That scanning trick with a cheap LED light pad saved my underexposed rolls

I shot a whole roll of Portra 400 at a dimly lit punk show last month. Everything came out looking like mud. Before tossing them I tried putting the negatives on a $12 light pad from Amazon and scanning with my phone at max brightness. It pulled out details I had no idea were there. Faces, stage lights, even some smoke in the air. Anyone else rescue garbage shots this way or am I just lucky?

2 comments

2 Comments

amymiller5d ago

Wait, you got detail back from Portra 400 that bad? That's awesome, I thought that stuff was toast once it went that dark.

hayden72021h ago

My buddy saved a roll that looked way worse than that.