Portrait Photography on Film
Master portrait photography with film, including choosing flattering film stocks, lighting techniques, and achieving beautiful skin tones.
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Best Films for Portraits
- Kodak Portra 160/400: Industry standard for skin tones
- Fuji Pro 400H (discontinued but emulated): Pastel, ethereal look
- Ilford HP5: Classic black and white portraits
- CineStill 50D: Cinematic daylight portraits
Lighting Considerations
Film handles overexposure better than digital. Slight overexposure (1/2 to 1 stop) often produces beautiful, glowing skin tones.
Medium Format Advantage
The larger negative of medium format creates smoother grain and shallower depth of field, ideal for portrait work.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does Portra look so good for skin?
Portra was specifically engineered for portrait photography with color science optimized for pleasing skin reproduction across diverse skin tones.
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