I have not been able to find any municipal ordinances that would contradict me carrying in LA, we intend to go visit hollywood, and also in the Anaheim area.
Incase you didn't know; Hollywood is still the city of Los Angeles. Think of it like New York City's Borough System - Except with LA City its probably close to 100 'city' names. To make matters worse, these 'cities' can even have their own special codes within the LA Muni Code.
However,
generally speaking Firearms Law with regard to both Open and Concealed Carry are preempted by state law. i.e. 12025 specifically says that OC isn't CC
-- 10 round magazines only? (since im flying in, that would be importing?),
Correct. The most common exception to this is if you ever posessed a 'large capacity magazine' in CA prior to 1/1/00. You don't need to have ever lived here, merely posessed them within the borders of the state.
-- carry a audio recording (do I need to announce the recording?, I have not located CA's wiretapping laws) will also carry hd video recorder, probably on my wife so she can record if any incidents with my person.
In CA you only need to notify if there is an expectation of privacy. i.e. things like being on the telephone or in someone's private home. It is extremely clear that LEOs have ZERO expectation of privacy while performing their duties.
So generally speaking - no notification required for interaction with on duty LEOs
-- I do have some cash reserves for trouble (7k), as well as cards for CGF, NRA, SAF, and some other contacts in the Anaheim area. Also getting my locking container to comply with school zones and areas. Once the firearm is locked, in an enclosure, I can carry it in say a backpack, correct?
Its good that you have some financial resources available. However keep in mind that if you are prosecuted for anything it'll cost closer to 50k to get through a trial. In your case, that might be even more due to living out on the islands.
Correct - you can carry the locked container in a backpack. The common CA reference for this is LUCC - Locked Unloaded Concealed Carry. There are threads here on the subject, but the 'better' resource to research LUCC is
http://www.calguns.net.
Here's the readers digest version...
PC 12025 makes Concealed Carry generally illegal
12026.1 has some exceptions, but there are a few caveats. 1) you must be a US Citizen 2) the transportation must somehow involve a motor vehicle 3) unloaded in a secure locked container
12026.2 has some additional exceptions, but also has caveats. 1) open to all legal persons 2) contains specific destination requirements. i.e. to/from gunsmith, to/from range 3) unloaded in a secure locked container
I know this is an Open Carry site, so you may be surpised to hear this advice...
While you are visiting CA, I would recommend you keep your firearm unloaded an in a locked container and never remove it except for these two reasons. 1) fear of great bodily harm or death 2) your hotel room or temporary residence.
OC in CA is quite complicated - not just because of the laws, those are pretty straight forward once you digest them. Here its more about 'politics' and what local authorities think about guns.
The problem with my advice is that usually we're giving advice to 'free staters' not people from a more restrictive state. In that circumstance its easy to tell them to suck it up a bit while their here and go home free. But in your case, you want to experience some greater 2a lattitude here in CA, but I don't want you to ruin your trip...
Be safe and good luck!