Any creative ideas on keeping Velvia cool in the desert?

On the box it says to keep Velvia at below 15C/59F.
I'm heading into the desert (car, tent) and outside tempratures will hit 40C/104F (although it may slip below 19C/70F at night).
No fridge.
Any tips on keeping Velvia 100 cool (do I need to?). Thanks!!

As cool as possible, but there are limitations to what you can do. Keep the film in shade, enclosed is some sort of insulated container.

We survived 50C in Egypt with doing that with no discernable effect on the film. At least not for the relatively short times involved.

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Best regards, John

Thanks John - the answer I was hoping for!

I have found an insulated lunch bag in Marks & Spencer which should have room for ~24 films (6 x 4) on the bottom layer and a couple of tinnies in the top layer (to assist with cooling). £4 and black - looks almost Lowepro!

Second question - does anyone bother with those 'film safe bags' to get films through the allegedly safe x-ray machines? [/img][/code]

Hand inspection is the thing for films if at all possible. If you use a film safe bag then it will show up as a suspicious blank area, so the operators may well turn up the intensity so they can see inside....

My experience is that slow films are not particularly vulnerable to low dose X-ray scanneras, but it would definitely be unwise to put them in hold luggage.

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Best regards, John

I have extensive experience of shipping film around the globe. Only once did I experience any ill effects. The film, Tri.X, was exposed at 1600asa, and maybe went through a dozen or so 'x-ray' machines. There was print through on the sprocket holes and a slight lowering of contrast - nothing too bad. Slower rated film seemed comparitively OK. Now, this was some time ago and technology at airports has presumably become more sophisticated but is it more harmful? I suspect not since none of my globe-trotting pro chums have brought this subject up in years. In extreme temperatures your M&S cool bag will have reached the ambient temperature long before lunch, I'm afraid. Why dont you invest £50 in one of those 12v coolboxes that run off the car's 12v socket. If the film and beer is straight out of the fridge before you put them in the box they will stay cool for a decent length of time.

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Ken
“We must avoid however, snapping away, shooting quickly and without thought, overloading ourselves with unnecessary images that clutter our memory and diminish the clarity of the whole.” - Henri Cartier-Bresson -

Put the insulated container in a plastic bowl, and over the top drape a damp tea-towel. The evaporation should keep it a little under ambient temperature for as long as it's damp and the air is dry

But be carefull with the power usage... A decent electric fridge uses quite a lot of power and will drain your car battery in hours.
I experienced this first hand last summer, I forgot to pull the plug out of the socket...
This is quite a big fridge however which draws 8 to 9A from the 12 volt socket. This combined with a 70Ah battery which is in my car gives for a speedy discharge. On campingsites it runs on propane so I am never out of cold beer

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Camera:K20D|Ist*DS|Spotmatic II|MZ-10
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Keep it with the beer.

G

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Keywords: Charming, polite, and generally agreeable.

A few years ago my brother undertook a consultancy job in the Philippines. He had to travel to many of the different islands, and reckonned he went through 36 airport departures.

All his films were ruined except the ones he had taken in the last few days.

G

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Keywords: Charming, polite, and generally agreeable.

This is an untried method, but using basic science principals, it ought to work.

Place your film in a watertight container, then put that container in a watertight bag and bury the whole lot at least a foot (the deaper the better) deep in the sand. Mark the place you buried it and cover the area with one of those silver or gold survival blankets. If you have any waste water, wet the area.

The deaper it's buried, the cooler it will be.
The evaporation process will keep it cool.
The blanket will reflect the suns heat.
The marker will ensure you can find the film again after a sandstorm.

Alternatively, take a tree with you and leave the film in the shade of the tree. Easy really.

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Peter E Smith

My flickr Photostream

Fill an unglazed Terracotta pot with water and keep shaded from the sun, place the film in the pot inside a waterproof container. As the water evaporates it should have a cooling effect? That's my best guess anyway!

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K5, LightRoom 5
Sigma 8-16 Pentax DA 16-45 Pentax DA 55-300 Pentax 18-55WR Tamron 90 Di Macro Metz 44 AF-1

Hi Guys,
Might be a bit late getting on to this post ( only just noticed it)
Here's my bit for what it's worth
Over the years I have done several lengthy trips (2 months +)
through central Sahara, Top end of Australia, Utah Arizona etc.
Never took any sophisticated care of my films. No fridge - No beer!!!
In any real desert, night time is your friend - we used to find a suitable large rock - leave it to go cold overnight - sometimes down to zero degrees
Then bury it in a large bag of clothing along with the film stocks (Dirty washing seems to work just as well) It's surprising how long it stayed cool.
Mind you, traveling in a truck - we had plenty of room.
Never had any noticeable problems with the films - none over 200ASA though
Both slide and negative.
When it comes to passing through airport x-ray machines - if you trust the locals - have your neg films developed before you fly. Not so easy with slides.
Hope this is of some help.

Cheers

Hamdala

Take a Pentax K20D and forget the film, I took photos last July and it was 44c here in Spain and it was 6c last week no problems.

Agree with John on this one, put your film in hand luggage and Hand show at customs as required. Better to have your images intact than X-ray, I have taken as many as forty films through at once with no problems.

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Not everything in life is Black & White, If only it were!
Kind Regards,
Rees

Whatever route you take, dry ice won't hurt, if you can get it. You might also ask on the ground once there, they are probably quite knowledgeable about their corner of the world.