Film suddenly became expensive, and it might get worse before it gets better. If you shoot with a Fujifilm X camera, like the popular X100V or brand-new X-T5, you are fortunate, because you can emulate your favorite film stocks with Film Simulation Recipes. If Kodak Portra 400 film is too expensive, you can use a Film Simulation Recipe instead!
Film Simulation Recipes are JPEG camera settings that produce a specific look—often based on classic film stocks—straight-out-of-camera, no editing required. I have published over 250 Film Simulation Recipes on this website, which can also be found on the Fuji X Weekly App for easy access on the go. Using recipes on Fujifilm cameras is an excellent way to streamline your workflow while still getting great results that appear as though you post-processed or perhaps even shot with film. Some advantages of using recipes on Fujifilm cameras are simplicity (quickly and easily achieve a desired aesthetic with little or no editing), authenticity (film-like quality that doesn’t appear heavily manipulated), consistency (a single recipe over a series of pictures produces a cohesive visual style), and productivity (not editing pictures saves a lot of time).
Many of the Film Simulation Recipes are intended to produce an analog aesthetic. You might even find a recipe that mimics your favorite film stock. Here are some of the most popular ones:
– Kodachrome 64
– Kodachrome 25
– Kodachrome II
– Vintage Kodachrome
– Kodak Portra 160
– Kodak Portra 400
– Kodak Portra 400 v2
– Kodak Ultramax 400
– Kodak Gold 200
– Kodak Ektar 100
– Kodak Tri-X 400
– CineStill 800T
– Fujicolor Superia 100
– Fujicolor C200
– Fujicolor Pro 400H
There are, of course, many more—the list above is simply some of the most popular.
Do Film Simulation Recipes actually resemble film? Fujifilm has tapped into their vast experience with analog photography—even utilizing their still-active film department—to create their film simulations, so that they more closely resemble film than the typical digital capture from other brands. With further tweaks and adjustments, one can get even closer to the look of actual analog stocks. There are three important things to note: 1) one film can produce many different aesthetics depending on a host of factors (how shot, developed, scanned, etc.), 2) digital and film render differently (each with unique strengths and weaknesses), and 3) Fujifilm has limited tools (recipes are created within those limitation). With that said, it is surprising that one can achieve a close facsimile to actual film stocks using Fujifilm X cameras.
Below are some videos that compare Film Simulation Recipes to actual film. Are the recipes close enough to film that you could use your Fujifilm camera instead of your analog camera? You will have to judge that for yourself. For me personally, the answer is yes, absolutely!
See also:
No Edit Photography: 7 Tips to Get the Film Look from Your Digital Photos
When SOOC Digital Looks Like Film
This post contains affiliate links, and if you make a purchase using my links I’ll be compensated a small amount for it.
Fujifilm X-T5 in black: Amazon B&H
Fujifilm X-T5 in silver: Amazon B&H
Fujifilm X100V in black: Amazon B&H
Fujifilm X100V in silver: Amazon B&H
Find these Film Simulation Recipes and over 250 more on the Fuji X Weekly — Film Recipes App!
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$5.00
Need these to be created eventually 😉
-Fuji Venus 800
-Rollei B&W/Crossbird
-Agfa B&W
-Kodak Double X
I appreciate the suggestions!
Interesting that the vast majority of popular recipes are mimicking Kodak film stocks — and which account for most of my favorites, as well. I absolutely love your Kodachrome and Portra recipes, Ektar, etc.
One thing I’ve noticed, though, about recipes — including my own attempts — that attempt to mimic Fuji negative films (and thus may partially account for this Kodak-weighted list), is that the Fuji digital colors don’t quite match the “memory color” I have from working in a photo lab back in the day, as thousands of 4×6 prints would emerge from the dryer during an average week. Back then Fuji really promoted their enhanced greens and blues, which seriously popped when looking at one’s prints. The Fuji digital color science, however, seems to result in more of a greenish tint applied generally rather than the isolated enhancement of greens and blues so apparent in those printed negatives. Kodak recipes, ironically, seem to be a better match for Fuji’s modern color science.
I think Classic Negative does the best at mimicking Fujifilm’s traditional colors palette. I do think, interestingly and ironically, that Fujifilm seems to have done a better job matching Kodak’s colors than their own, for some reason.
I appreciate your kind input!