Paris on P30
And A Question about Film Cameras through Airport Security
Let me start by asking a question to all the film photographers who are willing to share your wisdom with me.
I recently took a trip to Paris. And it was the first time I’d brought only a film camera on a trip. When I got to airport security at the Dublin airport, I told the agent there I’d like to request a manual check on my camera and the couple of rolls of film. Standard procedure. But the guy told me my camera had to go through the X-ray machine, and the film rolls would be checked manually. And he casually said to me: “Just rewind your film back and take out the canister.” I’d never heard such a dumb suggestion said out loud with such confidence. Or is there some secret about film cameras I haven’t learned yet? It was also the first time my request for manual check had been rejected. Once in Japan, I was asked to take a photo with the lens cap on. It was a restricted area, so, fair enough. All the other times the camera was checked manually with film rolls. So in the end, the camera went through the X-ray. The same thing happened in CDG in Paris. the camera went through the X-ray with film in it. My question to you all is: is this normal or has something changed? What would you do in such a situation? All inputs are appreciated!
Here’s another thing. I can’t tell the difference after X-ray. I know all film manufacturers advise against it, but I honestly can’t see the difference. At CDG, I had a film stock new to me bought at a local lab. It was their own brand, so I definitely don’t know if the X-ray had any impact. But at Dublin airport, I had the Ferrania P30, which I am very familiar with. It looked normal to me. So what is the deal?
Here are a few photos from the roll of P30.
One last question. Does anyone know what’s happening with Ferrania? I heard they were coming out of some financial trouble and had new funding of sorts. But their online store lists everything as sold out. I really like the P30, and would like to try their other stocks. It’d be a shame if they went under.
That’s it for today. Any feedback to any of my dumb questions will be appreciated. And hope you haven’t got tired of the Paris stuff, coz I have some more. Thank you for putting up with the rambling! See ya!
That’s it for today’s post.
Xray/CT scanning your camera is standard procedure—that happens everywhere and is no cause for concern. Best to just leave the camera in your backpack and move along, no need to remove it. Manual hand check of your films; rewind and remove film cartridge from camera if necessary, as the security agent suggested (his suggestion was valid?). I normally wait to load film after security. If push comes to shove, films below ISO 800 are normally okay with the scanners, as you’ve found with ISO 80 Ferrania.
Wonderful results from the P30–the bicycle shot is my favourite from your Paris series thus far.
I have transported my camera and extra rolls of film - FP4 - through countless x-ray machines. Sometimes more than once for the same roll, if I am going through several airports on the same trip. I have never had a problem. I just put it through and that's that. I have been told once upon a time that slower film deals with x-ray scanning better. I don't know if this is true, as I only use one speed of film.