Kodak Portra 800: Long-Term Review

In the last six years of shooting film, I’ve tried nearly every stock on the market. I’ve put somewhere north of a thousand rolls through my cameras, ranging from half-frame to 6x7, in every imaginable lighting scenario, for personal and professional work alike. And while I think every film stock has its place, Portra 800 is the one that feels like a true extension of me. 

There’s zero friction between the image I see in my mind and the negative I’m holding later—and that’s why it’s always the first film I reach for.

The short answer is: everywhere.

It’s a film I reach for in nearly every situation (I’ll circle back on that later) regardless of the subject matter. Wedding, portrait, landscape, lifestyle, commercial, personal, professional. Early morning before the sun is up, and late in the evening after it has set. Overcast, hard light, soft light. Interior shoots where the windows are the only source of light and you’re working with whatever you’ve got. Film sets with tons of artificial light. Long exposures, lowlight, fill-flash point & shoot snapshots. I’ve really put this film through its paces.

Across both 35mm and 120 formats, I’ve primarily used Portra 800 (which is now also available under the name Ektacolor 800, too) with my Leica M6, Yashica T4, Mamiya 645AFD, and Pentax 6x7. I typically rate it at 1/3 to 2/3 over, though I sometimes meter a full stop over for 35mm specifically. I’ve also pushed it to 1600 on a handful of occasions, thought I honestly prefer the colors when developing for box speed. All of the images you’ll see in this article fall within these cameras and parameters.

The grain. Big fan of grain over here! I absolutely love the way that this grain is structured, especially in medium format. It’s present, but not overpowering, and adds such a beautiful texture to the image. I wish I could add it to every single one of my digital images.

The color palette. I can be really particular with color, but Portra 800 nails it every time. There’s just the right amount of saturation through the entire range, without any one color dominating the scene. I also love that the skin tones are rich and have a lot of life to them.

Low-light performance. This is an obvious selling point of any high-speed color film, and Portra 800 is no exception. I love working in darker, moodier environments, and I really appreciate the fact that this film can handle it without needing to compromise on shutter speed. I also think film is really fun to experiment with in darker situations because of how the shadows can start to thicken up, so having a film that does that will still maintaining its excellent colors is something I really value.

Exposure latitude. Like some other color negative films, Portra 800 is very forgiving. I really try my best to nail my exposure every time, but I’ve overexposed rolls by 2 stops and still gotten beautiful results. There’s so much information in the highlights and you can pull out those “Toy Story” cloud details on especially sunny days. I’ve even underexposed by over a full stop, and while it definitely had a moody look to it, I actually still really liked it because the colors didn’t shift too drastically.

My photographic style feels perfectly aligned with everything that Portra 800 has to offer, so even from my very first roll of it, I wasn’t really surprised by anything. It just felt… right.

It’s a very similar feeling to when you find that camera that feels like an extension of you. You kind of enter this flow state and don’t feel any friction between you and your tools. It’s an incredible “ah-ha” moment when everything finally clicks, and Portra 800 is one of those tools that does just that for me.

I generally overexpose by 1/3 or 2/3 of a stop, but I’ve gone as far as a full stop and I like that, too. It’s not a hard and fast set of rules, and I like to let my instinct guide my decision depending on the scene I’m photographing. It takes time to develop that instinct, and a lot of it boils down to personal preference, too. Experiment for yourself and see what you like best!

For 35mm in particular, the grain is part of the look. It won’t feel as clean as lower speed films, and that’s okay. Use it to shape the story you’re telling.

In 120, this film produces some of the most beautiful tonality of any stock I’ve shot. A Pentax 6x7 with some Portra 800 is pretty much unbeatable for my style of work.

High speed color films are expensive, and Portra 800 is no exception. Use the low-light capabilities to your advantage and lean into the flexibility that ISO 800 offers you!

Portra 800 is the right choice if you shoot in changing or challenging light and want flexibility no matter what environment you’re in. It’s made for photographers who want their work to be colorful, grainy, and emotive. If you shoot in low-light scenarios and want the speed and flexibility to work handheld, this is the film for you!

That said, despite this being my favorite film stock, it’s not for everyone, or every environment. If you primarily shoot in bright, controlled conditions and you want the cleanest result possible, I think you should look elsewhere. In those situations, Portra 400 is a natural choice; there’s plenty of dynamic range but with a finer grain structure and a more neutral color palette. If you want something with even less saturation, a more muted palette overall, or do a lot of work in-studio, Portra 160 might suit you better (link to my article about it here).

It also has to be said that Portra 800 is expensive. While it might be my favorite, it’s also an investment, and that’s how it goes for a lot of these higher speed color film stocks. Buy a single roll first and see if it’s the right fit for you before buying a pro pack.

Caveats aside, Portra 800 is my favorite film stock, no question. It’s the film I’ve shot the most of, trusted the most, and come back to the most consistently over six years of film photography. Some of my all-time favorite images have been made on Portra 800, and I’ve never once been disappointed with the results. It’s a cornerstone of my camera kit, and it will always be the first film stock I reach for.