If imitation is the finest form of flattery, then Kodak Portra is one of the best color film emulsions. When it comes to color films that are so iconic that digital photographers try to replicate them, Kodak Portra sits near the top of that list. The film is known for it’s beautiful colors and forgiveness at exposure errors – but now that film may be known by another name.
Earlier this week, Eastman Kodak – otherwise known as the “original Kodak” – announced the release of six new films, three different Ektacolor Pro and three different Kodak Ektapan. Each of the two film types will come in three speeds, creating the six total new films announced this week. Five of those films are available in 135 and 120 formats, while Ektapan P3200 is exclusively for the 135 format, of
But while Kodak announced them as “new” films, film fanatics were quick to point out that Kodak Ektacolor sounds a lot like – and looks a lot like – Kodak Portra. Portra is so popular that even digital photographers try to emulate it with filters and presets, and at times in its history, it’s been hard to find. (Although thankfully, that’s not currently the case).
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The Kodak Ektapan is a black-and-white film that revives a name that disappeared around 25 years ago. But Kodak fans here were also quick to point out that the description of the new film sounds a lot like the T-Max line.
To be clear, Eastman Kodak hasn’t directly said that Ektacolor Pro equals Portra nor that Ektapan equals T-Max – that’s all film fans reading the description and looking at the sample images and saying that the “new” film looks quite similar to existing Kodak films.
While the name change may be confusing, if Ektacolor Pro is in fact Portra, that’s good news for film photographers. Why? Because when Kodak originally started selling its films directly through distributors, the brand said the move was “in an effort to increase supply and help create greater stability in a market where prices have fluctuated.”
Sure, learning the new names may be a minor annoyance, but as someone who occasionally shoots film myself, I think I can speak for all film photographers when I say that greater supply and fewer price swings is fantastic news.
So does the rebranded film help with film prices? That’s still unclear at this point. At US retailer B&H for example, both Portra and Ektacolor have similar prices. But Portra seems to have more limited stock – I can’t find a single roll of Portra 400 at the retailer, just a five-pack, but Ektacolor appears to be available in single 35mm rolls – and at a price that’s lower than the third-party sellers on Amazon at least.
So why is Kodak changing the names of iconic film formats? It has to do with the rights to those names, which stems from a messy bankruptcy in 2012.
Kodak is a longstanding photography company, but the modern company feels rather like it needs a map to understand what’s Kodak and what’s Kodak-adjacent. Eastman Kodak has continued to produce films for cinema, but previously Kodak Alaris owned the distribution rights to sell Kodak films for still photography after bankruptcy proceedings from 2012. That appears to be changing, as Kodak has recently begun re-releasing film stocks directly from Eastman Kodak, just under different names.
That, of course, doesn’t include the dozens of compact cameras, printers, and other accessories that bear the Kodak name, but these aren’t created by Eastman Kodak nor Kodak Alaris, but rather by third-party companies through a licensing agreement.
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