Fuji Acros film recipe for the X100

We are now three days in to 2026 - my year of one camera, one lens, with the Fujifilm X100. Yesterday was my first 'official' 2026 shoot with the camera - and a chance to use the film recipe in my C2 slot - Fujifilm Acros.

Coal Creek Falls Track. Fujifilm X100. f5.6 @ 1/38th, ISO 200. Acros film recipe + grain

Acros is my favourite black and white film, and I used the Acros film simulation provided with the Fujifilm X-E2 all the time when I was shooting with that camera. Alas, the X100 does not have the Acros film simulation as standard - simply providing a 'mono' setting instead. But, with the ability to 'tweak' the settings in the X100 and program in your own recipes into custom settings, all is not lost. I have therefore used the C2 slot to program my version of an Acros film recipe.

Tiny waterfall. X100. f5.6 @ 1/30, ISO 200
Acros film recipe + gain added in
Nik Collections Color Efex Pro 4

Fujifilm Acros Film Recipe

Film base: Mono +Y

ISO: Auto

Dynamic Range: 100

White Balance: Auto

Color: Mid

Sharpness: M-Hard

Highlight Tone: Standard

Shadow Tone: M-Hard

Noise reduction: M-Low

Mono + Y gives me a nice contrasty base image to work from, and this is increased with a little extra sharpness and a little more richness in the blacks/shadows. With a black and white image I am never concerned with letting the blacks go completely black. I was told very early on in my photography career by one of my mentors to let the blacks go black and the whites go white for a good monochrome image, and I have taken this advice to heart. There's nothing worse than an insipid, flat monochrome image (imho).

In my last post I talked about using the optical viewfinder in preference to the evf, and this is still the case. I am also finding that I am composing and shooting with the lcd on the back of the camera - especially when shooting in monochrome as this gives me a preview of what it will look like in black and white before taking the photo. I think that using the optical viewfinder is also helping with the battery life of the X100. Most reviews of the camera take great pains to single the battery life of the X100 out as being truly horrible. I haven't found this to be the case at all. I'm on my third outing with this camera and the battery is still showing a full charge! Granted I don't usually take hundreds of images a day, and I turn the camera off between extended periods of not shooting. So for my shooting style, battery life is perfectly fine.

Forest Interior. Fujifilm X100. f5.6 @ 1/30, ISO 200. Acros film recipe + grain 

Also in my last post, I mentioned at the end that I recently had a computer upgrade and lost the Nik Collection in the process. Well, good news... the internet came to the rescue and I was able to find the software that Google offered as a free download again. So I can still use Color Efex Pro 4 to add grain to the final images I want to in post. Yay!

I don't go heavy on the grain - it is subtle. But it is there. And it just completes the 'look' that I'm going for. OK, it's not therefore strictly using images SOOC (straight out of camera) - but that's not what it's about. I don't mind adding an extra step to some of my jpegs to just give them that finishing touch. It's still a long way from shooting and processing RAW images. And to be fair, if the X100 had the ability, then I would be adding grain to the jpeg at the point of capture...

Coal Creek Falls. X100. f/8 @ 1/110th, ISO 200. Acros film recipe + grain with Color Efex Pro 4

I love shooting black and white with film, and this hasn't changed with digital. I adore the 'timeless' quality of monochrome - be it with landscape, portrait, or general photography. Which is why I have the Acros film recipe in my C2 slot, and don't feel the need to cover my bases by shooting RAW + Jpeg so I can get a colour image as well. Shooting monochrome is an intentional act that I am more than happy to commit to on a regular basis. And if I come across a scene that I feel would benefit more with a colour image, then I simply switch to my C1 slot for that photo and then move back to C2 for the Acros film recipe.

Is the final result exactly like Acros film? Probably not. But does it get me in the same mindset, whereby when I switch to the C2 slot on the X100 my brain also switches into monochrome mode? Yes it does. And that's more than good enough for me.

2025 - The Year of Film!?

I love black and white photography. Always have. It's what I cut my teeth on when I first started learning all about photography (way back when). It's classic, the images often have a timeless feeling and there's something 'evocative' about monochrome that color doesn't match.

Perhaps that's why I enjoyed shooting the Fujifilm cameras and playing around with the film recipes so much? At least half of the recipes I programmed into the cameras were black and white (mostly trying to replicate Acros - my favorite b&w film). And shooting with all these 'film stocks' on a digital camera was a heap of fun (and a huge rabbit-hole it turns out).

Aailyah. Lumix S5 with Panasonic S 50mm f1.8. 1/60th sec @ f2.8, ISO 100. 

Shooting black and white with digital is a simple matter of choosing a monochrome profile instead of color. Then, if you shoot RAW, you get a b&w image in the viewfinder (if you're shooting with a mirrorless system), but the RAW image still has the color information attached if you change your mind.

You can also choose to shoot in RAW + JPEG, in which case the jpeg will have the b&w profile 'burnt' into the file, while the RAW will still retain the color. The best of both worlds. 

I don't shoot Fujifilm cameras anymore, having moved to the Panasonic Lumix S5 full-frame camera. But when I did shoot with Fujifilm, I would often only shoot in JPEG - meaning that the resulting image would only be monochrome. No color info - no going back. It was a bit like shooting film, but with digital. 

Some are very happy with this work flow - creating 'pretend' film images on digital. Heck, you can even add grain to the image at the point of capture to further enhance the film look. 

Say 'Cheese'. Lumix S5 with Panasonic S 50mm f1.8. 1/60th sec @ f2.8, ISO 100.

The portraits in this post were all taken on the Lumix S5 using the Monochrome S profile. The S5 has a variety of monochrome profiles you can choose, with the 'S' profile seeming to give the best rendition of skin colors. But since they were all shot in RAW, they were infinitely 'tweakable' in post-processing anyway. And as much as I do like the final look, there is a part of this jaded old photographer that thinks to himself "If you want the film look to your images, just damn well shoot film"!

Storytime with Grammy. Lumix S5 with S 50mm f1.8. 1/60th sec @ 4.5, ISO 1000.

So that's exactly what I've decided to do in 2025. Shoot some film.

Early last year, a very good friend gifted me a Minolta Dynax 7 film camera body (thanks Stew) and I've meant to shoot it ever since. The time for thinking is over, and it's time to get doing! 

First step was to actually get some film for it. Given all I've said in this post so far, I was only going to be looking at monochrome film - for two reasons. Firstly for all the reasons I've given in this post 😁(didn't I just say that?), and second - the cost. B&W film is cheaper to buy and, if you have your own processing tanks and chemicals (which I do), cheaper to develop. Much cheaper. 

I brought some Rollei APX 25, 100 and 400 ISO film, and then actually scored some cheap expired color film online, just for giggles. Don't know when I'll use the color (especially since one of them is a slide film which is horrendously expensive to develop), but it's there just in case.

I then decided to get a 'standard' lens for the Dynax 7, and I knew just which one to get; The Minolta 35-70mm f/4 macro. It's a lens I've owned before and used with Sony A-mount digital cameras. It's a great performer, very sharp wide open, with a constant f/4 aperture.

The 35-70mm f/4's come up reasonably regularly, and are a fairly cheap price for such a good lens. The one I bid on was actually attached to a Dynax 7xi, so I got another film body as a back-up to the Dynax 7.

When Stewart gifted me the Dynax 7 it came with a 50mm f2.8 macro lens, so I decided my new film kit would be complete with a telephoto lens. Enter the Minolta 70-210mm f/4.5-5.6. I had actually purchased a 70-210mm f/4 'beercan' but had to send it back because it wouldn't focus to infinity! Damn... I might get another one later, but for the meantime the f/4.5-5.6 will do.

With the Minolta in the bag I thought I was now sorted for a film kit. Turns out I was wrong! Since I was looking through all the listings for film cameras on our New Zealand auction site (TradeMe), I was seeing other cameras that were catching my attention. I had my eye on a Canon EOS5 body that looked like it might go cheaply, so I put in a 'low' bid and left it at that. And yes, I won it (for the princely sum of $35.00NZ).

Film cameras (and film) have experienced something of a resurgence in the last 5 years, which has seen the prices go up considerably. Film itself is eye-wateringly expensive (which does give pause when looking at getting back into shooting film), while old film cameras that used to be given away (or thrown out), are now going for more that older digital camera bodies. Crazy...

But there are still bargains to be had (can't complain about $35.00NZ for a Canon EOS5) if you look out for them and are patient. Strangely enough, it's the older, more manual film cameras that are the most popular. The more 'modern' looking film cameras tend to go for cheaper prices. Suits me.

I'm looking forward to getting a bit more 'hands on', a bit more 'tactile' with my photography this year. Not in a hipster, 'look-at-me-aren't-I-cool' sort of way (I'm middle aged, bald and fat - hipster I ain't) - more in a photography as 'craft' kind of vibe. I'll let you know how it goes....

Golden Bay Holiday - Farewell Spit Dunes and Sunset

The Golden Bay Region at the top of New Zealand's South Island is a photographer's paradise! There is so much to see and photograph; from rugged coastline and sandy beaches, to old abandoned buildings and various wildlife. 

On just our second day at Puponga, blessed with beautiful weather (not a breath of wind), we decided to walk along the Spit at low tide, to photograph the sand dunes. We hoped for some nice evening light and some interesting formations to photograph. What we got was out of this world spectacular!

It's about an hours walk to the dunes from the car park. But if you are going to go you need to make sure that the tide is well out. Fortunately for us, we had timed it perfectly and low-tide coincided with sunset. I didn't really know what to expect from the dunes, and after about three quarters of an hour of trudging over broken shells carrying a tripod and camera gear, I was beginning to wonder whether it was all going to be worth it? But boy oh boy, was it worth it!

Farewell Spit Sand Dunes. Fuji X-E2 with Fujinon 16-50mm XF lens. f9 @ 1/45th sec, ISO 200

We were greeted with a landscape unlike any other I have ever experienced. I've never been to the desert before, and am possibly never likely to? So for me, this was the next best thing. A sandscape that reminded me of the sand planet Tattoine in the Star Wars movies, bathed in beautiful evening light. My photography brain almost exploded from sensory overload! It was almost too much to take in and process. It was so alien and foreign - I'm used to a lot of lush green on the West Coast - that I almost didn't know how to approach photographing it? And yet, at the same time, incredible images seemed to materialise no matter where I pointed my camera!

Visions of Tattoine. Fuji X-E2 with Fujinon 16-50mm XF lens. f9 @ 1/56th sec, ISO 200

Faced with such an overwhelming visual experience, I knew that I ran the risk of just 'spraying and praying'. Taking hundreds of images of stuff that was 'new' without really considering the 'why' of the image. So luckily I decided to slow down and give myself 10 minutes just to soak it all in and not take a single photo. I also decided to switch the camera to black and white in the viewfinder (shooting RAW + Jpeg so I would have the option of both colour and b&w later). These two decisions saved my bacon (so to speak), as they forced me to slow down and actually 'look' at what I was seeing.

What was I drawn to most strongly? What was I responding to most emotionally? When I took the time to ask myself these questions, and when I looked through the viewfinder of the X-E2 at the black and white image, I realised that it was the textures and the forms in the sand that excited me the most. And especially how these textures and forms were responding to the light. So that's what I concentrated on for my images.

Golden light. Fuji X-E2 with Fujinon 16-50mm XF lens. f9 @ 1/25th sec, ISO 200

If that had been the photography done and dusted for the evening then I would have gone away very happy and considered it a successful evenings shoot. But mother nature wasn't finished with us yet.

The light was slowly fading as we left the sand dunes to head back to the car park. We had another hours journey ahead of us, and wanted to make it back before dark. But we were also hopeful that the sky might colour up for a decent sunset. We'd had an amazing time with wonderful light at the sand dunes. Did we dare hope for a great sunset as well?

Colouring up. Fuji X-E2 with Fujinon 16-50mm XF lens. f11 @ 1/40th, ISO 200.

As we made our way back, we couldn't believe our eyes (and luck)! The light was gorgeous, and just kept getting better and better! At low tide, on such a still and calm evening, the reflections in the remaining water were perfect. Glassy smooth and pristine. Nicki and I were two very happy and excited photographers, with perfect conditions, in what turned out to be one of the best evenings of my life - period!

Very happy Photographers! Photo: Joanna Lorimer

On a more technical note: I continue to be impressed and more than satisfied with the 16MP x-trans sensor in the Fuji X-E2. The x-trans colours are beautiful, the files are clean, and the cameras themselves are a joy to handle and use. I still love the programmable 'film simulations' of the Fuji's, and switching quickly between them is a breeze. Having shot b&w using my 'C2 - Acros' film simulation at the sand dunes, a quick press of the 'Q' button and flick of the control wheel and I switched to my 'C1 - Classic Chrome' film simulation for punchy sunset colours. The jpegs that these film simulations produce are astoundingly good. But so too, surprisingly, are the RAW files from the x-trans sensor. Most manufacturers RAW files are somewhat duller (even lack luster) when compared to the out-of-camera jpegs - but not so with the Fuji RAW's from the X-E2. Even the RAW files are punchy and colourful, with very little needing to be done to them in the way of added contrast or saturation. When I flick between a Nikon jpeg and RAW capture in Lightroom, the difference between the two files is obvious. Not so much with the Fuji's. Which I like.

Sunset over Abel Tasman. Fuji X-E2 with Fujinon 16-50mm XF lens. f16 @ 2 secs. ISO 200

We had gone on holiday to Golden Bay knowing that there would be plenty of photo opportunities. I had prepared my gear as best I could, but you always need the weather to come to the party. So there is always going to be an element of luck involved with any photographic endevour. On only our second night at Golden Bay, we got extremely, extremely 'lucky'. We were in the right place, at the right time, to capture some truly magnificent light on the landscape.

On nights like this, in those moments when everything aligns and comes together (which - lets be honest - are extremely rare), I feel amazingly honoured, and incredibly humbled, to be a photographer. It's a hobby/profession that I've been passionate about for over 30 years of my life.

You may or may not be a person with a religious faith. I happen to be. And on a night like the one we experience that evening, I feel closer to my creator than at any other time. That's the gift that photography gives me.

52 Week Project - Week 2

Traditional Landscape. Ilford Delta 100

It's week two of the 52 Week Project, and this week the theme is 'Traditional Landscape'.

The brief says to: "Shoot a beautiful landscape and share it with the world. Find a nice foreground and don't forget the sky."

The image I've shot for the project isn't my 'normal' approach to landscapes. For a couple of reasons....

I want to try and 'push' myself a little with these weekly challenges, and try to create something out of the norm for me. Otherwise what's the point - right? So for a start, the photo is obviously in portrait orientation - whereas I would normally automatically default to landscape orientation for, um, a landscape 😉

The other obvious departure for me is the use of black and white. I love black and white images, but I almost always think in glorious technicolor when I think of landscapes. I tend to reserve black and white for portraiture or documentary style work. But I didn't really have a choice this time, since the shot was taken on B&W film. Ilford Delta 100 to be exact.

We've had a shockingly wet and miserable summer here on the West Coast, with very little chance to go out and take glorious colour images. Even so, my wife and I still try to go for a morning walk every day, (in the rain) and one morning this week it looked like it might be clear for an hour while we walked. So I loaded my Yashica 230AF with Ilford Delta and headed out to see if I could at least get some photography done.

There's a farm just down the road where we live, and I have often wanted to stop and take some photos of the cows in the field. I was in luck this morning, as the herd was grazing close to the road where we walk. I loved the mist rolling over the hills, and the cows - true to their inquisitive nature - looked up to watch us pass by. I took about three shots and moved on. Two were in landscape, and one was in portrait orientation - and I liked the portrait one best.

Is it a 'beautiful' landscape? I think so. Is it a 'traditional' landscape? Maybe not - although I do get quite a Gainsborough or Constable feel from the picture. Did I find a 'nice foreground'? I love the cows staring back at the viewer (very cow-like behavior), and the way the centrally placed cow is  exactly in the middle and front-on, while the second cow is profile and off to the side. And finally - did I 'forget the sky'? Well, it's not your classic blue sky with puffy clouds landscape - but I love the mist rolling in over the hills. It transports me immediately to the same dull, drizzly morning of the walk. It wouldn't evoke the same feel with puffy clouds. So yeah, I think I nailed the brief. What do you think?