My international kit goes into three bags. 1) ThinkTank Airport TakeOff™ Rolling Camera Bag, 2) ThinkTank Urban Disguise® 60, and 3) Travelpro Luggage Crew 9 26-Inch Expandable Rollaboard Suiter Bag [not shown] 

Flying internationally puts stress on the most seasoned photographers. One of the main reasons is preparing for the travel to your location with Murphy’s Law driving your decisions.

Assistants Tip #1

Interior of ThinkTank Airport TakeOff™ Rolling Camera Bag fully packed.

If you are a photo assistant, your priority is keeping track of all the photographer’s gear and packing it precisely how the photographer packed it. Please take photos of the bag to reference it later to repack it.

You may ask why you put it exactly back where you started. A typical photographer will have a lot of little stuff they may use on any job. When the assistant cannot put their hands on it, the photographer will go first to where they last put it.

Photographers Tip #1

Everything you carry should have a home spot—[a home when not in use]. Having a home for gear will help you quickly find it when you need it, and also, when you are packing up to go, you can easily see what is not in place to know you are missing something.

Having a system will help you and every assistant that works for you.

International Travel with Credit Cards

Call your credit card companies before you travel. Let them know what countries you are going to and the travel dates. Connecting with the credit card company will keep your card from being frozen and you not being able to use it while traveling.

I often find that using a credit card gives me the best purchase exchange rate.

Telephone and Data Plans

Contact your provider and find the best plan for your travel. Verizon, for example, has a few different methods to keep you from getting stuck with a high bill.

The most important reason for contacting them is to know the situation rates while not in your home country. You generally want to review phone call rates, Text Rates, and Data rates.

For the most part, you are better off finding a local Wi-Fi, using it, and connecting with family and friends through emails and Skype over phone calls.

I recommend having an auto-email response that lets people know you may take a little longer to respond, and the same goes with a voicemail saying you are in meetings and will respond as soon as possible.

My International Kit

Packing for a road trip or domestic travel is much easier than international travel. However, domestic travel is a piece of cake if you can pack and travel internationally.

I usually travel alone with no assistance when I travel. The type of work clients typically hire me to do is a one-person band operation. I provide stills, video, and audio from my coverages. I am combining these mediums into a package. For example, this is a typical package I might produce on an overseas range.

So, I carry enough gear to do this in the smallest possible way to fly by myself.

I am constantly checking my TravelPro bag. Typically, what I carry in this bag:

• Clothing that is all wick-away material that can be easily washed in a sink even and air-dried
  • Four shirts
  • Four pants
  • Four sets of underwear/socks
  • Safari hat
  • Windbreaker with a hoodie
• Toiletries
• Camera Gear
  • two tripods
  • two small light stands
  • two LED light sources 

I am carrying on the plane my 1) ThinkTank Airport TakeOff™ Rolling Camera Bag and 2)  ThinkTank Urban Disguise® 60. The rolling bag is my carry-on luggage that must meet international standards. The maximum safe size is 45”, in the form of a 22” x 14” x 9” bag. Some airlines allow up to as much as 55”, but most do not. The Airport TakeOff Exterior Dimensions: 14” W x 21” H x 8” D.

Airport Security™ V 2.0 Rolling Camera Bag

When I fly internationally and know an airline like Delta, I will fly with the Airport Security™ V 2.0 Rolling Camera Bag. I can get more gear into this bag. Both rolling bags convert into a backpack, which comes in handy when you are in places where you cannot roll your bag.

While on the plane, my ThinkTank Urban Disguise® 60 carries a lot of stuff, and when I arrive, I change things around to use this as my working bag.

Inside the ThinkTank Urban Disguise® 60

• MacBook Pro 15”
• Two exterior hard drives
  • Mirror backup of hard drive
  • Exterior for all images and video
• Headphones for video, but also to use on the plane
• iPad 
• Power cords for
  • Mac
  • iPad
  • Phone
• Computer peripherals
  •  XQD Card Reader
  • Compact Flash Card Reader

Packing your gear with ThinkTank organizers

Think Tank Cable Management is excellent for all your cables

Think Tank Power House is designed for the Apple line of products to organize those charges and power supplies.

ThinkTank Red Whips come with an organizing bag, but you can buy them individually to keep your cables wrapped.

We often talk about Digital Workflow and think mainly of digital capture to post-production, but just as important is thinking of your entire workflow. For example, researching the airlines and knowing everything about your travel can help you prepare for Murphy’s Law.

Last Tip

Since I have traveled overseas, I have always visited the U.S. Customs office and registered my gear using the CBP Form 4457. CBP Form 4457 records personal items before you travel abroad to clear customs quickly when you bring those personal effects back to the United States. CBP Form 4457 shows that you had the things before leaving the U.S., allowing a duty-free re-entry back to the U.S. Items may include watches, laptop computers, or firearms  – those with serial numbers or other unique permanent markings and other descriptions.

I have never had to use or show this form, but I always fill one out for the sole reason that Murphy’s Law exists.

Remember Murphy’s Law states: Anything that can go wrong will go wrong. So be prepared.

Here is a quick video showing how I pack for carry-on when traveling internationally.