How To Save 8 Custom Presets on Fujifilm Cameras (+ No Need To Adjust WB Shift)

Posted on by Ritchie Roesch

Friendly Neighborhood Bougainvillea – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Ektachrome 100SW”

For those with Fujifilm X-Trans cameras that are older than the X-Pro3, you cannot save a White Balance Shift within the C1-C7 Custom Presets. This means that you have to remember to adjust the WB Shift whenever you switch Custom Presets, which is inconvenient to say the least. However, I discovered a method (which I’ve shared before) that allows you to switch between your C1-C7 Custom Presets without having to adjust the WB Shift, and most of you can even have eight presets instead of seven!

Those with an X-Pro3 or newer model don’t have to worry about this, but for those with “older” cameras (X-Trans I, X-Trans II, and X-Trans III, plus the X-T3 & X-T30… Bayer models don’t have Custom Presets), this method can dramatically improve the shooting experience. In this article I will explain in a practical way how to do this on your X-Trans camera. This will be a “game-changer” for some of you!

Note: This was a Creative Collective article, but now it is available to everyone.

The concept of this is simple: while Fujifilm X-Trans cameras (older than the X-Pro3) don’t have the ability to save White Balance Shifts within the Custom Presets, the camera will remember one WB Shift for each White Balance type. For example, if you go to the White Balance Menu and enter in a Shift for Daylight, and a different Shift for Auto, and a different Shift for Kelvin, the camera will remember those. So if each of your Custom Presets uses a different White Balance type (or if two recipes use the same WB & WB Shift), there’s no need to adjust the WB Shift when changing Custom Presets.

If you are a regular reader of this website you probably know this already. This is not new news. Maybe you tried it and loved it. Perhaps you tried it and it just didn’t work out well for you. It could be that you read it but didn’t really know exactly how to do it so you never tried it. Some of you might be hearing about this for the first time. Whatever the case, I’m hoping that by providing a more practical explanation, some of you will give this a try because it really does improve the shooting experience.

I use the Filter by White Balance feature in the Fuji X Weekly App to assist in this, because it’s so much easier than going through each Film Simulation Recipe individually. It’s a great tool that I use frequently, and I hope that you find it useful, too.

On my Fujifilm X70, which is an X-Trans II camera, I have eight Film Simulation Recipes available to me through the C1-C7 Custom Presets. Yes, eight! We will get to that eighth one in a moment, but for now, let’s take a look at my C1-C7.

C1 — Kodachrome II

Engine 703 – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Kodachrome II”

In the top-spot is my Kodachrome II recipe, which utilizes Auto White Balance. Since it uses Auto, we can scratch that off our list of White Balance types for the other six slots. There are currently 10 X-Trans II recipes that use Auto WB, so if Kodachrome II isn’t your favorite, there are nine others that you could choose instead. Personally, Kodachrome II is a favorite, so it happily occupies C1 on my Fujifilm X70.

Bull Shark – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Kodachrome II”
Pavillion – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Kodachrome II”
Clock Tower – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Kodachrome II”

C2 — Kodak Portra 160

Roof, Sky & Trees – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Kodak Portra 160”

Next, in the C2 slot, is the Kodak Portra 160 recipe, which utilizes Daylight White Balance. For some reason, Fujifilm calls this “Fine” and not Daylight on the older cameras—I think because of a poor translation from Japanese to English—but it is in fact Daylight, and is marked by the sunny icon. For X-Trans II there are seven recipes that use Daylight, so if you don’t prefer this one there are six others to choose from.

Six O’Clock Palms – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Kodak Portra 160”
Greenhand Club – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Kodak Portra 160”
Airplane on a Stormy Day – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Kodak Portra 160”

C3 — Kodak Color Negative

Trumpet Flower Blossoms – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Kodak Color Negative”

The next Custom Preset I have programmed into my Fujifilm X70 is the Kodak Color Negative recipe, which calls for the Incandescent White Balance. While this recipe is new (I published it a week ago), it has quickly become a top-favorite of mine for X-Trans II.

Backyard Trike – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Kodak Color Negative”
Mary, Jesus & Stinky Pete – Surprise, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Kodak Color Negative”
Morning Coffee – Glendale, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Kodak Color Negative”

C4 — Fujichrome Slide

Watching the Boat Float of Death – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Fujichrome Slide”

In the fourth spot is my Fujichrome Slide recipe, which uses the Fluorescent 1 White Balance. While the first three Custom Presets produce a Kodak-like aesthetic due to their use of Classic Chrome, this one delivers a little different look for when I want to change it up. If this recipe isn’t your cup of tea, perhaps consider Provia Negative as an alternative.

Illuminated Pool Noodles – Goodyear, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Fujichrome Slide”
Fisherboy – Litchfield Park, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Fujichrome Slide”
Tree & Home Reflection – Litchfield Park, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Fujichrome Slide”

C5 — Lomography Color 100

Freedom – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Lomography Color 100”

Another non-Kodak-like recipe is next, and occupies C5 on my X70: Lomography Color 100. This recipe uses the Shade White Balance. If you don’t like this one, consider Yosemite Velvia as an alternative.

Bougainvillea Hiding – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Lomography Color 100”
Arizona Suburb Landscape – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Lomography Color 100”
Shasta – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Lomography Color 100”

C6 — CineStill 800T

Illuminate the Dark – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “CineStill 800T”

In spot six is my CineStill 800T recipe, which uses a Kelvin White Balance. This is probably my favorite X-Trans II recipe, but because it’s best for night situations I don’t always get to use it. If this one isn’t your favorite, there are six other recipes that use a Kelvin White Balance that you could choose instead.

Dusk Blossom – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “CineStill 800T”
Dusk Rose – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “CineStill 800T”
Night Light – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “CineStill 800T”

C7 — Monochrome Red

Station Wagon – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Monochrome Red”

In the last and final Custom Preset slot is my Monochrome Red recipe, which just so happens to share the same exact White Balance and WB Shift as Fujichrome Slide, which sits in C4. Because these two recipes share the same White Balance and Shift, they can both be in C1-C7 at the same time.

Water Fountain – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Monochrome Red”
Sunlit Flowers – Litchfield Park, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Monochrome Red”
Fishing Pole on Dock – Litchfield Park, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Monochrome Red”

C8 — Ektachrome 100SW

Stop Then Go – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Ektachrome 100SW

I know what you’re thinking: there is no C8—there’s only C1-C7—so how is this possible? Easy! You see, the only difference between the Kodachrome II recipe, which is in C1, and my Ektachrome 100SW recipe, is the film simulation; Kodachrome II uses Classic Chrome while Ektachrome 100SW uses Velvia, and otherwise these two recipes are identical. So if I set my X70 to C1, then change the film simulation to Velvia (using a customized button on the D-Pad), then I have quick access to this recipe. So, yeah, it’s completely possible to have eight recipes, as if there were eight Custom Presets—amazing!

Buckeye Fire Dept. – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Ektachrome 100SW”
Green Trees & Blue Sky – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Ektachrome 100SW”
Palm Structure – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X70 – “Ektachrome 100SW”

So this is all well and good for X-Trans II, but what about X-Trans I? What about X-Trans III? What about the X-T3 and X-T30? Is it possible to do something similar on those cameras? Absolutely!

For X-Trans I, consider these seven recipes:
Kodachrome II (Auto)
Ektachrome (Daylight)
Superia Xtra 400 (Shade)
Color Negative Film (Kelvin)
Vivid Color (Fluorescent 1)
Monochrome (Incandescent)
Ektachrome 100SW (this is an X-Trans II recipe, so it will render a little different; it uses the same White Balance & WB Shift as Kodachrome II)

For X-Trans III, consider these eight recipes:

Kodachrome II (Auto)
Kodak Gold 200 (Daylight)
Porto 200 (Shade)
Kodacolor (Kelvin)
Ektachrome E100GX (Fluorescent 2)
Fujicolor NPL 160 Tungsten (Fluorescent 3)
Analog Monochrome (Incandescent)
Kodak Ektachrome 100SW (this is a bonus 8th recipe that’s identical to Kodachrome II other than the film simulation)

For the X-T3 & X-T30, consider these eight recipes:

Kodachrome II (Auto)
Kodachrome 64 (Daylight)
Lomography Color 100 (Shade)
Jeff Davenport Night (Kelvin)
Kodak Vision3 250D (Fluorescent 1)
Negative Print (Fluorescent 3)
Analog Monochrome (Incandescent)
Kodak Ektachrome 100SW (this is a bonus 8th recipe that’s identical to Kodachrome II other than the film simulation)

There are, of course, so many different combinations that you could do—this is just an idea to get you started. The easiest method to find Film Simulation Recipes that use different White Balance types is via the Filter by White Balance feature of the Fuji X Weekly App. I think, once you program your C1-C7 presets like this, you’re going to find that the shooting experience is much improved, because the hassle of remembering to adjust the WB Shift whenever you switch to a different Custom Preset is gone. For some of you, this is a game-changer.

How do you get a bonus 8th recipe on the X-Pro3 and newer cameras? Set the Kodak Portra 400 v2 recipe to be one of your C1-C7 Custom Presets, and simply change the film simulation from Classic Chrome to Classic Negative to turn it into the Vintage Vibes recipe. Mic dropped.

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