 and $130 (where Fedex would be well over $200 for next day service.)
 
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