[Leica] Oh how the Leica travel FAQ has changed in the last decade

[Ted Grant]

Hi TINA & CREW!
There was a time when checking in at the airline you were allowed a certain amount of luggage by weight of suit case. 
"PLUS THE WEIGHT OF A PHOTO CARRY ON SHOLDER BAG!" Mine usually came in around 50 pounds plus with 5 bodies some lenses. It always cost a fortune for baggage when adding up both suit case (which was usually about max. weight allowed without paying extra.) 

HOWEVER??? :-) :-) In the GOOD OLD DAYS WHEN WE DIDN'T HAVE TO THINK ABOUT TERRORIST BAD GUYS BLOWING THINGS-UP? There were lockers in the airports. So here was the plan of saving baggage costs! :-)

You'd arrive at airport get the cart and look for the lockers.  Put your change into key slot, get your key and almost empty your shoulder bag of all cameras, but one and heavy lenses. The bag became feather light in weight. :-)  Lock up the locker then stroll over to counter, check-in "not ever over weight!" :-) Receive boarding pass. Return to locker and re-cover all the heavy gear into shoulder bag and off to the boarding gate!" Smiling all the way onto the plane! :-)

Worked rather well when doing a quickie assignment in London and Paris. That was: Leave Montreal on over-night flight to Paris, into hotel, shower and shoot as quickly as you could get yourself organized. Then hop over to London for one more day. Then leave next morning back to Montreal there and back to Montreal in 4 days, many less! And when you'd arrive back to be asked...... "How was Paris?" My answer usually was...... "which minutes of what day? :-) "WAS I REALLY IN PARIS?" As it was almost like a dream it all happened so fast!:-( Just think for a moment Montreal-Paris-London-Montreal in 48 hours! SLEEP??? What IS meaning of word sleep?" Please explain? :-)

Don't forget we didn't have internet! So a photog "HAD TO GO TO PLACES TO COVER ASSIGNMWENTS AND NEWS STORIES!" Then came the internet...... "DAMN!" That ended about 95% of quick overseas assignments. "OH WELL IT WAS A WONDERFUL TIME BEING A PHOTOJOURNALIST FLIPPING ABOUT THE WORLD AT ANY TIME!" :-) 

But you sure as heck didn't come back with some dumb-ass excuse why you didn't have the subject well covered, even though you only had a few hours to shoot! BECAUSE ?? If you didn't have any rolls of film for the lab????? SURPRISE?  The assignment editor immediately "FORGOT YOUR NAME FOR FUTURE ASSIGNMENTS!":-( Of course an "ABSOLUTELY HONEST REASON FOR NO PICTURES?" You were excused because it wouldn't have been the photog's fault.

Fortunately mine usually worked out OK as the journalist and I were a solid successful team? 99.99999999% :-) Oh sure nobody is perfect despite what we hear about the "GREAT'S OF YESTER YEAR!" Oh yeah and a few from today who think they are! ;-) 

Just  another story from the great days of being a photojournalist. :-) YEP IT WAS A TIME! :-)
cheers,
ted.



  

-----Original Message-----
From: LUG [mailto:lug-bounces+tedgrant=shaw.ca at leica-users.org] On Behalf Of Tina Manley
Sent: October-08-14 2:41 AM
To: Leica Users Group
Subject: Re: [Leica] Oh how the Leica travel FAQ has changed in the last decade

I'm flying to Boston this morning and my camera bag, containing only
Leicas, weighs 35 pounds.  It's all of the extra "stuff" I need for digital
- computer, battery chargers, cords, etc.  At least I'm not carrying 300
rolls of film!  And the camera bag has wheels ;-)

Tina

On Tue, Oct 7, 2014 at 11:13 PM, kyle cassidy on the lug <
leicaslacker at gmail.com> wrote:

> Years ago, with the helps of several luggers, we created this Leica M
> travel FAQ:
>
> http://kylecassidy.com/leicaslacker/plug/travelfaq.html
>
> which I was reading with some nostalgia tonight thinking “ah, what I
> thought I knew about travel back then”
>
> And then, mostly revised, from 2013 my own “how to travel as a
> photographer":
>
> http://kylecassidy.livejournal.com/768548.html
>
> I realize, a dozen years later, that what I’ve learned is that “thinking
> about photography” is less important than “thinking about you” (or at least
> “me” but then I’m a narcissist) and that all this time later, my practical
> advice isn’t about lenses, it’s about _not carrying crap that you don’t
> need to carry_.
>
> Hope it’s helpful.
>
> kc
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Leica Users Group.
> See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information
>



-- 
Tina Manley
www.tinamanley.com
tina-manley.artistwebsites.com

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