At 08:29 AM 2/10/2003 -0800, Will wrote:
>Since 911 I've been pulled aside and received extra scrutiny every time
>I've flown with recording equipment. Usually the security people slide
>my case across the table to me and stand back as I open it. The
>microphones and preamp seem to be the most frightening items for them to
>touch and they try to figure out what I'm carrying.
>The only theft so far has been my AA and 9volt batteries. While
>traveling US->Mexico->US I wasn't allowed to carry on any batteries and
>had to put them in my check-in luggage. Upon arrival I found my bag had
>been rifled thru and all the batteries taken. Luckily I had extras
>hidden away and got my recordings...so much for "tight security"
>
>I can realize that a case with mics, recorders and cables must look
>pretty suspicious under an x-ray, but having equipment confiscated
>and/or stolen is just not acceptable. I don't mind saying that I feel my
>privacy and personal security has been greatly compromised by the
>current laws and standards. We carry on our recording gear because it
>is crucial to our work and very valuable. Perhaps shipping equipment is
>now the way to go despite the expense and hassle.
>
>I guess the next thread after this should be which shippers are the best
>and packing tips. :-)
>
>Will
Travelling recordists:
I have read with interest this thread. I travel about twice a year with
HHb Portadisc, Leica Binocs, two Sennheiser ME-67 mics in heavy PVC tubes,
etc. etc. And I have three rules which so far have "worked". We will see
if this is still so when we go to Hawaii in March.
1. I always arrive early and travel "as a family". This I suspect thwarts
a lot of the interest directed by "profiling". I realize, this is not an
available option for many.
2. I always have in my 35 lb. carry-on backpack sufficient wires, etc. so
the audio can be demonstrated to work - plug in and turn on and let anyone
HEAR sounds coming in, very sensitive, etc. This way no one can validly
doubt the functionality for long. I also always carry a field computer in a
fanny-pack. [I don't know how I would take any parabola, even a roll-up
one, but that 40 year period is behind me.]
3. As you already know, I regard ANY questions as a golden opportunity to
teach. I am delighted for find a grumpy guard who wants to know about the
sounds from our vanishing species, and takes such a sincere interest in
understanding the problems of unwanted noises and of habitat-specific
difficulties. Each question is rewarded by great detail and examples of
how each wire, rubber-band or twistem is critical to jungle recording
success. The more of a mess all my stuff makes on their table, the happier
and more excited I become to find so ardent a student. I almost guarantee
there isn't a person on the planet who can take more than five minutes of this!
Seriously, most of our comments so far are about how inconvenient this
"security" game is to US. Please think, instead, of how time-consuming and
inconvenient we can be to them. Especially by being
enthusiastic! ;^0) Every security station has a time-related quota,
and a ten minute pleasant, yet impassioned exchange about "our duties to
nature", will make us the LAST people they ever want to see
again. Besides, it makes other passengers certain that they have the wrong
person. Most people can make an accurate gut-judgement about the
trustworthiness of a stranger on overhearing them for only a few
seconds; only most guards seem to lack this capacity.
my best regards,
Marty Michener
MIST Software Associates PO Box 269, Hollis, NH 03049
EnjoyBirds.com - Software that migrates with you. http://www.EnjoyBirds.com
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