Putting film through an airport x-ray machine 10 times (with examples)
What happens when you put film through an airport x-ray? Countless forums and blog posts tell us that x-rays can’t hurt film below ISO 800. But what happens when you put the same roll of film through an airport x-ray multiple times? Like two or three times. What about ten times? If that roll of film is Kodak ColorPlus 200, then the answer is: nothing much.
Ask and you shall receive… an answer. Because that’s exactly what I did on a recent trip to Thailand.
I wasn’t trying to conduct an experiment. If anything, I was being negligent, or even lazy. I simply didn’t want to take the film out of my bag this time around since having it hand-checked by TSA and whatever the equivalent of TSA is in Dubai, Bangkok, and Chiang Mai felt like too much work. I trusted the internet when they told me nothing would happen.
The photos below were taken with a Konica Big Mini 201 on Kodak ColorPlus 200 film. One roll went through additional x-rays in New York and Boston before making its way to Asia.
X-Rayed Kodak Film
Do x-rays damage ISO 200 film?
I would say that if they do, it’s nearly impossible to tell. Now, I’m not advocating that anyone does this with film used for paid work or a project that’s got a lot of emotional weight or other pressure behind it. But if you’re experimenting with film photography in a “I want to see what things look like on film” sort of way, go ahead and leave your ISO 200 film in your carry on and send it down the airport security conveyer belt. You’ll be fine.
About the Film and Camera
Kodak ColorPlus 200 is one of the most affordable and accessible 35mm film stocks that you can buys. It’s available on Amazon in bundles of 3 to 5 rolls. This film has 36 frames and you can usually squeeze out an extra one or two. Best shot on a sunny day, I tend to overexpose it by at least a stop. It’s by far my favorite film for city snaps and travel shots.
The camera I used for the shots was my trusty Konica Big Mini BM-201. It has an f/3.5 lens and uses DX-coded film up to ISO 1600. I wrote a full review with sample shots which you can read here.
