Exploring the Panasonic Lumix S5 Photo Styles

In my previous post I talked about getting back into film photography. And on that note, the film I ordered from AliExpress, that was due to arrive in about two months from that slow boat to China, actually only took a couple of weeks. Excellent! If I like the look of the 400 ISO Lucky film, I may have to order some more....

But why, in this day and age, would anyone want to shoot film (I hear you say)? And that's a very good question - thanks for asking. Well, one of the main reasons to shoot film relates to what I just said about the Lucky film from China. It has to do with the 'look' of the film. Its rendition of colour (or monotones). Its grain structure. The way it handles contrast - mid tones, highlights etc. 

It's the reason film photographers have favourite film stocks. Some like the 'look' of Portra, while some prefer Velvia. Which of course, also speaks to the Fuji vs Kodak debate. Fuji tends more towards greens and blues, while Kodak tends more towards reds and warm colour tones.

Film shooters will argue that they get to change their camera's 'sensor' every time they change their film stock. Kodak for portraits, Fuji for landscapes, and TMax for moody black and whites. Whereas a digital sensor is just an electronic device capturing 1s and 0s in a predictable and repeatable manner - right?

Cobden Lagoon. Lumix S5 with S20-60mm. L Classic Neo Photo Style + Low Grain.

Well, actually, digital camera manufacturers have gone to great lengths to reproduce colours from digital sensors in very specific ways. It's why two manufacturers can use the same digital sensor, and yet the images that they produce will be very different in the way they render colour. Very much like film shooters preferring a particular film stock, you will now hear digital photographers talk about preferring a particular 'colour science' from one brand over the other.

Every digital camera you buy offers 'Picture Profiles' (some call them 'styles') with titles like Landscape, Portrait or Natural (to name just a few). These give you different 'looks' to your photos - if you shoot Jpegs. If, however, you only shoot RAW, then these picture profiles are basically redundant (although they will be what you see through the viewfinder and on the LCD screen when you review the image).

Perhaps the manufacturer who has taken these picture styles to the extreme is Fujifilm. With a rich history of 'film' (duh), they offer styles called Velvia, Acros and Eterna (among others) that get baked-in to the jpeg and simulate their film stocks. An entire community has been created around photographers coming up with new 'recipes' that simulate film stocks for Fujifilm cameras. But they aren't the only players in the game...

Photo Styles from the Panasonic Lumix S5.

Above is an overview of the 15 Photo Styles (plus one with grain added) available in the Lumix S5. It may be difficult to pick up some of the subtle (and not so subtle) nuances in each style, but they are certainly different from each other. Many of the styles are 'as advertised', in that Natural is quite 'natural' looking, Vivid is more 'vivid, and Monochrome is - you guessed it - 'monochrome'. Others, like 'Landscape' or 'Portrait' are also fairly self-explanatory.

But then there are also options like L Classic Neo, L Monochrome D and Cinelike V2 which are a bit more out of the ordinary. L Monochrome (Lumix Monochrome - or Leica?) has been added to Photo Styles with the S series of cameras, together with Monochrome D and monochrome S. D is a more punchy b&w - more suitable for architecture and landscapes, while S seems tailored towards portraiture? That's how I would use them.

L Classic Neo is Panasonic's attempt at simulating colour negative film. The colours are intended to have a more nostalgic and gentle colour film look. And to be fair, it does a pretty decent job of it (see the first photo in this blogpost).

Another example of Photo Styles.

The final row of Photo Styles are more geared towards video shooting, although you can produce still images using these profiles. The final, V-Log is a very flat profile, ideal for colour grading of video, and not really useful if you are purely a stills shooter. I did, however, quite like the colour rendition using the Like 709 style on the landscape image above, so there's no rule that says you can't use these video-centric style for your photography. But again, remember these are for Jpegs only, so the resulting style will be 'baked-in' to the final image.

Greymouth Wharf from Cobden Lagoon. L Monochrome D + Grain High.

Almost all of the above examples are of Picture Styles using the default settings. Each individual Photo Style can also be 'tweaked' to create your own style (or 'recipe' to steal the concept from Fujifilm). The S5 allows you to programme a further 4 custom styles of your own making for quick recall. 

Adjustments such as contrast, highlight, shadow, tone, hue and sharpness can be set by adding or subtracting values and will vary depending on the picture style (you can't set hue and saturation in the monochrome styles for example). For Monochrome (and Classic Neo), you can also add grain structure in 3 settings (low, standard or high), as well as adding yellow, orange, red or green filter effects. The options are almost endless! With a bit of trial and error, I'm sure you could dial in something resembling your favourite film stock.

Grain can be set at either Low, Standard or High for that extra film look.

And if this wasn't enough, the latest Lumix S cameras (not my S5 unfortunately) can also accept LUTs - colour profiles that are usually used at the post-processing stage by videographers to simulate different colour gradings or film stocks. Fujifilm eat your heart out!

Photo Styles (or film recipes - call them what you will) were something that I played around with a lot when I was shooting Fujifilm cameras. It seemed like a natural thing to do when you were starting out with styles called Provia. But there's really no reason why you couldn't do the same thing with Lumix cameras like the S5 using their Photo Styles as a base. 

If you enjoy shooting jpegs, and trying to get a particular 'look' to your images SOOC (straight out of camera), then have a play with Photo Styles. I'm going to have a play with some of my own, and I'll share what I've come up with. Can I get Kodak TMax 400 and Fuji Velvia out of a Panasonic Lumix S5? Why not....

WB settings for film simulations in my Fujifilm X-E2

In my last post I discussed 'going 100% Jpeg'. This may sound scary to some photographers for who shooting Raw is almost a religion (and yes, that was me too). It's really only been made possible - for me at least - by shooting with the Fuji custom film simulations (or recipes).

Fujifilm expects you to play around with film simulations and create your own - that's what their X-Raw Studio software is all about. Unfortunately, my X-E2 is not compatible with X-Raw Studio (I presume it only works for X-Trans III sensors and above?). Fortunately, others have done the hard work for me already, and there are a plethora of film simulations on-line to choose from (check out the amazing Fuji X Weekly blog).

All sorts of parameters can be tweaked to create a 'look' you're after; from highlight and shadow tone, to sharpness and colour - and even grain and clarity on the latest Fuji camera models (alas, again, not my X-E2!) To get the very best out of these film simulations, you also need to tweak the white balance R & B (red and blue) channels to truly dial-in the colour shifts that some 'films' give. It's well known among film shooters that Kodak has warmer tones than Fuji, whose films are generally slightly cooler (bluer). To achieve these colour variables, the R and B channels can be changed to mimic these tonal variances. So far so good.

Unfortunately, on most of the Fuji cameras, these changes to white balance in the R & B channels are a 'global' change. So, for example, if you have Auto WB set, with a +3R and -2B colour shift, all film recipes that use Auto WB will have the same shift applied. Annoyingly! This has, fortunately, been fixed with the X-Pro 3 (and X100F I think?) - but I don't have an X-Pro 3, do I...😞

Fear not, fellow Fuji user - for there is a work-around for this... kind of. Since the white balance shift is global, what you need to do is set different white balances for each film simulation, applying the correct red and blue channel shift to each white balance. You can also, of course, choose film simulations that use the same r&b channel colour shifts. I've set my X-E2 up with a combination of the two. Let me explain...

The seven film recipes I have currently programmed into my Fujifilm X-E2

Currently, in the seven allowable custom setting slots on the X-E2, I have Ektachrome 100SW, Acros mono, Kodachrome II, Kodak Tri-X, Fujichrome Sensia 100, Kodak Ektar 100 and Kodak Portra 400 film 'simulations' programmed in. Of those, five use the same Auto white balance shift (Auto +3R, -4B) while two have different WB settings applied with their own R&B channel shifts.

Remember how I said earlier that Kodak is known for being a 'warmer' toned film. Look at the list above. Five of them happen to be Kodak film recipes - four of which (Ektachrome, Kodachrome, Ektar and Portra) use the same Auto WB as mentioned above. The fifth is actually the black and white Fuji 'Acros' simulation. Since mono is less crucial with colour shifts (obviously), having my Acros film simulation share the Kodak films WB setting isn't an issue.

Having said that, of the two film recipes that have other WB settings applied, one of those just happens to be a Kodak mono film - Kodak Tri-X. This recipe actually uses a Daylight WB, with +9R and -9B. The final, odd one out is, not surprisingly, the Fujichrome Sensia recipe. The slightly 'blue' cast associated with many Fuji films is actually achieved by using the Fluorescent 2 WB with a -1R and -3B channel shift. As can be seen in the thumbnails above, it certainly gives it a blue tone over the other Kodak film recipes. 

It's early days using these film recipes, and the above images were taken on a very overcast and gloomy day - not my normal shooting conditions. Initial indications, however, are good, with the film simulations rendering the Jpegs as expected. Ektachrome and Ektar are exhibiting the punchier colours, while Kodachrome has a more vintage look. Sensia, as mentioned, has the cooler Fujifilm tones, whereas Portra colours are more subtle and muted (ideal for portraits). The Acros and Tri-X mono recipes are fairly similar in overcast conditions. I expect more variance will become apparent in brighter light?

I won't go into each individual recipe in this post - it's far too long already 😆 Look for future blog posts where I will discuss each individual recipe I'm using in greater detail. If anything I've written in this post doesn't quite make sense, or you want further clarification, don't hesitate to comment down below and ask me questions. I'm just feeling my way through using channel shifts as well, so maybe we can work all this out together?

I do encourage you, if you're not already, to set some film 'recipes' up in your custom settings on your camera and start using them. They are a lot of fun, especially if you're an ex-film shooter who had some favourite film stocks back-in-the-day. Yes, I know it's still digital. But you can at least pretend you're shooting film - can't you?

A Day in the Life of the Okarito Boat Shed

Every year, a group of men from my local anglican church in Cobden, go away to Okarito for a 'mens weekend'. This usually involves lots of fishing (for trout and whitebait), lots of walking (around the lagoon and up to the Okarito Trig Lookout) and lots of cards (500 seems to be the card game of choice).

I've only been once before, six years ago, so I thought it was high time I went away again. And of course, my focus (excuse the pun) was always going to be on one thing only - photography.

Okarito Boat Shed at pre Dawn. Fuji X-E2 with Fujinon XC 16-50mm. F/11 @ 6 secs, ISO 200.

To get away for a whole weekend, no other pressures or concerns, to concentrate 100% on photography is practically unheard of - for me at least. And an amazing luxury. So I was determined to make the most of the opportunity. Unfortunately, the long-range forecast one week out didn't look promising. There was, in fact, Civil Defence rain warnings in place, especially for the Friday that we were travelling to Okarito (a two hour trip from Greymouth). As we drew closer to the end of the week, the forecast for Saturday began to look a little more promising. But I wasn't all that hopeful, and had a good supply of books with me along with the camera gear.

Okarito Boat Shed at Dawn. Fuji X-E2 with Fujinon XC 16-50mm. F/11 @ 1/35th, ISO 200

Friday came, and there was indeed torrential rain all day! The drive down to Okarito was slower than usual, with heavy surface flooding in places, although fortunately never enough to close the roads. When we eventually got to the Okarito settlement, the rain was starting to ease (a little), although it was obvious that they had also had their fair share throughout the day. Yet as the evening turned to night, the rain continued to ease. And when we finally called it a night, I set my alarm for 5.30am with a sense of optimism for the following day.

Okarito Boat Shed at Sunrise. Fuji X-E2 with Fujinon XC 16-50mm, F/11 @ 1/35th, ISO 200

As you can see from the images in this post, that optimism was well founded! Saturday dawned with a beautiful, calm, clear and still morning. Not a breath of wind or rain in sight. Just glorious! I was so ecstatic, and was treated to one of the most beautiful mornings I've ever had the pleasure to experience - let alone photograph. Last time I was in Okarito (six years earlier), the morning light was wonderful. This time, it was spectacular. May prayers were answered in a truly special way and I felt very blessed.

From a technical perspective I am, and continue to be, impressed with the Fujifilm X series cameras. I used the X-E2 exclusively over the weekend, although I had the X-E1 and 27mm pancake lens with me as a back-up. Just prior to leaving for the weekend, I purchased a new camera bag - a Vanguard 'Sydney' messenger-style bag. It's a small bag with top-loading access through a zip, or conventional access through a flap, and fits the X-E2 with 16-50mm, the X-E1 with 27mm, as well as spare batteries and memory cards. Just brilliant to wander around with all day, and was the ideal travel camera bag for the X-E's.

Boat Shed in Early Morning Light. Fuji X-E2 with Fujinon 16-50mm. F/11 @ 1/60th, ISO 200

I arrived at the famous Okarito Lagoon Boat Shed pre-dawn, at around 5.30am. The sky was just beginning to brighten, even though sunrise wasn't for another hour. Since the boat shed looks east, the sun rises right behind it (as you stand at the waters edge), so most of the time the boat house will be in silhouette against the rising sun. All you can really do is expose for the sky and let the boat house go to dark shadow, especially as the sky brightens and the sun begins to climb.

Eventually, if it's a clear morning, the sun will be so bright that it's no longer feasible to shoot from behind the shed, and another vantage point will need to be found. Fortunately, it was also low tide, so access to other areas of the lagoon wasn't a problem. At high tide you can't really vary your viewpoint too much, as getting in front of the boathouse becomes difficult.

Morning has broken, Okarito Boat Shed. Fuji X-E2 with Fujinon 16-50mm. F/8 @ 1/640th, ISO 200 

If you get a great day, then you can shoot at just about any time at the iconic boat shed wharf. It's such a fantastic structure, sitting out on its own in the lagoon. It looks great in almost any light - morning silhouette, daytime side-lighting or back-lit in the evening. I often used a 6 stop ND filter to slow down the water and give a stronger reflection, but using a faster shutter speed can also work to accentuate the ripples in the water.

Of course during the middle of the day the light is never the best for landscapes, so I went elsewhere. But I would often return to the lagoon, drawn to the boat shed, just to check up and see what the light was doing at any given time of the day. This is a luxury that only time can afford and as noted earlier, I was very lucky to have a day to spend just on photography.

Late evening long exposure, Okarito Boat Shed. Fuji X-E2 with Fujinon XC 16-50mm. F/11 @ 14 secs, ISO 200

As the day progressed to evening, and the sun began to set in the west, the boat shed was now lit up at the back. This low, soft light was ideal for some long exposures with the 6-stop ND filter. And since the light was also quite muted, the tones worked perfectly in black and white.

That's another reason I love shooting with the Fujifilm X series cameras - the custom film simulations are superb. The above image is a straight-out-of-camera jpeg, shot using my own Acros film simulation recipe. The range-finder style Fuji X-E's just cry out to be shot with film simulations and they are super easy to access with the 'Q' Quick selector screen. Just tap the 'Q' button and flick the scroll wheel next to it to access up to 7 user-defined film simulation recipes. My two favourites are my 'Classic chrome' and 'Acros' simulations, which I shoot in 90% of the time. And, since I have the camera set to capture RAW + Jpeg, I always get the best of both worlds if I'm shooting black and white jpegs.

It was late in the evening... Okarito Lagoon Boat Shed. Fuji X-E2 with Fujinon 16-50mm. F/11 @ 17 secs, ISO 200

It was a lot of fun, and a great visual exercise, capturing the Okarito Boat House throughout the course of one day. The light had its own unique qualities and feeling at each and every part of the day, and the one location yielded almost endless possibilities.

Okarito isn't a destination I can get to very often. The last time was six years ago. And there certainly aren't many locations that I have the luxury of being able to spend a whole day photographing. So I feel very lucky, and very blessed, to have had the opportunity to capture 'A day in the life of the Okarito Boat Shed'. I came away with a great portfolio of very different photos, and a richer understanding of light and its many facets. Not a bad way to spend a day if you ask me.

B&W Landscapes with the Fujifilm X-T1

The Fujifilm X-E2 (and briefly the X-E1) is quickly becoming my go-to camera - for everything! Trust me, this is a huge surprise to me - so much so that I can't quite believe it and am starting to second-guess myself.

How so? Well, as much as I like the look of a range-finder style camera like the X-E2, I've always actually preferred the handling and feel of a more traditional SLR styled camera body. So I figured that if I like the X-E2, I'll love the X-T1!? So yes - you guessed it. I brought one.

Carters Beach tree stump. Fujifilm X-T1 with Fujinon 16-50mm XC. f/5.6 @ 1/240th, ISO 200. Polariser

I've had it for a couple of weeks, but haven't had a chance to get out and shoot with it until yesterday (as I write this). The X-T1 uses a more 'traditional' SLR design, with a few more knobs and dials (it has a dedicated ISO dial), but as can be seen in the comparison photo, it's not actually that much bigger than the rangefinder-esque X-E2.

And actually, that's my first gripe with the X-T1. It feels a bit cramped, and not quite big enough. It's been a regular complaint of mine with all mirrorless systems, not just Fujifilm. When I had the Olympus OM-D E-M5 I had to attach the grip before it felt comfortable in my hands, and I ain't got big hands! I feel exactly the same way with the X-T1. I'm sure it would feel better with the vertical grip attached. Oddly enough, the X-E2 doesn't feel as cramped. It actually feels more comfortable in my hand. Partly I think, due to the thumb grip I have attached. But also partly because it doesn't feel crammed with knobs and dials that are all squashed in together.

Carters Beach driftwood. Fuji X-T1 with 16-50mm XC. f/5.6 @ 1/480th, ISO 200

My second gripe is with said knobs and dials. While I understand what Fuji has done with the SLR styled X-T1 - giving us all the main exposure controls directly on the camera itself - they are a bit too fiddly for my liking. The ISO dial on the top left annoys me because it's automatically locked, and has to be unlocked every time you want to change the ISO! (Arrgghhh).

Also, the front and rear control wheels are very small, and quite recessed. I have difficulty accessing them simply by 'feel' with my eye up to the camera. Whereas the control wheel on the X-E2 seems a bit 'chunkier' and falls nicely under my thumb.

Carters Beach Driftwood 2. Fujifilm X-T1 with Fujinon 16-50mm XC. f/5.6 @ 1/105th, ISO 200

On the far right on both cameras sits the exposure compensation wheel. I use this wheel often, flicking it around to add or subtract exposure while my eye is at the viewfinder. The dial on the X-E2 has just the right amount of resistance (to me). Just enough that it spins freely, but not too much so that it could be knocked and changed accidentally. The X-T1's exposure compensation wheel is a little tighter, requiring just that little bit more effort to move. Not a big thing, and I get why they may have made it slightly stiffer, but as I said, the compensation dial on the X-E2 just feels better (again, to me).

Truman Track Beach, Punakaiki. Fuji X-T1 with Fujinon 16-50mm XC. f/5.6 @ 1/550th, ISO 200. Polariser

Wow, that sounds like a bit of a dump on the Fuji X-T1! And I guess, in some ways, it is. I really do find it a bit cramped and too small, even for my smallish hands - especially without the vertical grip attached (which I don't have). Oddly enough, on such a compact SLR, the one thing I really love about the X-T1 is its evf (electronic viewfinder). It's massive! I mean really. It puts most full frame camera viewfinders to shame. I thought the viewfinder on the Olympus E-M1 was big, but the X-T1's in next level. So there's that.

And also, take a look at the black and white images in this post. Of course they were all taken with the X-T1. But they were also all taken in the middle of the day, when the lighting was pretty harsh and not the best for landscape photography. The dynamic range in most of these was off the chart, so I exposed for the highlights and let the shadows block up in the harsh lighting conditions. Surprisingly, there was still plenty of shadow detail left that I was able to recover later in Lightroom - even though these are all jpegs!

Truman Track Blowhole. Fuji X-T1 with Fujinon 16-50mm XC. f/5.6 @ 1/550th, ISO 200. Polariser

All the landscape images for this blogpost were shot using my 'Acros' film simulation recipe (click here for a previous post on this setup). Yes, there has been some post-process tweaking of shadows and highlights (plus my usual Clarity and Dehaze adjustments), which I would expect even with the RAW files. The point is, there was enough data to recover, even with the jpegs, in less than ideal lighting conditions. So I've got no complaints about the x-trans II sensor used in the X-T1 - which really isn't surprising, since it's the same sensor as in my X-E2.

Punakaiki Coastline. Fuji X-T1 with Fujinon 16-50mm XC. f/8 @ 1/140th, ISO 200. Polariser

Of course I wouldn't suggest that anyone shoot landscape photos in the middle of the day, in full sunlight. But sometimes, when you are a 'tourist', you are only in the location once in your life and you can't control the time of day. It is what it is. If this was the only time I was ever going to be at this location (fortunately for me it's not), I'd be very happy with the photos I was able to get with the X-T1.

Pancake Rocks, Punakaiki. Fuji X-T1 with Fujinon 16-50mm XC. f/8 @ 1/125th, ISO 200. Polariser

So absolutely no complaints with the images that you can get with the X-T1 and the Fuji x-trans II 16MP sensor. They are brilliant. Even as jpegs processed in-camera. I've been incredibly impressed with the x-trans sensor from the very first image I took with the X-E1, and I continue to be impressed.

What it boils down to for me, in the end, is handling. Pure and simple. And, as much as it surprises me to say it, I much prefer the handling of the range-finder styled X-E1 and X-E2, that I do the SLR styling of the X-T1. And that really is a shock to me, since it was exactly the opposite with my Olympus mirrorless gear. With the Olympus cameras, I much preferred the E-M5 and E-M1 over the compact Pen series, especially with battery grips attached to the OM-D's. I get the feeling that I would like the X-T1 better with a grip attached too. But then there would still be the issue of the cramped and fiddly knobs and dials, which just feel a bit too small.

Rock Stack, Punakaiki. Fuji X-T1 with Fujinon 16-50mm. f/8 @ 1/220th, ISO 200. Polariser

Having gone a bit mad initially, buying up everything I could find that had 'Fujifilm' on the front of it, I've now had a little time to use the gear and for the dust to settle. The X-E1 has given way to the X-E2 - which wasn't a straight forward decision in the end. You'd think 'upgrading' to the newer model would be a no-brainer, but I actually really struggled to justify keeping the X-E2 over the X-E1. In the end, it really just came down to one or two extra features that the X-E2 had that I would make occasional use of (wi-fi and intervalometer).

I was very keen to get my hands on the X-T1, since SLR style camera bodies have always been my 'thing'. I grew up with cameras like the Minolta X700 and Canon AE-1, so the Fujifilm X-T1 looked the bees kness 😉

Surprisingly, the reality turned out to be somewhat disappointing. Please don't get me wrong though - the Fujifilm X-T1 is a fantastic camera. Of course it is. It just doesn't feel quite right in my hands. Stick a grip on there and I'm sure things would feel better. But then size, weight, and price, would go up. And it still wouldn't fix the 'fiddlyness' issue.

So yes, I'm going to be selling the X-T1 and keeping the X-E2. That will now be my only camera! For everything! And trust me, there's no one more surprised about that than me...

My X-E1 Film Simulation Recipe C2: Acros

I'm seriously loving using the Fujifilm system - especially the custom film simulations. In this post I'd like to outline my C2 custom setting recipe - my version of Fuji Acros.

Lake Mahinapua Jetty. Fuji X-E1. f/5.6 @ 1/350th, ISO 200. C2: "Acros" Jpeg

Fuji Acros just happens to be my favourite black and white film. It's a beautiful, tonal, fine-grained film, that I shoot in my film cameras whenever I can. I was gutted when Fuji discontinued it in 2017, and then elated when they said they would be bringing it back in 2019!

They have also introduced an Acros film simulation into their latest digital cameras - but only in the latest with the third generation processor. It doesn't look like it can, or will, be released in earlier camera models, since the Acros 'special sauce' requires the latest processor to work. Darn!

So what is a guy to do? Hey, I know... why not make my own 'Acros' film simulation recipe? What a great idea! And so, I did...

C2: Acros Film Simulation Recipe for X-E1
ISO 200 (will change when appropriate)
Dynamic Range: 100
White Balance: Auto
Noise Reduction: -1
Image Size: Large 3:2
Image Quality: Raw + Jpg fine
Film simulation base: Monochrome + Y
Highlight Tone: 0
Shadow Tone: +1
Colour: 0
Sharpness: +1

As you can see from the settings, it's based on the monochrome plus yellow filter, preserves the highlights, and increases the shadows. This gives a reasonably strong black and white image with a little 'pop' - especially with the slightly increased sharpening. This will be my 'general' black and white setting, hence its pride of place in the C2 setting.

Lake Mahinapua. Fuji X-E1 with Fujinon 16-50mm. f/5.6 @ 1/550th, ISO 200. C2: "Acros" Jpeg

As I mentioned in my previous post about my C1: Classic Chrome film recipe, the jpegs straight out of camera have plenty of latitude for 'tweaking' in post-processing. Not as much as the RAW file obviously - but enough to get the final image to where I want it to be with a little clarity and dehaze applied.

Lake Weed. Fuxi X-E1 with Fujinon 16-50mm. f/5.6 @ 1/80th, ISO 200. C2: "Acros" film simulation

I like a rich black and white image, and the Acros film simulation can certainly deliver this. I was told way back in my b&w film darkroom development days that a print should have 'black blacks and white whites". And, of course, a full tonal range in-between. When I judge black and white images at camera club level, one of the biggest mistakes I see with peoples' monochrome images is that they are too flat and lack contrast.

Actually, this goes for a lot of colour images as well. It seems that in this day and age of Photoshop and Lightroom, photographers seem to make liberal use of the shadow and highlight sliders so that all the tones in an image are 'evened' out. We shouldn't be afraid of deep blacks and bright whites in our images - especially with monochrome.

Swimmers Beach, Lake Mahinapua. Fuji X-E1 with Fujinon 16-50mm. f/8 @ 1/300th, ISO 200.
C2: 'Acros' film simulation recipe

Is it exactly like Fuji's Acros film simulation in the X-E3? Of course not. Is it close? I honestly don't know - and won't know until I get an X-E3 to play with (anybody...).

But does it replicate the look and feel of shooting Acros on film for me? Yes, it does. And that's enough for me. As mentioned earlier, it will be my 'go-to' B&W film simulation recipe - for portraits and landscapes - unless I want something even more contrasty for landscapes (and I sometimes do).

One day I may have a Fujifilm camera that can shoot with the official Acros film simulation. Until then, this one will do just fine...

My X-E1 Film Simulation Recipe C1: Classic Chrome

Since getting my Fujifilm X-E1 recently, I've spent a bit of time exploring and setting up my own film simulation recipes.

As an old film shooter, who enjoys using film from time to time, the lure of using a digital camera that you can set to 'Velvia' is very enticing. Even though we all know that it's still only a digital file - right?! And what's even more enticing - to me at least - is having the ability to create your own film 'looks' (up to seven in the X-E1) and access them very quickly.

So that's what I've been spending a good deal of time doing with my 'new' X-E1. Creating custom film simulation recipes and inputting them into the camera. I thought I'd share all seven of them over the next few months, as I get out and create images using the different profiles. And so I may as well start at the beginning - with 'C1' - a simulation that I have called "Classic Chrome".

Lake Brunner Jetty, Moana. Fujifilm X-E1 with Fujinon 16-50mm. f/10 @ 1/60th, ISO 200. (16mm - 27mm equivalent)

Unedited Jpeg from camera with C1 Classic Chrome film recipe applied

If you are a Fuji X-T3, X-E3 or other later model camera owner, using the newest x-trans III sensor and processing engine, then you'll be lucky enough to have a 'Classic Chrome' film simulation built in to the camera itself. For many Fuji shooters, the Classic Chrome film simulation, as supplied by Fuji, is their go-to colour film simulation.

Unfortunately, if you have an older x-trans sensor, with an older processing unit, then your camera won't support Fuji's classic chrome simulation as standard. You'll have to 'create' your own as best you can. That's what I've tried to do with my 'C1' setting on the X-E1 - create a 'Classic Chrome' look for the older, first generation x-trans sensor.

To be fair (and totally up-front), I haven't just plucked these settings out of thin air. There are plenty of sites on the interweb that have these 'recipes' available. All I've done is taken a few of them, applied them as a starting point, and 'tweaked' them where I've seen fit.

Lake Brunner Jetty under Mt. Te Kinga. Fuji X-E1 with Fujinon 16-50mm. f/11 @ 1/6th, ISO 200. 

(23mm - 35mm equivalent). C1 - Classic Chrome jpeg

So what settings do I apply to get a 'Classic Chrome' film simulation on the X-E1? These are the settings that I use:

ISO 200 (will change when appropriate)

Dynamic Range: Auto

White Balance: Auto

Noise Reduction: -2

Image Size: Large 3:2

Image Quality: Raw + Jpg fine

Film simulation base: Astia Soft

Highlight Tone: +1

Shadow Tone: -2

Colour: +1

Sharpness: -1

This will be my 'go to' colour setting, which is why I have it programmed into my first slot. As you can see from the unedited jpeg of the first image above, it gives a reasonably punchy, yet true-to-life rendering of the scene, based off of Fuji's own Astia film simulation. All the settings are fairly self-explanatory; highlights are boosted and shadows reduced for that classic 'S' curve look - colour is increased a touch, and sharpness reduced a touch. Even with the sharpness set to -1 (-2 is the maximum), the resulting images are plenty sharp enough. I'm finding that I'm having to do very little - if any - sharpening in post with the Fuji files from the X-E1 - jpeg or RAW.

Tour Boat, Lake Brunner. Fuji X-E1 with Fujinon 16-50mm. f/11 @ 1/125th, ISO 200. (24mm - 36mm equivalent).

C1 - Classic Chrome jpeg

All of the images in this post are jpegs, shot with the Classic Chrome simulation. Having said that, they are not all shown here 'straight out of camera'. I've still done some post-processing to the final images. This has, however, been minimal, and really only slight tweaking to get the image to fit my style. All have had a slight clarity and dehaze boost (around 15 to 20) and maybe a little highlight/shadow fix depending on the lighting conditions for each scene. Some have even had a slight 'de-saturation' applied because I thought that the blues were a bit too overdone (see image below). But again, this varied from scene to scene.

Waiting for Summer. Fuxi X-E1 with Fujinon 16-50mm. f/8 @ 1/280th, ISO 400. (17mm - 25mm equivalent).

C1 - Classic Chrome jpeg

What I can say, from someone who has been a RAW-only shooter since using his first digital camera, is that the Jpeg files from the x-trans sensor still have a decent amount of latitude in them for post-processing. I appreciate that the look is 'baked' into the file, but even settings like the White Balance in the first two images of this post were able to be warmed up in the jpeg file for a more pleasing final result. As long as the jpeg is in the ball-park exposure-wise, detail and information can still be pulled out of the highlights and shadows in Lightroom. Of course I wouldn't want to recover a jpeg image that was horribly wrong. But given that you can 'see' your exposure and white balance in the evf before taking the image, you shouldn't be horribly off to begin with.

Aotearoa - Land of the Long White Cloud. Fuji X-E1 with Fujinon 16-50mm. f/8 @ 1/125, ISO 200.

(22mm - 33mm equivalent). C1 - Classic Chrome

The Fuji X-E1 is really the first camera that I've ever defaulted to shooting RAW + Jpeg files in - simply because I want to make use of the film simulations. Olympus had a similar thing with their cameras and the different Art Filters, but I found that most of those were of very limited use. Their Grainy B&W art filter was my favourite, and I did shoot with this filter from time to time, but it was a little (actually a lot) overdone, and I would quickly default back to shooting RAW only.

With Fujifilm's ability to programme your own film simulation recipes - to dial in your own 'look' - I'm now actually excited to shoot jpegs. If I can get the look that I'm after 90% there in-camera, and then simply adjust the clarity and dehaze in Lightroom as required, my post-processing time will be halved overnight. And if I find, over time, that I'm adding a fairly standard amount of these settings to every image, then I may just set up an import preset and get there 99% of the time without having to do any post-processing at all! And if I do change my mind later on, then there's always the RAW file as a back-up.

Lake Brunner, Moana. Fuji X-E1 with Fujinon 16-50mm. f/8 @ 1/240th, ISO 200. (36mm - 53mm equivalent).

C1 - Classic Chrome

Thinking of the jpeg as the 'original' and the RAW file as the 'back-up' is a huge mind-shift for me, and possibly a bridge-to-far for some RAW diehards? But looking at the images above - all jpegs - and comparing them to the RAW files for the same image, the jpeg is exactly how I would have processed the RAW file anyway - so why bother!?

As mentioned at the beginning of this post, 'Classic Chrome' will be my go-to custom colour film simulation recipe - especially for landscapes, which is 90% of what I shoot. Next time, I'll have a look at my go-to black and white film recipe - my version of another Fuji classic, Acros.

Custom Film Simulations on my Fujifilm X-E1

Last post I outlined my switch from the Olympus Pen E-P3 to a Fuji X-E1 as my lightweight, mirrorless travel camera. I've owned it for about a week now, certainly not long enough to form any serious opinions about using it. However, initial impressions have been largely very positive.

One of my main reasons for switching was for 'better' IQ (image quality) from the Fuji X-E1's 16MP APS-C sized X-Trans sensor. Not only is it higher resolution than the Pen E-P3, but also considerably better low-light performance (apparently). I will be putting the X-E1 through its paces at high ISO's at some stage. But that's another post for another time.

The other major reason that I was keen to go the Fuji route was for their film simulations. Of course the history of Fuji is in their name - Fujifilm. So if anyone can make in-camera film simulations work, it has to be them. And indeed, many photographers (both professional and enthusiast) have flocked to the Fuji system so they can shoot jpegs straight out of camera with film simulation modes.

So one of the first things I did when my Fuji X-E1 arrived, was to sit down with it for the first few days and programme some film 'looks' into the camera based on the in-built film simulations. In this post I will go over what I've programmed into the seven custom simulation slots that Fuji allow on the X-E1, and show what they look like with the settings applied.

First off, all the Fujifilm cameras come with pre-set film simulations. The X-E1 has ten: Provia, Velvia, Astia, Pro Neg Hi, Pro Neg Standard, Monochrome, Mono +Y, Mono +R, Mono +G, and Sepia. This is what they look like:

There are differences, but they can be subtle. A simulation like Velvia is obviously more punchy in terms of colour vibrancy and contrast than Astia, whereas Provia looks very similar to Pro Neg Standard. Depending on subject matter, the monochrome filters can also be very subtle, although the differences are there if you look hard enough. Of course it can also be difficult to see the subtle differences in a compressed web file.

Of course all of these film simulation pre-sets are jpeg only. They don't get applied to the RAW file, although they will affect the view through the evf and the preview on the back of the cameras LCD screen. If you shoot RAW + Jpeg then you will get the best of both worlds; a RAW file with all the sensor information in-tact, and a camera-processed jpeg with the film simulation applied.

But the real fun to be had when using the film simulation modes is to create your own flavours. There are quite a few of these 'recipes' floating around the internet and on other blog posts, and most of them are designed to mimick the look of film stocks. I have certain favourite stocks that I enjoy shooting when I use film, so this was going to be my starting point when creating my own.

The slight downside to using the X-E1 is that it uses a first generation X-Trans sensor, which doesn't support the newer Fuji film simulations like Classic Chrome and Acros. Acros just happens to be my favourite b&w film stock, so I was keen to try and replicate this in a film simulation. I had also found a Classic Chrome Recipe which would give a similar effect on the first-gen sensor. So these are my first two recipes.

Classic Chrome

Classic Chrome. Fujifilm X-E1 with 16-50mm f3.5-5.6 OIS. f7.1 @ 1/350th, ISO 400

Classic Chrome with grain added in Lightroom

C1 Custom Setting - Classic Chrome Recipe.
A standard colour profile to replicate Fuji's new film simulation.
ISO: Auto up to 6400
Dynamic range: Auto
White Balance: Auto
Noise reduction: -2
Base film simulation: Astia Soft
Highlight: +1
Shadow: -2
Sharpness: -1
Colour: +1
Grain effect added in Lightroom in post:
Amount: 30  Size: 30  Roughness: 30

This is a pleasing colour look, and will probably be my default choice for shooting colour jpegs. The classic chrome film simulation has fast become a favourite for many Fujifilm shooters, and it's not hard to see why. To give the simulations a more film look, I've had to apply some grain in post processing. Again, the newer Fuji cameras allow you to add grain to the film simulations - the X-E1 does not. Click on the grain sample image above for a better view of a 150% crop from the original image.

Acros

Acros. Fujifilm X-E1 with 16-50mm f3.5-5.6. f5.6 @ 1/250th, ISO 200

Acros with grain added in Lightroom

C2 Custom Setting - Acros.
A standard b&w profile to replicate Fuji's new film simulation.
ISO: Auto up to 6400
Dynamic range: 100
White Balance: Auto
Noise reduction: -1
Base film simulation: Mono +Y
Highlight: 0
Shadow: +1
Sharpness: +1
Grain effect added in Lightroom in post:
Amount: 30  Size: 30  Roughness: 30

Again, this is a pleasing b&w look that will become my go-to black and white mode. I guess that the camera will live on either C1 and C2 most of the time. the other custom simulations will be for when I'm feeling in a particular mood. Just like when I shoot with real film I guess?

Also, again, a fairly tight and small grain structure has been added in post later. I would prefer the grain was added in-camera, but I'll have to 'upgrade' to a newer body for that function. I have also just downloaded Capture One Express Fuji Edition (free for Fujifilm camera owners) which has grain effects as well, so I may end up setting up a 'style' of grain that I can apply to the files when they are being imported. That would be the way to go.

Portra 400

Portra 400. Fujifilm X-E1 with 16-50mm f3.5-5.6. f.6.4 @ 1/420th, ISO 400

Portra 400 with grain added in Lightroom

C3 Custom Setting - Kodak Portra 400.
ISO 400 colour film simulation with a muted colour palette suitable for portraits.
ISO: 400
Dynamic range: 200
White Balance: Fine
Noise reduction: -2
Base film simulation: Pro Neg Stnd
Highlight: -1
Shadow: +1
Colour: -2
Sharpness: +1
Grain effect added in Lightroom in post:
Amount: 30  Size: 40  Roughness: 40

Kodak Portra is one of those classic films that I knew I definitely wanted to try and simulate. I don't shoot a lot of portraits normally, and the above shot probably doesn't do it much justice. But I do hope to try this out with some portraits to see if it comes close to replicating the slightly muted, more pastel look of Portra. I may have to 'over-expose' it slightly and see if it holds up with the -1 Highlight setting?

Tri-X

Tri-X. Fujifilm X-E1 with 16-50mm f3.5-5.6. f6.4 @ 1/450th. ISO 400

Tri-X film simulation with grain added in LR

C4 Custom Setting - Tri-X.
Classic higher contrast street/photojournalist b&w film with more grain than Acros.
ISO: Auto - 400 up to 3200
Dynamic range: 200
White Balance: Auto
Noise reduction: -0
Base film simulation: Mono +R
Highlight: +1
Shadow: +2
Sharpness: +1
Grain effect added in Lightroom in post:
Amount: 60  Size: 40  Roughness: 40

For a more contrasty, grainy look to my black and whites I like Kodak Tri-X. This film simulation mode adds the red filter, more grain, and increases the highlight and shadow contrast for a more 'street' grunge black and white look. Will also be good for more moody b&w landscapes (since I don't really shoot any street).

Ektar 100

Kodak Ektar 100. Fujifilm X-E1 with 16-50mm f3.5-5.6. f5.6 @ 1/250th, ISO 200

Ektar 100 film simulation with added grain in Lightroom

C5 Custom Setting - Ektar 100.
Ultra fine grain ISO 100 sharp colour film simulation suitable for landscapes.
ISO: 100 (Low)
Dynamic range: Auto
White Balance: Auto
Noise reduction: -2
Base film simulation: Astia Soft
Highlight: +1
Shadow: +1
Colour: +2
Sharpness: +1
Grain effect added in Lightroom in post:
Amount: 30  Size: 30  Roughness: 30

Kodak Ektar 100 is my favourite go-to medium format 120mm roll film when I shoot with my Bronica ETRS. It's a super-fine grain, contrasty and punchy film - not as punchy as Velvia, which is why the base film simulation is Astia ramped up to +2 colour. Will probably be my landscape film simulation of choice when shooting colour.

Ilford HP5

Ilford HP5. Fujifilm X-E1 with 16-50mm f3.5-5.6. f6.4 @ 1/420th. ISO 400

Ilford HP5 with grain added in Lightroom

C6 Custom Setting - Ilford HP5.
Faster b&w film with more grain than Acros.
ISO: Auto - 400 up to 1600
Dynamic range: 200
White Balance: Auto
Noise reduction: -2
Base film simulation: Mono +G
Highlight: +2
Shadow: +1
Sharpness: 0
Grain effect added in Lightroom in post:
Amount: 50  Size: 40  Roughness: 40

If I'm looking for something with a little more speed than Acros, but not as contrasty or grainy as Tri-X, then I reach for Ilord HP5. It's a do-it-all type of film. This film simulation probably won't get a lot of use, and I may swap it out for something else eventually? I'm really only just starting out with these film simulations, and I'm sure I will 'tweak' them as I go - or change them out completely? But I also like the 3/4 split with b&w/colour, although another colour simulation that's a bit more funky and out-there might eventually replace this HP5 look?

Fuji Superia 800

Fuji Superia 800. Fujifilm X-E1 with 16-50mm f3.5-5.6. f9 @ 1/400th. ISO 800

Fuji Superia 800 with added grain

C7 Custom Setting - Fuji Superia 800.
Fast ISO 800 colour negative film simulation suitable for general photography.
ISO: 800
Dynamic range: 200
White Balance: Auto
Noise reduction: -2
Base film simulation: Pro Neg Stnd
Highlight: 0
Shadow: +1
Colour: +2
Sharpness: +1
Grain effect added in Lightroom in post:
Amount: 60  Size: 40  Roughness: 40

Speaking of colour simulations that are a bit more 'out-there', I had to include an ISO 800 film in the simulations - so why not go for a Fuji 800 film? To be honest, I don't shoot a lot of 800 ISO film, so again, this may be something that makes way for another Recipe later on?

Looking at all these film simulation recipes, you can certainly see obvious colour and tonal differences. Creating, and then tweaking them, is actually a lot of fun. But it's also fairly subjective, and not an exact science. Is my Acros film simulation exactly like Acros film? No, of course it's not. Is it exactly like Fuji's own Acros film simulation setting in the later cameras? Again, probably not. But does it give me something that approaches the feel of Acros when I shoot with it? Hopefully it does.

What the custom film simulations will also do is encourage me to shoot in jpeg, to let the camera do all the processing work at the time of capture. This will 'free me up' to spend less time sitting at the computer post processing - which suits me fine. I spend all day sitting at a computer, I don't really fancy doing it all night as well! Initially, however, I will probably cover my bases and shoot RAW + Jpeg, which is something I never do. Prior to using the X-E1, I was a 100% RAW only shooter and fiercely proud of it! But of course these film simulations are only applied to jpegs, so there's really no point in spending a few days setting these simulations up, and then not actually use them!

I appreciate this is a fairly long post - but hopefully you got something out of it if you're a Fuji X-E1 (or X-Pro 1) owner with the first gen X-Trans sensor? Have you got any film simulation recipes that you use with your X-E1? I'd love to hear what you're using, and how you've set your X-E1 up. I'm still just learning all of this.