Adobe Iceland Adventure: Practical Lesson #1
Ulefoss, Norway: In just a couple days, on July 28th, the Adobe Lightroom/Photoshop Iceland adventure officially begins. But I've already learned my first lesson and it cost me a pretty penny. Hopefully you'll learn from my mistake!
I'm writing from Europe. I came out early, leaving San Francisco and flying here to Norway to the family house with my wife and two daughters. I packed everything I could in my carry-on--two laptops (hey, computers are critical when you are testing beta software), and most of my cameras and lenses, but not all. As I approached what felt like several hundred ponds of carry-on baggage I decided to pack some of my lenses into a bag I planned to check in.
I recalled a big sign at the airport warning against locking check in bags. Homeland security, you know. So no locks for me. Just blind faith. Well, turns out that wasn't enough.
We stopped in Iceland, but one of my two checked bags never appeared. Yep, you guessed it. The one carrying my extra lenses. There is nothing worse than watching people walk away with their bags while you stand there waiting for yours. I spent the next two days in Iceland setting up the hotels, restaurants, transportation, parties, etc. for the Adobe Lightroom Iceland adventure. At the end, still no bag, no extra lenses.
Finally, a few days after we arrived in Oslo, the bag was located and returned to me. I felt something was wrong before I opened it. A vib thing. Sure enough, my Nikkor AF-S VR 24-120 lens was missing from its box. I immediately informed the airline and quickly got an apologetic email back. "We are so sorry for your loss," the email read, "However, we are not liable...check with your insurance company." Sure, I have camera insurance, but with a $500 deductible. So there you go...money down the drain.
When I told Derrick Story, another one of the Adobe Iceland Adventure team, about my loss he was sympathetic, but then he said gently, "You know you could have locked the bag."
Huh? I felt pretty stupid. "Yeah," Derrick said, "There are TSA-approved luggage locks that have both combination and key access. According to National Geographic - where I bought mine - only TSA personnel have the keys to the locks. If the locks are opened by TSA, it is indicated on the lock by a red dot. You can learn more about these here."
Thanks Derrick! Next time...
Stay tuned for more lessons from the adventure...
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For expensive equipment you may want to consider a carrier such as FedEx for shipping to and from a site. Added expense, added hassle, but much more reliable and I believe it is possible to cover a much greater dollar amount in case of loss.
Anything in checked baggage is open to theft. My wife just had an SD card stolen from a checked bag, with a TSA lock on it. The lock also disappeared. If someone will steal a single card, real equipment will definitely be gone.
I just returned from several weeks shooting in Africa. The TSA locks were a must (and only cost $6-$8) each, but I only put non-critical equipment in checked baggage (tripods, support gear, tools, etc). None of our locks were opened on any leg of the trip by airline or security personnel.
I carried ALL photo gear (camera, lenses, specialty heads, etc.) in a photo backpack confroming to international carry on dimensions (except mine's quite a bit heavier than they allow). I also wear a photo vest, which I can transfer any equipment into if airline personnel become sticklers about carry on weight (you can put the equipment back into the backpack once you're on the plane).
Due to remoteness, lack of electrical recharging facilities and copious dust throughout our travels, I elected to forgo digital equipment entirely (including no laptop - it was wonderful to NOT have to even think about e-mail for three weeks). I shot only film (come on, some of you HAVE to remember film...), all of which was carried in a soft briefcase and hand inspected at every airport (and yes, they frequently swabbed and inspected EVERY individual roll - it helped to have the rolls packed in clear plastic food storage containers, rather than their individual plactic film canisters).
It also pays to be as courteous and polite as possible to the airline and security people, and give yourself plenty of time so that you don't feel rushed if they say they have to hand inspect every little item, such a your film rolls. We actually had to go through three different x-ray and inspection stations in Nairobi before boarding a plane, but got hand inspection of the film (and they checked every roll every time) at every one. It helped that we got there 2-1/2 - 3 hours before the flight departed.
Best of luck on this project!
I really do not know if this applies, but I had a family member lose checked luggage on Alaska Airlines a few months ago, with a camera inside. They refused to pay for it....until they were served with a supoena to small claims court. Everything was paid for!
Yeah, I agree Scott. Non-attachment is helpful... So is a good insurance policy. And for everything else, Visa.
Sorry for your loss but it's the basis for my primary travel rule.
Any checked bag equals a lost bag.
And the fact of the matter is, even when I get all of my lenses in my carry on, which I will, I still have to put some important stuff in checked bag. It's just the nature of a trip like this that requires lots of equipment. I'm using the TSA-approved locks. But I'll also say a little prayer before sending my bag on the conveyer belt...
It was Icelandair, one the adventure's major sponsors... In fairness to the airline, which, by the way is one of my favorite airlines, they use a second party handler out of San Francisco. It just goes to show that this kind of thing can happen anytime with anyone...and to be prepared.
I'm sure sorry for your loss, too. While I no longer have a big investment in cameras, I did have about $2,000 worth of Canon camera and lenses about 15 years ago. I've also been told by an airline that they are irresponsible (maybe it sounded like not responsible) with baggage. In my case, it was a Mac dual G5 tower that ATA Airlines damaged. Whether it's damaged or stolen, it sure sucks that putting the burden on their customers is the way they deal with their problems. Btw, which airline was it? There's no sense in that behaviour going unmentioned.