Film comparison
Kodak Portra 400 vs Kodak Portra 800
- Portra 800 is a stop faster (ISO 800 vs 400).
- Portra 400 has finer grain.
- Portra 400 is more forgiving of exposure errors.
- Portra 400 is cheaper in 35mm (about £18.99 vs £24.00).
Side by side
| Portra 400 | Portra 800 | |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Kodak | Kodak |
| Type | Colour negative | Colour negative |
| Box speed | ISO 400 | ISO 800 |
| Process | C-41 | C-41 |
| Formats | 35mm, 120, 4x5, 8x10 | 35mm, 120 |
| Grain | Very fine | Fine |
| Contrast | Medium | Medium high |
| Latitude | Excellent | Good |
| Saturation | Moderate | High |
| Price, 35mm | about £18.99 | about £24.00 |
| Price, 120 | about £16.95 | about £21.00 |
| Availability | Current | Current |
Rows that differ are in bold. Prices are typical UK prices and change often.
How they look
- Portra 400
- Widely regarded as the industry standard for professional colour work. Vision3 technology provides exceptionally fine grain and impressive exposure latitude.
- Portra 800
- A leading high-speed colour film. Punchier saturation and slightly more grain than Portra 400. Excellent for low light hand-held work.
Which suits what
Better pick: Portra 400
Weddings, Commercial editorial, Travel
Both work well
—
Better pick: Portra 800
Low light, Sports, Vivid portraits
Long exposures (reciprocity)
| Metered | Portra 400 | Portra 800 |
|---|---|---|
| 1s | 1s | 1s |
| 10s | 22s | 32s |
| 30s | 1m 39s | 2m 44s |
| 2m | 10m 41s | 21m 55s |
Corrected exposure from each film’s published reciprocity data. Reciprocity calculator