I wanted to create a Film Simulation Recipe for my Fujifilm X-T5 camera that would produce a certain look when shot under fluorescent lights at night. Now there are different varieties of fluorescent lightbulbs, and the kelvin temperature can vary quite significantly between them. It’s also not uncommon to find fluorescent lights mixed with other nearby light sources. In other words, results will very depending on the exact light situation. Sometimes this Recipe will produce warm results, and sometimes cool. While not modeled after any specific emulsion, this Recipe is similar to using a Tungsten-balanced film—perhaps something similar to Fujicolor NPL 160T or Kodak Portra 100T, although it’s not exactly like either of those. This Recipe gives you one more option for nighttime photography.

What I found myself enjoying more than I thought I would is using this Fluorescent Night Film Simulation Recipe during the day. It has an obvious cool cast with pronounced blues. Still, I was pleasantly surprised that this Recipe is halfway decent for daylight use. If you are looking for a retro film-like aesthetic that isn’t warm, Fluorescent Night might be a good option for your daylight photography.

This Fluorescent Night Film Simulation Recipe is compatible with all Fujifilm fifth-generation X-Trans cameras, which (as of this writing) are the X-H2s, X-H2, X-T5, and X-S20 (yes, the X-S20). You should also be able to use this on newer GFX models, but the results will likely be slightly different (try it anyway). For nighttime use, I most often selected -2/3 or -1/3 exposure compensation, and for daylight I most often used +1/3 or +2/3; however, “typical exposure compensation” is only meant as a starting point, and each exposure should be judged individually.

Film Simulation: Nostalgic Neg.
Dynamic Range: DR200
Grain Effect: Strong, Small
Color Chrome Effect: Strong
Color Chrome FX Blue: Weak
White Balance: Fluorescent 2, -8 Red & -1 Blue
Highlight: -1
Shadow: -1.5
Color: +4
Sharpness: -2
High ISO NR: -4
Clarity: -3
ISO: Auto, up to ISO 6400
Exposure Compensation: -2/3 to +2/3 (typically)

Example photographs, all camera-made JPEGs captured using this Fluorescent Night Film Simulation Recipe on my Fujifilm X-T5:

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Fujifilm X-T5 in black:  Amazon  B&H  Moment
Fujifilm X-T5 in silver:  Amazon  B&H  Moment

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