Saved by a $19.95

Contrary to popular belief, there is no such thing as a universal press pass. No one pass exists that will to get you into every event your heart, or editor, desires, but there certainly are press credentials. These are often given by individual newspapers or societies. A credential or an ID does not give you access or admission into different events – at least, it isn’t designed to do that. Of course, how people or authorities respond to an ID or a set of credentials is often more important, especially in remote and isolated locations around the world where an ID or the ubiquitous rubber stamp can mean everything.

I am a member of the National Press Photographers Association, which I joined primarily for the insurance it gives me while living abroad. I had found it very difficult to find coverage for my gear while living outside the US, so while I was filling out an application for the organization a year or so back, I noticed an advertisement for a NPPA membership ID. At the time, I thought it was novel at best. Recently, someone suggested I get some press credentials for my upcoming trip to the Kumbh Mela in India. This seemed to be the only credentials I had access to, so I spent the money and bought the ID for $19.95. Surprisingly, when I made this last trip to Iraq, that piece of plastic paid for itself many times over.

If you’re a regular reader of mine, then you know I travel with a very heavy carry-on. I carry a Think Tank Airport Security packed to the hilt. It is stuffed with two Canon 5D bodies, a 70-200mm IS f2.8, 24-70mm f2.8, 17-40mm f4, 85mm f1.2, a Sony PCM D50 digital recorder, a Electro Voice RE 50 microphone and various cables and sundries. Some trips I carry less, but not this time. For this trip, I needed it all. Last I checked, my bag weighed in right at 18.5 kg – way over the amount any airline would allot for a carry-on.

Everything went fine, ’til I was leaving Turkey on my way home. I walked up to the Etihad Airways check-in counter, flashed my most charming smile at the young Turkish woman behind the counter and greeted her good morning. She asked if that was the only bag I was checking – my white North Face duffel. I said it was. I loaded it onto the scale. It weighed exactly 21 kg. So far so good. Then, I made the mistake of lifting my carry-on off the trolley onto the floor. She looked at me, smiled and commented, “That looks heavy. Mind if we weigh it?” I smiled sheepishly, and replied, “I’d rather not, I’m sure it’s overweight.” She insisted, and I obliged. And the scale told the truth, 18.5 kg. Her eyes got big and I started to sweat. She informed me that of course it was way over the limit. I pleaded with her and told her that I was a photographer on assignment in that the gear in it was very expensive. I told her that it was over $10,000 US and that I couldn’t trust it in the hold of the aircraft. The reality, was that it’s worth a lot more than that, but that was what came blubbering out of my mouth at the moment. She said she couldn’t make that decision and called her manager.

The manager came over and I gave her the same explanation. But this time, I pulled out my NPPA ID badge. She looked at it, and asked me if it was all camera equipment? I said, “Except for a box of Turkish delight.” She looked to the badge again, looked at me and then said, “OK, this time.”

So my NPPA badge paid for itself many times over. I’m not sure what the moral of the story is, other than it might be worth your membership to an organization like in NPPA, if for no reason other than insurance and an ID badge. I don’t know what to do with the dilemma of packing all my gear in a carry-on. I’ve lost far too many bags to trust even one lens to the cargo hold of an aircraft. I know people talk about carrying gear in vests, but I just don’t see that as a very practical solution for the amount of traveling that some of us do. I think Karl Grobl may have the best solution: shoot simple – two bodies, two lenses. But, until I can bring myself to do that, I guess I’ll keep my badge close by.