Nowadays, we all carry a photographic camera in your pocket, thanks to mobile phones. Even so, there are still nostalgic people who continue using digital cameras and doubly nostalgic people who have not left behind the traditional film cameras. In fact, in recent years, after a previous drop in sales, the latter have become fashionable again. Many people prefer to take these cameras on their trips, but they forget that, if the trip is by plane, you have to be careful when passing the film through the airport controls.
These work through X-rays They perform an x-ray on our luggage to check that there is nothing prohibited inside. If in said luggage we carry the camera and the photographic filmit is possible that it will suffer damage that, when it goes through development, will be transformed into a kind of fog very visible in the photos.
This does not always happen when passing reels through airport controls, but there are certain factors that exacerbate the danger. For this reason, Kodak itself has developed in recent years a guidelines guide to pass the photographic films through security controls, without our photos being compromised in the process. You just have to take a few details into account. But let’s start at the beginning, what is the risk due to?
Light and silver: the keys to photography
Photographic films have several layers, with different functions, but the one responsible for the risk that the reels run at airport controls is the gelatinous layer.
It is composed of a plastic base covered by a gelatin in which they are immersed. silver halide crystals. When light hits these crystals, the silver becomes metallic silvermuch darker.
That light, which bounces from the objects we want to immortalize, enters through the diaphragm and the shutter, which control both the amount of light that penetrates and the time during which it does so. The areas in which the light hits the crystals will be darkened by the metallic silver effect. On the other hand, those that the light does not reach will not suffer any effect. This is how the negative of the image is formed, which must then be developed with the help of other chemical reactions.
Even when the photograph has already been captured, the photographic film is still light sensitive. For this reason, the reels are stored in dark containers and their exposure to light should be avoided at all times. But also to other types of radiation, such as X-rays.
The danger of reels at airport controls
When X-rays, capable of penetrating the box in which the reel is located, hit the photographic film, an effect similar to that of light is produced. The result is a kind of fog or the appearance of streaks that, of course, destroy photos that have not yet been developed.
But this does not always happen. According to Kodak, there are three details that must be taken into account. On the one hand, the scanner type that is used at that airport. In Europe and the United States, in recent years, scanners have begun to be used. computed tomography, whose images of the interior of the luggage are much clearer. It is very effective, of course, but also very powerful. So much so that they can damage the photographic film in one go. If it is a conventional X-ray scanner, it is usually okay to only go through it once. Nevertheless, damage is cumulative; so if we are going to go through several airportsextreme precautions must be taken.
Finally, the type of film also influences the effects of X-rays. If they are high exposure, or ISO, they will be more damaged, basically because, just as they are exposed more to light, they are also exposed more to X-rays On the other hand, if the ISO is less than 800clear damage usually does not occur.
NASA studies
NASA itself has carried out studies aimed at verifying the effects of radiation on photographs. In their case it is not about passing reels through airport controls, but about the cosmics rays who would be in constant contact with the camera.
These studies analyze the amount of fog produced on different photographic films exposed to radiation. His conclusion, broadly speaking, is that the haze will be greater in negative films and, as we have already seen, higher ISO.
What can we do with the reels at airport controls?
The main recommendation from experts is to prevent films from going through security checks, especially if they are from computed tomography. To do this, they should not be carried in checked luggage, as there we lose control over them. It is best to carry them in the hand luggage and, once at the control, ask the person in charge to, if possible, analyze it manually.
This should always be done, but especially if they are movies ISO higher than 800 or they will go through various controls. Finally, Kodak also recommends, if possible, having the photos developed before the trip. You can’t always do this, so the best option is usually the above.
Finally, if it could not be avoided, in its study NASA also found that the fog can be removed of some photographs. But it’s not easy and they don’t always look good. Therefore, with photos, as with everything in life: better safe than sorry.