Why does nobody talk about underexposing Portra 400?

A guy at Old Town Camera in Chicago told me I was blowing out my highlights because I kept metering for the shadows. He said to try shooting Portra 400 at 200 and then pull it a stop in development. Tried it on a roll last month and the colors came out way richer, especially in bright sunlight. Has anyone else had luck messing with exposure like that on purpose?

2 comments

2 Comments

wade_hall2d ago

$200 worth of trial and error taught me less is usually more.

the_olivia2d ago

Underexposing makes highlights muddy, @wade_hall is right that less is usually more.