Checking in Photo gear with your airline.

[CoralKisser]

DAN "North America" is available to US and Canada residents. (but not Mexico. Mexico uses another DAN subsidiary)

see DAN Divers Alert Network : Insurance : Diving Accident Insurance Plan

says:

DAN America membership and dive accident insurance are available to residents of the United States and Canada​

.



Note their "Dive Equipment Insurance" is actually provided by another company. Dive Equipment Insurance services are being provided by Senn, Dunn, Marsh, and Roland, LLC.


I can't view that website at work. but here's the link http://www.diversalertnetwork.org/danservices/equipment.asp

Yes I have DAN accident insurance but the Dive equipment insurance is not available to Canadians. I called them to ask. Makes no sense if you ask me. You can get $2000000 coverage dive coverage but you cant get coverage for your equipment.

 

[Doc Harry]

I put the following in my checked luggage:
-camera housing
-strobe arms
-battery charger
-NiMH batteries
-o-rings
-camera tools

I put the following items in my carry-on luggage:
-digital SLR
-lenses
-strobes
-Lithium batteries
-filters
-focus light
-ports

My homeowner's replacement insurance covers the excess of the airline's limitations of baggage liability.

 

[Mo2vation]

Most standard homeowners, while covering 100% of the item's value should it be boosted from your home, cover only 10% - 15% of the item's value should the loss occur away from the home (stolen from your car, lifted from a hotel room abroad, etc.) DAN is secondary insurance. Its not primary insurance. Be sure to double check your homeowners or renters insurance before you leave - you may be surprised that the coverage isn't the same when your stuff is "out of the home".

My carry on approaches 70 pounds. I have in there my strobes, back plate, canister light (its just easier to explain to TSA while I'm standing there what this steep shield is and what this thing that looks like a pipebomb is) wrapped in my hood, my housing and ports, my regulators and often my fins (they're heavy jets, and it helps sell the other stuff as Scuba gear.) In my briefcase I have my lap top, Nikon Bodies and lenses, iPod, noise cancelling phones, healthy snacks.

I never check photo gear. If my bag is delayed (they're rarely actually 'lost') I can rent a drysuit. I can't rent regs as nice as mine, nor can I rent a camera rig.

Everything in checked can be purchased or rented locally.

I don't believe in LowePro stuff. It screams "photo" and makes it a target.

-Ken

 

[John Gulliver]

I put the following in my checked luggage:
-camera housing
-strobe arms
-battery charger
-NiMH batteries
-o-rings
-camera tools

So if your checked luggage arrives at your destination three days after you do, as happened to me in Indonesia two years ago, you can't take any pictures the first three days of your trip.

 

[Doc Harry]

So if your checked luggage arrives at your destination three days after you do, as happened to me in Indonesia two years ago, you can't take any pictures the first three days of your trip.

Correct.

But I can't fit everything into my carry-on luggage, so something has to give.

 

[Warren_L]

What I've taken to doing in the past few years is to put my cam in it's housing, with a big lens, and port, put a neck strap around the handles and hand carry that onboard. Most airlines allow a personal item, which could be a purse, camera, laptop, etc. This is my personal item. I carry it around like a tourist would carry around a camera, and it saves me a ton of weight and space in my carry-on, which has all my lenses and other things that I cannot afford to lose or get delayed. This does a number of things .... it saves weight and space, as well as it makes the security people curious, which has often helped since I get to talking about underwater photography and they often do not worry about the rest of what I have packed in my carry-on. Be sure to keep a memory card in the cam with some underwater photos on it so you can show them.

When I went through Frankfurt a couple of weeks ago on my way back from Cairo, in my limited German I explained to them the camera was for "tauchen" and spent a few minutes showing them some of the pics I had just taken that week from the Red Sea. They were very interested in seeing the pics and just waved me through after a few minutes.

 

[scuba e]

Interesting point from Warren. I put the camera body in the housing as well, just in a bag. What I have found really interesting though is the fact that when I pack my camera bags and look at them I cant help but think "Red flag, red flag". I mean, I am no expert but it looks like some elaborate bomb. (Damn, now I said it, I am on a watch list for sure!) Yet I never get stopped or questioned. Weird. Then again, has TSA every stopped anyone or foiled any great plots? Other than Aquafina smugglers........Sorry, wrong forum/subject.

 

[Chuck Tribolet]

The Pelican cases are great cases (I own about 10), but they shout "STEAL ME" so I don't fly with them. They do yeoman duty on my own boat though.

T+1 for the Lowe Pro-Roller bags. They look like everybody's roller bag, esp. if you take the Lowe logos off.

BTW, I drove from NorCal to my last tropical dive trip. Two big dive bags, three Pro-Rollers, a camera back pack, a couple of clothes bags, and four small Pelicans for the two of us.

 

[Doc Harry]

...Two big dive bags, three Pro-Rollers, a camera back pack, a couple of clothes bags, and four small Pelicans for the two of us...

:shocked2:

 

[John Gulliver]

My allowance on my trip to the Red Sea next week is 20 kilos, INCLUDING 5 kilos carry-on luggage I'll have at least 30 kilos, so I'll no doubt be charged a lot for excess, assuming they let me take it all!!!!!