Airline travel with gear and tripod

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lablover27

lablover27

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Flight coming up and I have cameras and lenses taken care of but I’m wondering what you all do if you want to bring tripod, monopod and gimbals? Check luggage or don’t bring it. Sebastian inlet trip April 3-7 as well as vierra wetlands and whatever else I can squeeze in. Would hate to not have at least a monopod.

for my carry on I’m gonna give the mindshift 45 l a try unless someone has a better suggestion. I like I can take the foam insert out with all the gear in case airline folks get cranky
 
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I always put tripods, ballheads/gimbals, and even my flash gear in my checked luggage and have never had a problem, nor have I heard of anyone else having a problem doing this.

The Mindshift 45 is pretty large; it's actually larger than the stated limits on airline carry-ons for all of the airlines I know about. On a larger plane you almost certainly can get away with it, but be aware that strictly speaking it is oversized. On any kind of regional flight using a smaller jet you might well run into trouble. You might consider the Mindshift 36L instead, as it's a bit smaller. You can plan to carry some camera gear in a "personal item" backpack or shoulder-type bag (ThinkTank makes some good ones).
 
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Enjoy Sebastian inlet as I've been the in 1st week of last June (only 2 Osprey), 2nd week last December (Less than 6) and the Thursday afternoon after Valentine's Day. On that day I saw and lost count at 16 Osprey, along with all the other birds. I've shot both sides of the inlet with the southside being the most popular side.

Also some airlines have weight limit on carry on.

Carry On Luggage Size: TSA and Airline Dimensions – TSA Travel Tips

Some of the most common travel-related questions we receive revolve around carryon luggage size and weight. What size bag are you allowed to bring as a carry
tsatraveltips.us tsatraveltips.us
 
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We just returned last night from a winter trip to Yellowstone and ended up buying one of the cheap hard-sided rollers for our tripods (4), gimbals and video heads (for spotting scope). Worked perfectly when we put each into a tripod bag. My wife actually found them at TJ Max. I think they were 29 inchs. I have seen rolling duffles go to 36 inches for even longer.
 
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I put my tripod, ball head, etc in my checked luggage BUT make sure it padded on all sides. Once I had a wimberley on the bottom of my soft-sided duffle and the airlines bent the screw that tightens my clamp. Now I have padding on all sides of my equipment and also disconnect the wimberley plate from the rest of the unit.
 
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Like f-Stop bags, the ICU's of the Mindshift 45L are a major advantage on flights IF one's bag is pulled aside for size/weight. The packs by Peak Design are useless IME but the Packing Modules are useful, particularly as they can be bought individually and fit other bags.

I also pack tripod, gimbals and other accessories in the main luggage, padded with clothes, sleeping bag etc. Better quality gimbals and tripods (Leofoto in my case) are sold with a well made custom bag, which gives useful protection.

Each and every optic travels with me in the cabin, if necessary at the time, smaller items in waistcoat pockets.

GrandNagus50 said:
I always put tripods, ballheads/gimbals, and even my flash gear in my checked luggage and have never had a problem, nor have I heard of anyone else having a problem doing this.

The Mindshift 45 is pretty large; it's actually larger than the stated limits on airline carry-ons for all of the airlines I know about. On a larger plane you almost certainly can get away with it, but be aware that strictly speaking it is oversized. On any kind of regional flight using a smaller jet you might well run into trouble. You might consider the Mindshift 36L instead, as it's a bit smaller. You can plan to carry some camera gear in a "personal item" backpack or shoulder-type bag (ThinkTank makes some good ones).
Click to expand...
 
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Travelling by air

Until now I have focused on landscape and macro photography. I recently caught the "BIF" and other "critters" bug in a big way and and added the Nikon 500mm f/5.6 pf to my bag. In the past I carried my equipment as "carry-on" when travelling by air; however, I think the addition of the 500 pf...
bcgforums.com bcgforums.com

Some backpack suggestions required after my bad experience (I am not proud of myself!)

When I am hicking with my 500 PF mounted on my D500, I use an old Vanguard photo backpack; two weeks ago, it was the case but I forgot my headlamp in the small pocket at the top of the bag; my camera was very tight in it but I didn't pay attention to it; on my way, I took the opportunity to take...
bcgforums.com bcgforums.com
 
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lablover27 said:
Flight coming up and I have cameras and lenses taken care of but I’m wondering what you all do if you want to bring tripod, monopod and gimbals? Check luggage or don’t bring it. Sebastian inlet trip April 3-7 as well as vierra wetlands and whatever else I can squeeze in. Would hate to not have at least a monopod.

for my carry on I’m gonna give the mindshift 45 l a try unless someone has a better suggestion. I like I can take the foam insert out with all the gear in case airline folks get cranky
Click to expand...
Always pack my tripod & gimbal in my checked bag, surrounded by clothing. Bring ball head along with my camera & lenses as carry-on.
 
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I travel a fair amount and tend to concentrate my travel on 1 or occasionally 2 airlines. That gives me priority boarding. If I think there might be a problem with my gear I approach a gate agent and ask if they can help me. I explain that I am very loyal customer to their airline (i.e., my status) and ask if they can help me find a place to stow my gear. Of course I tell them that I have professional level camera gear, I always carry a list of equipment with serial numbers and prices, ... I am very polite and let the agent know that I would be very appreciate of their help. If they agree, I ask for their ID number and tell them I will contact the airlines to tell the airline that they were very helpful.
 
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The trip is turning out to be pretty cool. Plans are being made for some great photo opportunities. Another member here will also be going at the same time so good times are going to be had. And we pulled it all off without a lawyer or anything. Hahaha. I’ve got a few bags on the way that may be friendlier than the mindshift. I have a checked bag that should easily accommodate the gimbal and tripod. Wooohooooo
 
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lablover27 said:
The trip is turning out to be pretty cool. Plans are being made for some great photo opportunities. Another member here will also be going at the same time so good times are going to be had. And we pulled it all off without a lawyer or anything. Hahaha. I’ve got a few bags on the way that may be friendlier than the mindshift. I have a checked bag that should easily accommodate the gimbal and tripod. Wooohooooo
Click to expand...
Me and Trent are looking forward to it! We are all booked and ready for the next couple weeks to fly by!
 
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lablover27 said:
Flight coming up and I have cameras and lenses taken care of but I’m wondering what you all do if you want to bring tripod, monopod and gimbals? Check luggage or don’t bring it. Sebastian inlet trip April 3-7 as well as vierra wetlands and whatever else I can squeeze in. Would hate to not have at least a monopod.

for my carry on I’m gonna give the mindshift 45 l a try unless someone has a better suggestion. I like I can take the foam insert out with all the gear in case airline folks get cranky
Click to expand...
I put my Tripod and gimble in my checked baggage and carry on the other gear. dont leave a tripod behind!
 
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lablover27 said:
Flight coming up and I have cameras and lenses taken care of but I’m wondering what you all do if you want to bring tripod, monopod and gimbals? Check luggage or don’t bring it. Sebastian inlet trip April 3-7 as well as vierra wetlands and whatever else I can squeeze in. Would hate to not have at least a monopod.

for my carry on I’m gonna give the mindshift 45 l a try unless someone has a better suggestion. I like I can take the foam insert out with all the gear in case airline folks get cranky
Click to expand...
I use 2 bags - One carry on for cameras and one for lighting and tripods.
I've found you can sometimes get away with one bag by slinging a camera around your neck through customs.
They seem more fussy about haw many batteries you bring.🦘
 
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RikWriter said:
I have a hard-shell Samsonite suitcase that's pretty durable and also has triple locks. I always put my tripod and gimbal head in this suitcase and locked it up.
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You are aware that in the US, the TSA has keys to open most standard luggage locks, and if they do not and want to see what is in your suitcase, you might not be very happy with how they get in your bag.

--Ken
 
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I think putting a TSA-compliant lock on your bag is meant to discourage wayward baggage handlers or passers-by. If we are now worried that the TSA will steal our tripods we have reached a sad state of affairs in this world, I fear.
 
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Replytoken said:
You are aware that in the US, the TSA has keys to open most standard luggage locks, and if they do not and want to see what is in your suitcase, you might not be very happy with how they get in your bag.

--Ken
Click to expand...


You are aware that I live in the US and have been flying with this setup for about 16 years, as recently as November? So yeah, I'm pretty familiar with how things work. Thankfully, I now live very close to where I want to be, so the only flights I'll be taking with camera equipment from now on will be to Alaska.
Since the vast majority of my trips are into grizzly country, I usually bring a large-caliber handgun with me as backup for my bear spray when I go hiking. This means that my bag is always walked to TSA security for a run through the X-ray machine. I wait there in case they need my key to get into the suitcase (they never have). Once they check it, that's it. No muss, no fuss, no one EVER breaking into my suitcase.
 
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