EI for Portra 400

[Roger Cole]

Portra800 shot at 800 will most likely be less grainy and give a better image than shooting 400 at 800 and pushing. But I have not done that so I can't be certain, just my suspicion.

It does in my opinion but not in everyone's opinion. Portra 800 is a very nice surprisingly fine grained film. Especially in medium format give it a try if you need the speed.


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[markbarendt]

The ISO standard design was based on real world prints judged by real people. It is not an arbitrary standard.

 

[Roger Cole]

I didn't say it was arbitrary. I meant it was rigidly defined and might not work best for you. Or it might. Try and see.


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[Sirius Glass]

Portra has more than enough latitude so use box speed. EI is for people whose equipment is out of calibration and those who do not know how to use light meters correctly. Stick to box speed or at most 1/3 stop overexpose such as ISO 320 for slightly more saturation instead of ISO 400.

 

[Roger Cole]

Bah. I know how to use a meter fine. I use a spot meter quite successfully with my view camera. But I do think C41 looks slightly better with generous exposure - less apparent grain, gobs of shadow detail. You're right that it looks fine at 400, and not too bad up to 800. But I think anything from 200-400 is reasonable and 250 or 320 is a slight improvement, especially for someone who isn't really comfortable using a meter and just let's the camera decide. C41 does have a lot of latitude. When in doubt, give a bit more.

 

[tim elder]

I have found that I can print portra 400 exposed at around 640-800 and developed normally but I usually expose the film around 320 - 400. This is very subjective and only you can decide what you like. Expose a roll at 800 and have your lab do a clip test at normal, 1/2 stop push, and 1 stop push. See what you like the best.

-Tim