Sometimes I like to go back through the archives of this website, just to see what I wrote years ago. For example, on this day in 2018, I published My Fujifilm Post-Processing Workflow, which, looking back, wasn’t my best work. I had to reread one of the paragraphs twice just to understand what I meant—and I was the one who write it! That’s embarrassing. So I decided to rewrite the article, and make it relevant to 2025.
The question is: What is my post-processing workflow? In other words, what do I do with my photographs after they’ve been recorded to the SD Card? The answer is very simple: Download, crop/straighten, and upload. Of course, that’s the short, simplified answer. Let’s get right into a longer explanation.
I’m a straight-out-of-camera photographer. I use Film Simulation Recipes to get the looks that I want in-camera, and avoid editing. This isn’t how I always did it. I used to shoot RAW and post-process my photographs in software on a computer. Once I realized that I could achieve my desired aesthetics in-camera without editing, I abandoned post-processing. This was immensely freeing, and it quite literally changed my life (no hyperbole). I became more productive, photography became more enjoyable, and my at-home life benefitted significantly, too.
When I wrote the original version of this in 2018, I was strictly JPEG-only at that time. I stopped shooting RAW altogether for awhile; however, RAW+JPEG has significant benefits, and for years now I’ve been shooting RAW+JPEG. One benefit of having the RAW file is that it can be reprocessed in-camera or with X RAW Studio (which, essentially, are the same thing—I don’t use X RAW Studio personally; I reprocess in-camera). First, it makes creating new Recipes much, much simpler (not simple, just simpler than doing so in a strict JPEG-only process). Second, I’m able to correct small exposure mistakes by reprocessing in-camera using the Push/Pull Processing feature (which is an exposure adjustment, and does not mimic push or pull processing in a darkroom). Third, I can change to a different Recipe altogether if I decide that I used the wrong one—this is something I try to avoid (it’s better to select the right one in-the-field), but it is sometimes worthwhile when the picture would have been better with a different Recipe. To reprocess a RAW file in-camera, simply push the Q-button while in playback mode.
The RAW files never leave my SD Card. Some people will keep them just incase they may wish to edit them in the future. It gives them a backup. I will keep the RAW file on the SD Card for awhile, but when the card fills up, I erase it. I don’t keep the RAW files. I see the JPEG as the finished photo, so I don’t desire to fill up an external hard drive or cloud storage with RAW files that I’m unlikely to ever have any use for.
Once I’m done photographing and ready to do something with my photos, I will cull through the images on my camera. Which ones do I want to keep? I select the frames I want, and transfer those JPEGs from my camera to my phone using the Cam Remote App or X App. I have both apps on my phone, and much prefer the old Cam Remote App, because 1) I’ve been able to get it to work for me consistently and flawlessly and 2) it is compatible with all of my cameras, and not just some (although the latest firmware updates for the newer cameras remove compatibility with the old app). The main point here is that I use one of Fujifilm’s apps to transfer the photos to my phone.
After that, I use the Photos app on my iPhone to crop and/or straighten the pictures that need it. Even with the electronic level, I am so bad at getting a straight picture. For Recipes that use Strong/Large Grain, the Photos app will sometimes put a weird grid pattern on the picture (mainly with the Kodak Tri-X 400 Recipe), so for those I will use the Snapseed app for cropping/straightening. Most of my post-processing edits are complete at this point. For the majority of pictures, that’s it; however, some picture do require a minor exposure/brightness adjustment, and I also use the Photos app for that. For 99%+ of my photographs, that is the full extent of the editing. On a rare occasion, I will use Snapseed or the RNI app to apply further edits, but that’s pretty unusual nowadays, especially for pictures from my Fujifilm cameras.
Once I’m done with the editing stage, I upload the pictures to cloud storage. That’s it! I’m done, and ready for more photography. Downloading the pictures from the camera and uploading them to the cloud is probably the most time-consuming part of the process. The edit stage is pretty quick because not every picture needs an edit, and for those that do, it’s mostly just a quick tilt or a crop to remove a small distraction from the edge of the frame. I can have a whole vacation completely finished within a couple of hours.
A question that I often get is: If you print those pictures do they look good? Absolutely, they look great! I recently did some 2′ x 3′ prints from straight-out-of-camera JPEGs that look amazing. I’ve had great results with 16″ x 24″ prints from the 24mp and 26mp sensor cameras, and 12″ x 18″ prints from the 16mp sensor cameras. I think you can go larger than those sizes, but for sure you can go that large. I don’t do anything to prepare the images for print, I just have them printed at a quality lab, who I know will do a good job.
Post-processing can be as complicated or as simple as you’d like it to be. I much prefer a simple workflow, which has made a world of difference for me personally. I avoid editing, and mostly just crop and/or straighten, and sometimes make minor exposure adjustments. I can get through a whole day’s worth of pictures pretty quickly, which allows me to move onto other things, like more photography or spending time with my family.
Great article! I still shoot with my X-T1 even though I own the X-T5, GF50r, 100s, and 100RF. The X-T1 is so organic. I shoot Fine+Raw and usually keep the raw and delete the jpeg at some point. I have prints on the walls at the new wing of the Boston Children’s Hospital shot with the X-T1, framed and hung 36″ x 24″ and it looks fantastic!
Keep on writing.
Awesome! That’s so cool to have your photos on the wall of the Children’s Hospital.
Thank you! It’s amazing.
Thank you for this iberating article!
Since I got back into photography, I don’t enjoy spending nights in Lightroom adjusting tiny sliders. One question: how do you remember (or note) at the end of the process which Film Simulation you used (if you use many)? Thank you very much.
Most of the time I can tell just by looking at the photos. If I used two Recipes with a similar aesthetic (which does happen from time-to-time), simply reviewing the photos in the camera reveals which settings were used, and it’s quite easy to tell from that which Recipe was used.
In the past I have taken a picture of the Recipe in the Fuji X Weekly App as the first image after selecting a Recipe. Then, when I change to another Recipe, I take a picture of that Recipe in the App as the first picture. Then I know that every picture in-between was captured with the first Recipe, and every picture after was taken with the second, until I encounter another picture of a Recipe in the App. I wrote about it here: https://fujixweekly.com/2021/09/07/tip-how-to-remember-which-film-simulation-recipe-you-used/
Great to read about your process, Ritchie. Very liberating. I should go through and cull my raws now as I hardly ever use them either. One question: when I include architecture in my shots, especially if trying to get a building head on, sometimes I can get it all to look straight (if that’s what I want) straight off in camera. But quite often it’s not possible and I need to do more than just an easy straighten. In other words I need to do some perspective control / shift adjustment for having tilted the camera to fit everything in. Is this something you also sometimes do? I hate having to do those sort of stretch one end of the photo adjustments (and having to go into the full Photoshop program.
I sometimes do make a small perspective adjustment on some photos in the Photos app when I’m cropping/straightening. I guess I consider that a part of straightening. Maybe 10% or less (probably less) of my pictures receive a small perspective adjustment, and I just use the Photos app on my iPhone. I believe Snapseed is also capable of it, and probably has more robust tools, but it’s been awhile since I’ve used that app for perspective adjustments. I hope this helps!
Yes, it does! Thank you for this.
Ah! Self Leveling. Canon R7. Tempting. Yes! I had been.
Picked the T5 solely on the higher res. Macro rigs frequently vignette so the Z7II is less useful.
The T5 is probably as good as anything for stacked lens macro. Discus!
Also, best for people (flesh tones) I have been told. Wonderful for seeds!
Other points.
You don’t hold Canons properly.
I would really miss the Bowden cable control.
Use the CamRanger2 instead, as with my Nikons. Better but much more setup.
I carry, the Z Fc recreationally but the Z7ii for fine work. I don’t love the 7 but I need it.
The T5 covers high res macro plus anything unexpected. Wish I had discovered it earlier.
All my rigs plus Nikon F and Canon EOS fit lenses work great. Use “Fringers”. Not to like ?
Summary. Wishes from Fuji other than for a much bigger shutter button.
A much bigger table for special lenses. I could use 40 entries.
Enough store to arrange recipes in sub files. See previous submission.
Both could surely could be done, mainly by firmware.
If Canon can give us self leveling!!! Yes, this is a big deal.
Best Rgds.
Self-leveling might be nice. It might screw things up sometimes, too, I’m not sure (if you purposefully didn’t want a level picture, for example). I think if it’s easy to toggle on-and-off, it could be a nice feature that would be helpful to people like me that can’t make a level picture. 🤣
The Canon system is a simple menu toggle.
The green line is a great reference but just the extra seconds setting up every shot is definitely a distraction.
If you have to straighten / crop instead, you loose pixels as well as time. I discard, dad would have been scathing.
Surprisingly, I am with Rockwell on this. A major feature.
I stand by the rest of my list as well.
I could never have remembered your setups. Annotation or nothing.
Rgds.
Malcolm Hayward.
Thank you very much !
Thanks for the article and insight into your workflow Ritchie. Can I ask a related follow up question please? You mentioned about printing some of your photos. Can you advise what additional steps, if any, you include in your workflow if you are going to print? I know my prints are quite often dark so I normally have to increase exposure or lift the shadows. Many thanks!
I don’t take any additional steps. I just upload it to the website of the lab. I have used Bay Labs, Nations Labs, Adoramapix (I forget what they’re called now), and some others with good success. Nations is the most recent one I’ve used, and it was quite good.
U fooling us rite?
No, not at all. Why?