22. KEEP YOURSELF AND YOUR GEAR SAFE
SO NOW THAT you are totally loaded up with a travel gear wish list, let’s talk about protecting your investment when you travel. You need to think about a lot of things before you depart on a journey—from researching location safety and history of petty crime to creating best practices to physically protect your gear from the elements. Keep in mind as you travel that you may be targeted not only because of your gear but because you are a tourist. For the most part, staying safe is about staying smart and staying aware, but there are a few other ways to hedge your bets for safety.
Travel Days
The first potential point of friction for your gear is the security line at the airport. When I pass through security, I make sure my gear is well organized so I can take a quick visual inventory and know if anything is missing or damaged. I never check my gear, but if for some reason you have to, make sure you’re using a hard-sided, Pelican-style case with plenty of padding and a TSA-approved lock. If I have to check my case for any reason, I always remove the most expensive or irreplaceable gear and carry it on the plane in hand.
When checking bags, visually inspect your gear in detail once you have arrived at your destination airport and make sure to take pictures with your phone of any damage. If you find damages, fill out damage claims forms on site. Do not leave the airport without filing any necessary paperwork.
If you are traveling internationally, double-check not only the regulations in your home airport but the destination airport as well. The TSA seems to change their regulations on a near-constant basis, so before you head to any airport, double-check whether they will require you to provide proof of purchase for your gear, access to your bodily cavities, or custody of your first-born.
When I travel internationally, I make sure to carry a printout of all the gear I’m bringing from home. Occasionally customs and immigration will require you to provide an itemized list with purchase dates and serial numbers to prove you haven’t purchased any of your gear abroad. Your life will be so much easier if you already have that information compiled on a spreadsheet.
If you are heading to an area notorious for harassing photographers, you can make things even more official by purchasing a Carnet (an official document that serves as a sort of passport for your gear). This will allow you to travel internationally through 87 listed countries without any concern of import/export tariffs on the gear you already own for a period of twelve months. Carnets sound like an easy fix, but because they are somewhat expensive to obtain ($250–$500 depending on the value of your gear), they may be more trouble than they’re worth. Like all things photographic, a bit of research will let you know if a Carnet is a good idea for your particular travel destinations.
Above all else, use common sense and your personal discretion to keep your gear safe on travel days. No matter how much a location boasts its safety or lack of crime, never leave gear unattended. I have seen thefts occur in seconds on trains, and we’ve all heard of unfortunate smash and grabs happening to parked cars. Take any necessary precautions to keep your gear protected.
Gear Upkeep and Safety
In many ways, the natural world is out to get you. Heat, humidity, insects, sand, and dust are all legitimate concerns when traveling. We’ll talk a bit more about the many creative ways nature can kill you later (see lesson 44, “Nature Is Dangerous”), but for now, let’s discuss how it can seriously mess up your gear.
Heat can be a massive issue for sensitive photographic gear. Cameras are intended to operate within a certain temperature range (check your camera manual for specifics), but even if the ambient temperature seems low enough, things like direct sunlight and heat from within the camera itself can become an issue. Because most cameras are black, they have a real tendency to absorb heat from the sun. An overheated camera can malfunction and produce images with increased noise levels (Figure 22.1).
In hot environments, limit the amount of live view and image stabilization you use to reduce the operating temperature of the camera. In direct sunlight, be sure to cover your camera with a white cloth or towel between shots to reflect some of the sunlight from being absorbed by your camera.
Humidity and rapid temperature changes can cause a variety of issues for your gear. To help avoid most humidity-related issues, keep a small pack of desiccant in the main compartment of your camera bag. Dry off any excess moisture with a microfiber towel before putting your camera away to make the desiccant more effective. Over the course of a long trip in a humid environment, your desiccant packs may become saturated and unable to absorb more moisture, so consider keeping a few backup packs ready to go in an airtight bag.
Anyone who has taken their camera outside from an air-conditioned hotel room to a hot environment has experienced a foggy lens and surface condensation (Figures 22.2 and 22.3).
22.1 This photo is super noisy, even at ISO 200. I was shooting in 120°F heat.
22.2 Flower with lots of condensation, Virgin Gorda, British Virgin Islands.
ISO 100; 1/250 sec.; f/4.5; 50mm
22.3 Condensation on my lens at a NASA facility in Mississippi.
ISO 100; 1/500 sec.; f/3.5; 8mm
To avoid temperature fluctuation issues, give your gear a few minutes to acclimate to a new temperature before you start shooting. If you plan to hop in and out of a car to photograph along a road trip, forego the personal comfort of air conditioning and open the windows instead. You’ll be ready to stop and take photos at any point without fog or condensation.
Tiny insects can be a major nuisance when traveling to certain climates. Many nature and wildlife photographers have shared horror stories about miniscule ants and other bugs getting inside their cameras and causing irreparable damage. If you are traveling to a location with a particularly active insect population, check the seals on your gear regularly. Be sure to tightly close battery and memory card compartment doors and consider covering potential access points with gaff tape for an extra level of protection. When lenses are not in use, replace the front and back lens caps to keep bugs from working their way inside. On a recent trip to Nicaragua, I suffered an onslaught of teeny ants in one of my bags. Fortunately, they missed my gear entirely and only got into my Xanax prescription. I was super lucky and they at least died happy.
Dust, sand, dirt, and pollen can also cause you some gear drama. Get in the habit of inspecting and cleaning your gear at least once a day to keep any nastiness from accumulating. Camera armor is an option to help protect the exterior of your gear, but most options on the market are made of silicone. As the former owner of a silicone phone case that was regularly covered in lint, fuzz, and mysterious wads of hair, I have personally avoided covering my camera in silicone at all costs.
Thieves are a real issue all over the world. Trust the advice of locals on what locations are safe and what places might be a bit more dicey. Do your homework. When you’re in crowded areas, keep your camera strap securely across your body and keep a hand on your lens. The sneakiest thieves can detach an expensive lens from your camera without you ever knowing. There are any number of scams and techniques pickpockets use to get at your gear quickly and efficiently. Keep your eyes open.
Humans, even the most well-intentioned, are often the biggest danger to your gear—a lesson I learned the hard way. Once on a trip I made the mistake of haphazardly repacking my gear once I was done shooting. It had been a long day and I was ready to use the bathroom, grab a bite, and take a moment to catch my breath before heading home. Unfortunately, a very intoxicated friend decided to throw my camera bag at me and the bag hit a tiled floor with a major thunk. Granted, there’s not a foolproof way to protect your gear from drunk people, but if I had packed my bag as carefully at the end of the day as I do at the beginning, there would have been considerably less risk to my expensive gear. Think twice before letting anyone else handle your gear. Few people will be as careful as you are.
Regardless of how careful you intend to be, always insure your gear for the maximum replacement value. I’ve seen so many photographers travel without gear insurance and suffer thefts or damage, and have to turn to crowdfunding to replace their gear. If you can afford to travel, then you can afford to insure your gear. Don’t be that guy who gets screwed in the long term by a stupid mistake and has to publicly beg for help. Build gear insurance into the budget for your trip. Insurance is your friend. Please don’t travel without it.
Your Physical Safety
On a family trip to Ottawa in July 2011, my husband, my parents, and I were walking back to our hotel after lunch. The skies were oddly dark and though it had been quite windy moments before, all of the flags and banners suddenly went slack. Four or five blocks ahead there appeared an enormous wall of dust and debris—think sandstorm—and the four of us were pelted with grit and gravel. I had my camera out and could have easily stayed in the open to document the crazy weather, but smarter heads prevailed (my husband’s fight-or-flight instincts are legit), and we ran to shelter in a nearby restaurant.
Moments later the storm with the force of an F1 tornado ripped past us, carrying patio furniture, debris, and massive decorative stone planters with it (Figure 22.4). The storm ravaged the stage at the nearby Ottawa Bluesfest and caused many injuries, one death, and major infrastructural damage to portions of the city.
Sometimes when we travel we are presented with amazing photographic opportunities that require putting ourselves in the way of potential physical harm. Unless you’re an adrenaline junkie or a war correspondent, the photo potentials aren’t worth it. Do what you can to keep a cool head and protect yourself.
For my first major solo trip, my biggest source of intimidation wasn’t keeping my gear safe—it was the concept of my personal safety. I had all kinds of people coming out of the woodwork of my life worried about a petite woman on the road alone. It was easy to begin feeling overwhelmed and convinced that the world was out to get me. I learned soon enough that it wasn’t.
The most important thing I did to keep myself safe was to stay clear headed and aware. Both my husband and my parents had a general itinerary so they could feel secure in my whereabouts. I used good judgment when it came to not hiking alone in bear country and traveled with bear spray just in case (Figure 22.5). I kept my eyes open and when anyone got a little too friendly or attentive I made sure to stay in well-populated areas.
Over 45 days of travel through crowded cities, desolate wilderness, and everything in between, I stayed alert and paid careful attention to my surroundings. Follow the same practices you would to keep yourself safe at home, and if something makes you uncomfortable, speak up and take immediate action to remedy the situation. Your gear isn’t worth your personal safety, so whether you’re under threat by a mountain lion, a too-friendly creeper, or a bandit with a gun, forget your gear and keep yourself safe. That’s what insurance is for.
22.4 A massive pile of furniture and debris lie where we had been standing only moments before. It may not look that threatening, but imagine that pile flying toward you at 100 mph. Sparks Street, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
ISO 1600; 1/25 sec.; f/4.5; 22mm
22.5 Woe to the bear that takes me on while I’m armed and dangerous with my bear spray.