PORTRA 400 ⤺ Scans + Review

Back at it with another scans and review from Photo Lounge  and we are stoked on getting our roll of Portra 400. I have always been a fan of Kodak film stock since I was a little girl running around with a disposable film camera. So I was stoked that I was able to get a roll of Portra 400 to test out with the Lomo Apparat. This film was and still remains the essence of nostalgia all bottled up in one tiny roll. You can read the story of why that is after the photos seen down below. 

August held a brief moment of respite from the stressors of 2024 as we packed up and moved our things back down to South Philadelphia. My old neighborhood. My reason for being the kind of person I am today. I am drawn to florals and plants so naturally I snapped a few of the potted plants that was on my sister’s front porch. It was a nice way to start our daily morning walks; something that I am striving to do more of. 

We walked a good half hour around the neighborhood. Stopping along the way we took in my old elementary school. I spent five years of my childhood walking the halls and relished in the days when recess was my favorite part of the school day. I would run around with a film camera I had just bought over the weekend at KMart and give away Polaroids of my classmates. It was a time to be had and I could never forgot those kinds of days. Even twenty-something years down and I am still smiling from those sunny afternoons. I decided to shoot through the fence and wasn’t too sure if I had achieved it but was so glad to see that it did. I think that’s what I love about film in this modern tech day and age. 

Rounding the corner and heading west, there’s a familiar sight that pangs at my chest. This is the Preah Buddha Rangsey Temple and it is the place where I have spent many days in mourning and remembrance for the loss of my Dad, Sister-in law, and nephew. Despite having such emotionally intense memories associated with the temple. One can not stop and stare at the ornate structure and gold-trimmed fencing around the building. I really like how the Portra 400 accentuates those colors and gives it a wash of nostalgia. Something I can never get over. 

I also spend a lot of my days in the Fishtown area as I work at a music venue nearby and love seeing the trolley’s just rolling pass by the intersection Frankford and Girard Avenues. The area has seen a massive change over the years with newer food establishments popping up here and there. My favorites are La Colombe, Cake Life Bake Shop, Persimmon Coffee, and Joe’s Steaks and Milkshakes to name a few. I dig that I have a small film camera to just whip out on occasions when inspiration strikes the most. 

I also got to end the month celebrating my older sister’s baby shower at the FDR Park. I spent summers growing up here and having picnics and barbecues with my family. So it was no surprise that my sister chose this place to hold the celebration of my dearest nephew Jason. The photo on the rock had to be cropped post scan because my partner had his finger on the flash when taking the photo. I love having modern solutions to such analog problems. (Although this wasn’t a problem that one couldn’t fix post processing.) I have also been much more happier to take photos of myself on any reflective surface I could find. Including this heart-shaped balloon that was the focal point of the arch. I loved it and this is where I leave you. 

(Thanks for reading this walk down memory lane. And thanks to Photo Lounge for developing and scanning all of my film stock.)