After publishing yesterday’s article Camera Makers are Joining the Recipe Fun, I took a moment to consider what was the most pivotal Film Simulation Recipe that ultimately kicked off the Recipe revolution. What one Recipe deserves the most credit? There are definitely a few worth considering, but one stands out to me as the most crucial, and without it, we might not be talking about Recipes today.
I considered the original Classic Chrome Recipe from August 2017 (it was the sixth article published on Fuji X Weekly). It actually predates this website (it was originally published on a now long-defunct blog), so it’s been around a long time. It was one of the very first Recipes for Fujifilm cameras—heck, maybe the first, I’m not certain (and probably depending on how strictly you define it). Right now it’s the sixth most popular Recipe of all time (based on page-view statistics). I think it would be easy to pick the original Classic Chrome Recipe as the most important; while it is clearly a crucial Recipe, I don’t think it is quite the most pivotal.
Next up I considered the X-T3/X-T30 version of Kodachrome 64. There was a big leap in growth for this website in 2020, unlike anything before or since. While each year has seen some growth, the jump from 860,000 page-views in 2019 to 3.7 million in 2020 was incredibly massive—over 400% increase! (For those wondering, we’ve had over 10 million page-views for the last two years in a row, and we’re on track to top it again this year). By far, the most popular Recipe of 2020 was Kodachrome 64, so it obviously played a big role in the popularity of Recipes in-general.
Another one that certainly deserves some credit is the followup version of Kodachrome 64 for X-Trans IV (except the X-T3/X-T30), which is the all-time number one most popular Recipe on Fuji X Weekly, viewed well over 600,000 times on this website. This has been the long-time most popular Fuji X Weekly Recipe, until very recently when it was overtaken in 2025 by Reggie’s Portra.
Above: Vintage Kodachrome Recipe
There are a number of Recipes that played a critical role in perpetuating straight-out-of-camera photography, but one stands out to me as the most important: Vintage Kodachrome. Published on October 21, 2017, it’s one of the oldest Fuji X Weekly Recipes—the fifth oldest, in fact. It’s a long-time fan favorite—the fourth most-viewed of all time—and obviously its popularity was particularly paramount in the growth of this website and Recipes in-general. What makes it the most crucial, though, are two things: it was the first Recipe that required more radical adjustments (such as maximum Highlight and minimum Shadow combined with underexposure), and the first to mimic a specific film stock from a specific era. This particular Recipe opened my eyes to what might be possible on Fujifilm cameras. I realized that I could do so much more; a lot of future Recipes would never have happened without this one first. So, yes, it’s one of the all-time most popular, but it also set the stage for future Recipes like Kodachrome 64 and many, many others. I can’t think of another Recipe that was more important than this one.
If not for Vintage Kodachrome, Fujifilm might not have given the X-E5 the ability to save three Film Simulation Recipes on the Film Dial (including using the word “Recipe” within the camera’s menu). There likely wouldn’t be a Fuji X Weekly App. I probably would never have made Ricoh Recipes. Nikon might not have Imaging Recipes. OM Systems likely would not have just announced Creative Recipes. Vintage Kodachrome was a critical step in the advancement of Fujifilm Recipes, and without it things probably would look just a little different today—not just within Fujifilm, but across the photo world.
Back in 1980 I was living in Anchorage Alaska. I knew I was taking a road trip to visit family in NJ so about a year before the trip I would travel to various stores in and around Anchorage such as Stewarts Camera shop (which btw is still there!!! as I visited it in 2023), and the PaynSave as well as Fred Meyers. I bought up every roll of expired Kodachrome 25 and 64, plus Ektachrome 64, and 200 that I could find. I think I wound up with over 150 rolls which I crammed into my and my neighbors freezer. I used up 95 rolls of Kodachrome 25 and 64 on that 45 day trip through the Northwest, Arizona, Nevada and onto the east coast. Fabulous film. Fabulous trip!
Wow, sounds incredible! I bet you have so many great memories and so many cool photos of that trip.
I bought the X-E5 specifically because I wanted to be inspired to use recipes. It is my 5th Fuji camera (after X-T2, X-T3, X-E3, and X-T5). I’m an ardent user of Capture One but I’ve always felt my photos were too “digital”. After a month plus with the X-E5 and trying out several recipes (including Reggie’s Portra and and Kodachrome 64) I’m still not getting photos I like. This one or that one looks good, but most look fake. I’m going to keep at it since the genre is so popular. I absolutely appreciate your leadership and creativity. I’ve plunked down $20 for your app to support you.
I’m not sure what you mean by “fake”. I assume that you don’t mean the pictures look AI or CGI. Maybe you mean that they don’t look like film (they look like “fake film” perhaps)? If so, it’s important to note that film and digital are much different, and with the limited tools available in-camera, it’s only possible to get so close; however, sometimes it can be surprising close, and has even “tricked” some highly experienced film photographers into thinking it was film and not digital. Mostly, though, it’s close but not quite the same—of course, with the conveniences of digital. Mostly, what I would say is that it sounds like you haven’t yet found the right Recipe(s) for you and your style. It’s a great opportunity for exploration—it’s a journey of discovery.
I appreciate your support!
“Fake” doesn’t fully capture my meaning, so I’ll try a few other words. iPhone photos often look fake to me because they are over-processed. A lot of the recipes I’ve seen (especially those that emulate 1970s film) are far too warm, so they look fake – not even close to “real”. Shadows are often crushed to the point of blackness. I’m expecting more moodiness or even an artsy feel.
FWIW I’m in my 70s and I’ve been a photo bug for a long time. I have photos I literally took in the 70s with a dual lens reflex camera my grandfather gave me that took exactly the kinds of photos that many of the recipes are trying to emulate. I would love to capture that again. I took gobs of photos of my kids and related family events in the 90s before digital cameras were good enough for “keeper” photos. I always shot with a decent SLR and Kodak Gold and Kodak Gold 400.
I think I’m a good judge of what recipes are trying to emulate. I just haven’t hit one that makes me go “Wow! That’s really good.” I’ll keep at it…
So, yeah, it’s more along the lines of my assumption: “fake” compared to film.
I was born in 1980, and didn’t start photographing until the late-1990’s. Obviously I wasn’t around for the 1970’s. I do have an extensive collection of photographs from that era (slides and prints), as well as a vintage magazine collection (photo related, primarily Arizona Highways). That’s where the a lot of the inspiration comes from for the 1970’s-based Recipes, as well as photos found on the web. So, perhaps, the results are “fake” compared to certain images and “accurate” when compared to others; however, it will never be 100% exacting because 1) the mediums are very different, 2) Fujifilm cameras are limited in adjustment parameters, and 3) one film can produce many various aesthetics based on a whole host of factors, and at best a Recipe will only be able to mimic one of those and not all.
Kodak Gold was originally introduced in 1986 as Kodacolor VR-G. It was renamed Kodacolor Gold in 1988, and Kodak Gold in the early 1990’s. There have been seven distinct eras of the emulsion, the latest released in 2007. While never my first choice for color film, I’ve shot at least a handful of rolls of Gold over the years. I have one roll of Gold 200 (now expired) that I’ve been holding onto for a number of years now. I should give it a go.
Definitely keep looking. There’s bound to be at least one Recipe that replicates the look you are attempting to achieve.