Tips for travelling on planes with heavy and expensive camera equipment.
Insurance companies like to charge a small fortune to get extra coverage for expensive cameras and lenses, and airlines will NOT guarantee your gear will arrive safely. Therefore, we are often stuck with carrying it as carry-on and taking responsibility for its safe arrival. Then on top of that we must, by law, carry any extra batteries and battery packs with us as carry-on. All of this can become rather heavy very quickly. The issue then becomes - how do we stay under the 7kg carry on limit imposed by many airlines?
Here are a few helpful tips they I have used to fly around the world with heavy and expensive camera equipment:
Keep your bag as small as possible: Whilst it may be ‘overweight’, if the bag looks small enough to underweight then they do not bother you with having it weighed. I pack all my heavy gear snuggly into a small over the shoulder bag, often to the point where I can be at 10kg - and on top of that I also have my 200-600mm lens in my hands which weighs another 2kg. At no point have I ever been questioned about the weight of my carry-on bag. During a recent flight they had mobile scales at the boarding queue and weighing everyone’s bags - but they walked straight past me as my bag did not look big enough to be overweight - even though it was over.
Small bags are less likely to be targeted.
With some careful packing you can fit a lot of gear and weight into a small bag which is not noticed by those who are weighing bags at the point of departure.
Tripod in checked baggage: Put my tripod in my check in bag but keep it in the centre and wrap it with clothing. If my tripod was lost or damaged in transit I could still survive and take images. I could even buy a cheapie in country that would do the job.
Filters, cables, and other small accessories in checked in bag: Whilst filters can be expensive to replace losing them would not end my photography opportunity, I can always use image stacking and get around not having filters or buy them in location. Therefore, I have a ‘hard case’ to store them in, and pack them into my checked baggage. Whilst losing the other small accessories can be inconvenient, they can be worked around and often purchased relatively cheaply at the destination.
Wear a big jacket with large pockets: I then put my extra batteries and battery pack into a little hard plastic carry case which slides easily into my jacket pockets. Those batteries can weight up to a kilogram or more themselves, especially if you have a battery pack, drone batteries, and spare camera batteries. They often have to be taken out and scanned separately at security anyhow - so makes it easy. Another option is to put them in a fanny pack (a small travel pack secured around your waist) and then wear your jacket over the top, which is then easy to remove for security screening.
Small waist bag / fanny pack.
These little bags are great for carrying extra batteries and other small items which add to our overall weight. They can be used covertly under a jumper or jacket - and are not targeted for weighing. They are also easy to remove at security.
Use your travel partner: if not going solo, and your travel partner doesn’t have ton of heavy and expensive camara gear of their own. By spreading the weight between both of you there is a good chance you can squeeze a good deal of extra weight past the gatekeepers.
Board early and book an aisle seat: By boarding early, I can ensure there is space in the overhead lockers right above my seat in which to store my bag. As for the aisle seat, I have seen enough new cities and done enough landings to not need a window seat - and I would much rather have better control of my bags and camera gear which may be stored in the overhead lockers. Nothing worse than being stuck in your window seat whilst other people move your bags around as they scramble to disembark the aircraft - they do not know what is in your bag and one dropped bag could be the end of any photography for that trip.
Separate little bags to organise things: I like to use small clear bags with zippers to help protect and store cables and other smaller items, including spare batteries, for the ease of taking it all out quickly should airport security require you to pull it all out. I also keep my lenses in small protective covers to protect them against damage due to being packed tightly into my small carry-on bag.
Prioritise your lenses: I often take a lens or two that I “may use” but it is not one of my regular go-too lenses. Therefore I often put these lenses inside of rigid protective storage cases and firmly packed into their checked-in baggage. If they are lost I can still take images without them and my trip will not be ruined.
Utilize Lens Cases: Individual lens inside a cases can be attached to your carry-on but quickly removed and attached to a belt under your jacket if you see staff weighing bags, it also helps to distribute the load and protect your lenses. Currently I just carry my 200-60mm lens inside a soft bag, and it works, but I am looking for a more protective case for it. And if you show the staff the lens and tell them it costs thousands of dollars - they will most likely let it slide as a personal item.
Travel Light
Or at least make it look that way!!!
Other tips I have seen from others but not used or employed myself:
Communicate with Airline Staff: Notify airline staff at check-in about your valuable and fragile gear. They might offer special accommodations, such as priority boarding or a safe storage space in the cabin.
Wear a Photographer's Vest: Utilize a vest with multiple pockets to carry smaller items like lenses and accessories. This can help you distribute weight and potentially bypass some carry-on restrictions.
Consider a Pelican Case: This is one option I have considered. For extremely fragile or valuable items, a Pelican case provides robust protection. While these cases are often checked-in baggage, their durability can offer peace of mind.
Just pay for the insurance: whilst I always get a good travel insurance I have never paid the extra for additional cover for expensive camera equipment. That may change in the future but for now I am happy to employ some extra methods to ensure I do not need to use insurance.
By employing many of these methods I have often been able to travel with two camera bodies (two different systems) and still carry a couple of lenses for each system. So far, I have never had any issues with carrying the extra weight, and not had any issues with lost or damaged equipment. Let’s hope it stays that way…
Please share in the comments any methods you use to safely travel with your camera equipment.
