As you know, my film simulation recipes rely heavily on white balance shifts. Unfortunately, you cannot save white balance shifts with custom presets. You can only save one white balance shift for each white balance type in the White Balance Menu. In other words, whatever shift you set for auto white balance will be applied to all custom presets that use auto white balance. If all of your C1-C7 presets in the Q menu use the same white balance, one white balance shift will be applied to all of them. For many people, this means that whenever you change recipes you’re also having to adjust the white balance shift, which is a pain sometimes.
The Fujifilm X-Pro3 doesn’t have this problem from what I’ve heard. You can save unique white balance shifts with each preset in the Q menu. You can set it and forget it! There’s a decent chance that this ability will be added to the X-T3 and X-T30 via a firmware update at some point, but right now the X-Pro3 is the only camera that can do this. There’s an outside chance that X-Trans III cameras could also be given this feature, but most likely not. Don’t fret! I do have a solution. There’s a simple work-around that might make things much easier for you.
The issue is that only one white balance shift can be saved per white balance, but in that statement lies the answer! What you need are presets that use different white balances. Or you can have presets that use the same white balance and the same white balance shift. What do I mean?
So you have custom slots C1 through C7, right? Maybe you use all seven of them for color. Or maybe you set aside one or two for black-and-white, in which case white balance and white balance shift may or may not be important. For each color preset you simply use a film simulation recipe with a different white balance. If each recipe uses a different white balance, then you can set the shift for that recipe and you’re good to go. It will always be set to that unless you decided to change it.
For example, you could have Kodachrome II, which uses auto white balance, set to C1, Kodacolor, which uses a kelvin white balance, set to C2, Kodachrome 64, which uses daylight white balance, set to C3, Lomography Color 100, which uses cloudy/shade white balance, set to C4, Color Negative, which uses fluorescent 1 white balance, set to C5, Fujichrome Sensia, which uses flurescent 2 white balance, set to C6, and Portra 400, which uses a custom white balance, set to C7. If you did that, since each recipe uses a different white balance, you wouldn’t have to adjust the white balance shift when going between different presets. Also, there a few recipes that share the same white balance and white balance shift as others, such as Kodachrome II and Ektachrome 100SW, so you could use both of those and never have to change the shift.
To make things easy for you, I’ve organized the color film simulation recipes by white balance. Choose one from each until all of your available presets are filled. It’s pretty simple. Unfortunately, you might not be able to use all of your favorite recipes, depending on exactly what the white balance and white balance shifts are. But I hope that you find enough options you like to fill your available presets.
Film Simulation Recipes that use AWB
Film Simulation Recipes that use Kelvin
Film Simulation Recipes that use other White Balances
Since I set up my custom presets this way on my camera, it’s made a world of difference to me. It’s so much easier moving between recipes! The user experience has been greatly improved. I hope that you find this just as useful as I did.
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Hi Ritchie
Thanks for your efforts!
Unfortunately all my favourite white balance shifts use “automatic white balance” and if I understand you correctly I could only use one out of each category…
🙁
Yes, one out of each category, unless they share the same shift. Sorry that it doesn’t work for you.
I have another question:
if I change AWB to a certain value, and then use the KelvinWB in let’s say C2 for another film simulation, doesn’t that mean that the changed AWB (usually it sits at 0/0) the KelvinAW?
In other words: adds up to the changed KlevinWB?
Or is KelvinWB in C1-C7 prior to the global setting of AWB?
I’m confused
Kelvin is a specific temperature, while AWB is whatever the camera thinks it should be. If you set it to Kelvin, whatever the shift is that’s set for Kelvin will be applied. If you reprocess the RAW, you’ll have to change white balance and the shift separately. I hope this answers your question.
I have two methods for my XT30
Method 1:
I have been using your Agfa Optima, Kodak recipe and my Classic recipe on my XT30. I create three custom white balance settings one for each recipe, but this limits me to only three Q button options.
Method 2:
Shoot in Raw and use the Fuji X Raw Studio to create as many custom profiles as you like.
I prefer to shoot JPG.
What I would like from Fuji is for the BKT settings to have an option for bracketing three Q button customizations as they do for film simulations
Those are two options. The custom white balance can work, but it’s a custom measurement, so there’s a challenge there. But whatever works for you, that’s great! I’m a big fan of people finding what works for them and doing that, so I appreciate you sharing this, as I’m sure some will find it helpful.
Fujifilm should make firmware update to even older camera models as I personally see the lack of possibility to save shift in WB as a programming error, not a feature. What on earth did they think when they left the WB shift out of options that are saved for each slot? The ability to save it must be one of the most requested updates to the firmware of older cameras and only if there is some technical limitation in older cameras I could understand not updating the firmware. For me this has been one driving factor to rely more in Capture One than in camera film simulations and I settle with film simulation settings that use one common white balance.
I hope that they do update the older cameras to allow it. Seems like a good thing to do.
I hope so too even though your approach is clever!
Nonetheless I cannot imagine that this is a difficult thing to implement for Fuji…
I wouldn’t think it to be difficult. I imagine it was more an oversight than anything else. I hope they bring it to even the older models.
Ditto!
Hey Guys,
but when I remember right, it is possible to save C1, C1, C3 with different Auto Whitebalance Settings. Or am I wrong?
By the Way: Thank you for your work! it´s awesome what you do for the Fuji-Community…
You are welcome! You might be thinking about custom white balance, which is a custom measurement, and not AWB. You can save up to three of them.
Yes your correct white balance shift can be saved in C1 C2 and C3
But what if i would use one standard preset to shoot a normal look (no recipe) with AWB. Can I use no recipe with AWB and some adds of blues and reds?
Im weird now.
Sure. Whatever settings you want to use, make the shift whatever you want it to be. I have WB set as a shortcut on my camera so that I can adjust the shift quickly and easily.
BTW. the White Balance Shift is the Camera Calibration Tab in Lightroom. 😉
Good to know, thanks!
Interesting solution but I’m not sure this works for me. Honestly, I don’t even understand what you wrote. I have 8 of the 8 slots filled, 5 are auto white balance, and three are not.
Yeah, to make it work, you would only use one AWB recipe, unless another one shares the same shift. Each slot would need a recipe that uses a different white balance.
I have a text document on my iPhone. I open it to get the settings I need to change the white balance shift between recipes.
That’s a smart way to do it.
i write +R3 -B4 in the recipe names
I have done that, too, it’s a good reminder. Thank you for sharing!
I just ran into another issue you might able to help me with concerning your colour shift solution.
Recipes that use other WB/Eterna low contrast: how do I set up “-3R and +3B”, I can only set up Kelvin 5900.
And if this is only possible in global settings for AWB, does that not conflict with all other film simulation recipes?
thanks
If you go to the white balance menu, when on the Kelvin temperature, arrow to the right to activate the white balance shift menu.
in general settings? Or in C1-C7?
thanks
In general settings, as I believe you can’t do that via the Q menu (although apparently the X-Pro3 can…).
Thank you Ritchie 🙂
worked perfectly well! Thanks!
Next I try to find filmsimulations that match the colour shifts of Kodachrome64, Eterna (AWB) and ClassicChrome (KelvinWB)…
cheers
I just want to be able to save AWB with different shift on my XT2. For example : Custom Setting 1 use AWB (shift R:+1 B:0), Custon Setting 2 use AWB (shift R=+1 B-2), etc… How can I do that?
You can’t, unfortunately. The X-Pro3 is currently the only camera that has this capability (and probably the X100V).
Hey Ritchie, I can confirm that this feature is, in fact, present on the Fujifilm X100V as well. It saves the WB shift as part of the Q menu presets! Fantastic!
Awesome! Glad to hear.
I woke up a bit late with these simulations … They are really beautiful! Thank you! One thing worried me. I take photos in RAW and I have target directories for mine collections saved in TIFF format. As you know, these simulations actually only work in jpeg format. I know, fuji are really great, but to me depends on the TIFF format. And I have the problem solved! From the camera I convert RAW files to TIFF in 8 bits, that’s enough, 16 bits is almost 140 MB! and for this I can carry out a correction before the conversion, e.g. exposure compensation 🙂 programs. Unfortunately, this only applies to the latest generation Fuji X100V, X-Pro 3 and XT-4 cameras … Best regards; grateful fan of simulation 🙂
It would be great if Fujifilm allowed the ability to save as TIFF on all of their cameras. That would be a significant improvement, I think. I appreciate the comment!
The app is a great way to have access to all your simulations on the go! Well worth the payment to support future development. Have you considered adding “white balance grouping” in the app? To make it easier to find simulations that go well together, that would be a helpful feature.
Thank you so much for your feedback, kindness and support! I do plan to add that, plus a number of other great improvements and features, hopefully in an update this summer. There are some good things coming, for sure.
Great!
Hello
Since I prefer to shoot RAW & JPEG I am setting White Balance to 0 for all pictures. Then I used my saved recipes taken from FujiWeekly to have it fine tuned to the customed recipe that you provide. I have not noticed changes. Eg using eterna with White Balance to 0 then processing it in Fuji Studio and loading Eterna preset works fine (it seems at least to my eyes). Yopur view?
If you are using X RAW Studio it seems logical that it should work. I don’t see why it wouldn’t. Thanks for the input!
Hello Ritchie, Firstly thank you so much for all your hard work. I have recently fallen back in love with photography thanks to fujifilm cameras and your film simulations (in equal measures). I have been using a X100V for the last 5 months with every custom slot filled with one of your recipes, changing all the time but hardcore faves being Portra 400, Kodachrome 2, Portra 800v2 and my absolute go to for summer use Bright Summer.
My questions are….
I have just bought a X Pro 2, am i correct in thinking i can dial in Portra 400, Kodachrome 2 & Kodacolor all at the same time? As their White balance’s are different, hence letting me save the shift’s ok? Seems like i can when i check the menu after i save them. Or have i got that wrong?
Final question..
What would you think could get me close to the Bright Summer recipe in my X pro 2?
Thanks Ritchie for the new SOOC video channel too, really helpful.
Cheers
David (Ireland)
Thanks so much, David, for your kind words!
On the X-Pro2, each of those recipes use a different White Balance, so as long as no other preset uses those white balances, the camera will remember the shift. That Portra 400 recipe has a difficult-to-achieve custom WB measurement, and if you can get that right, it looks great, but if not, it’s still good but not as good. I recommend also trying Portra 160.
For Bright Summer (aka “Preetra 400” lol), obviously you don’t have Clarity or Color Chrome Effect, but if you keep all the other settings the same (maybe experiment with Shadow -1) and use a diffusion filter (like CineBloom or Black Pro Mist) you should be able to get close.
I hope this helps!
Thank you Ritchie. That’s great news re being able to save the shifts on the x pro 2. Will that include the difference in kelvin values also?
IE both the Kodacolor and Bright Summer use a Kelvin but at different levels. Will the camera let me store and remember both ? It’s not really an issue as I will just pick one on the day but nice to know. Thanks for the tips on the use of Bright Sumer I will try that today.
I have no problem saying these recipes have literally changed my life in my photography. I’m sure anyone else reading this can identify totally.
Cheers
David
I guess just to clarify, the X-Pro2 cannot save WB Shifts with the custom presets. Only if each preset uses a different White Balance, the camera remembers one WB Shift per White Balance. I think that is what’s understood, but I just want to double-clarify.
So Kodacolor and Bright Summer both use Kelvin (the same WB type) but with different shifts, so the camera will only remember the last one used.
I appreciate your encouragement! Thank you!
Thanks Ritchie for clarifying that. It’s what I understood but just wanted to make sure.
The bright summer works well in the X pro2.
Cheers David
Sent from my iPhone
>
Awesome! Thank you!
Dear Ritchie,
I’m a big fan of your Android-App – if there was an option to filter your simulations not only by camera, sensor and simulation, but also by WB it would be a huge step forward in terms of usability! 🙂
I tried figuring out how to save the different recipes on my X-E2 & X-T2 by creating an Excel-sheet with the different parameters, so I can plan on which custom slot to save them. It’s working but a little complex when I want to aply a new one.
Would that be possible?
Thank you so much!
Greetings from southern Germany,
Moe
Thanks for the suggestion! I’m hoping to get a big app update out next month. The ability to filter by WB will be one of the new features. I appreciate your support! The app will get even better soon. Take care!
Thanks for this useful article. Personal white balance How do I reset the setting? I couldn’t find this. I want to reset the white balance in the Personal 1 part. Also, if I reset the shooting menu from the machine settings, will the loaded recipes be deleted?
I don’t think there’s a way to restore Custom White Balance to be unmeasured. All you can do is measure again to something else. I think Fujifilm’s intention of it is that you would constantly be remeasuring as the light changes. I think the second question is if you restore a C1-C7 Custom Preset to factory defaults, will the recipe programmed into that C1-C7 be erased? The answer is yes.
Ah yes I got it, thank you so much for taking the time to reply.
Thanks for this article and your site, it’s a great resource. Since I’m having trouble finding an answer online, I figure id ask here – does the X-T30 II allow separate WB shifts per custom profile slot like the newer Fuji cameras?
Yes! The X-T30 II does, the X-T30 does not.
What would happen if I use the C1-C3 custom white balance settings, use a pure black image for the reference, and then input the red and blue shift from there? Since there’s 3 custom presets you can make that would be a lot easier than having to change the red and blue shift everytime when using auto white balance. I’m not sure what using a pure black image for the reference would do to the image though. Thanks for the post!
The three custom white balance settings are custom Kelvin measurements of the scene. If the light changes, the WB will not change with it like AWB. You could, in theory, use custom WB and just constantly be re-measuring the WB, but that would seem like a lot of work. More practically, you could take a measurement in sunny daylight (make sure that the results are the same as using Daylight WB), and use the custom WB as a second (or third or fourth) Daylight option.
HI thanks so much for the site, it’s been really fun using all the recipes.
I have a noob question about the white balance settings in these recipes. When I find a certain recipe not working well under certain light conditions, should I look for a recipe that has a matching white balance setting as the weather? for example, for extremely cloudy or raining days, look for something with Shade white balance, instead of Daylight or 5200k?
I wonder when you create the recipes, is it based on a sunny day light, and you used the WB shift to create the color, or the WB here is still referring to the light condition?
Thank you.
Different Recipes (like film) are often intended for use in different light. This article briefly touches on it:
https://fujixweekly.com/2023/07/13/answers-to-the-10-most-common-fujifilm-how-to-questions/
And this article dives more deeply into it:
https://fujixweekly.com/2022/01/19/film-simulation-recipes-why-pictures-are-too-yellow-how-to-fix-it/
My best advice is to use a Recipe that will do well under the light you are shooting in. But that’s not the only option you have (as explained in the second link). Also, Recipes that use AWB are the most versatile, so you might look for those. I hope this helps!
Expanding on your solution, I use a workaround which allows you to save whichever recipes you want, but it requires a bit more work than just copying all the recipe settings.
Correct me if I’m wrong, but both WB type and WB shift are essentially a uniform shift in colors across the whole image. This means you can start with different WB types but use WB shift to achieve the same end result.
So if certain WB type (e.g. Daylight) is already used by another recipe, you instead pick an unused WB type (e.g. Underwater) and then use WB shift to get the matching colors for that recipe.
Finding the correct WB shift can be done using side-by-side comparison in Fujifilm X Raw Studio: 1) apply all the original settings of that recipe to an existing RAW image; 2) open the side-by-side view; 3) change WB type to something else; 4) play with WB shift until all the colors match as closely as possible.
For the RAW image use something that has the whole range of colors so you can more easily spot where the WB shift is off. Of course a perfectly exact match may not be possible since WB shift can only be done in discrete steps (+1, +2, etc.), so it may be off by a fraction of the step.
The only exception to this method is multiple Auto WB recipes, since Auto WB isn’t a fixed white balance like the other types. However if you’ll be shooting under fixed lighting conditions (so Auto WB will act like fixed WB) then the same method can be used. Just make sure you use a RAW image that was already shot in those lighting conditions, so you can see what Auto WB would do in that lighting.
There is some level of crossover. You can match (or get pretty close to matching) many white balance types + shifts with a different WB type + shift, but it isn’t completely universal. For example, Underwater behaves uniquely when using a flash; as long as you’re not using a flash it is a good alternative. The Fluorescent options also have minor quirks. But, with some work, it’s possible to find alternatives, so that you can have the Recipes you want in your C1-C7, and you’re not excluding one that you really like but its WB type is already being used for another. Thanks for sharing the tip!
It would be great if someone can ‘translate’ all WB type relative to a ‘master’ wb type sliding the wb shift (I cant since xe1 dont work with X raw Studio). Having done this it would be a matter of adding the already shifted position to the R and B values of the simulation given in the recipe.