If you bring a film camera to an airport will the film get ruined in the x-ray security?

Question

Im bringing some un-used film on a trip, and i was just wondering if you put the film through security system x-ray if it will ruin it, like as in make the film into ruined negatives

Answer 1

Do NOT send it with your checked luggage.  Keep it with you in your carry-on.  The low dose carry-on Xray will do little damage, especially to lower speed films.  If you are carrying ISO 800 or above, ask for a hand check.  If you have it ready and in Ziploc bags, they are usually willing to take a minute to hand check.  If they won't, just send it through.  It is unlikely to do visible damage, and making a scene about it is not advised.  Xray damage is cumulative.  The more times it goes through, the more damage is done.

Answer 2

It used to be that if you asked, they would hand check your film if it was in a plastic bag. These days, forget it.

As long as the exposure to the x-rays is minimal, you won't notice a degradation in your image quality. If you are planning a trip with many passes through security, your options are to either get your film processed before traveling home with it, or ship it, but check to see if the shipper x-rays their packages.

Do NOT put your film in your check baggage. Even the airport security doesn't recommend it, as the baggage x-ray machines can damage your film.

I used to take extraordinary measures to protect my film, using lead lined bags, but have since relaxed, since most of the time, I can't do anything about it. Lead lined bags seemed to cause the security people to pause the machine and look longer.

I've traveled with BW and color film, that has passed through 6-8 security x-ray machines (domestic and international), and haven't noticed any appreciable fogging. That isn't to say it's not happening, but I didn't feel that I had excess base fog or streaking in my film. I had no trouble in the darkroom with these negatives.

One thing I do, is put all my film in a large gallon ziplock or quart ziplock, if it's only a few rolls. I pull my film out of my bag and put it in a separate tray from my camera gear. I also try and space it away from my camera bag. (Film in one tray, shoes and jacket, camera bag)

The reason for this is that camera gear usually looks very interesting to security, and they tend to keep it in the machine longer, so it gets more x-ray exposure. By putting the film through separately, you can minimize the exposure to x-rays that your camera gear will get.

Answer 3

No it won't.