Porous alumina films had been fabricated by anodizing from aluminum films after an electropolishing procedure. Alumina stripes without pores can be distinguished on the surface of the porous alumina films. The width of the alumina stripes increases proportionally with the anodizing voltage. And the pores tend to be initiated close to the alumina stripes. These phenomena can be ascribed to the electric field distribution in the alumina barrier layer caused by the geometric structure of the aluminum surface.