Exploring Puerto Rico with Kodak Portra 400

This past summer, I traveled to Puerto Rico where I spent the week exploring the country and taking photos with my Canon Sure Shot Zoom 85 camera. This was my first time shooting with Kodak Portra 400 and it turned out to be an amazing experience.

Kodak Portra 400 is known as one of the best film stocks for both 35mm and 120mm photography. This film stock is favored among many film photographers because of its dynamic range of exposure, meaning you can overexpose or underexpose your photos. It’s also known for its warm tones and medium color contrast, making it favorable for portraiture shoots.

I’ve been shooting with other film stocks such as Kodak Gold 200, Kodak Color Max 400, and Fujifilm Superia 400 but I’ve always wanted to try Kodak Portra because of the many great reviews.

During my trip, I was inspired by the colorful buildings of Old San Juan and wanted to capture the beautiful Spanish architecture that surrounded the island. Portra 400 does a great job in capturing the details of the photos even though I’m using a simple point and shoot camera.

Old San Juan

I visited several beaches in Aguadilla and took pictures of the natural scenery. I can see why Portra is a go-to favorite for film photographers because the film stock was able to capture the vibrant scenery. The colors evoke a nostalgic feeling, as if these photos could have been taken in the early 90’s instead of 2021.

Playa Crash Boat

Punta Borinquen Beach

Overall I was very impressed with how the photos turned out and I will definitely use Portra more often for future projects.