Summit Merc – Coalville, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
This is the film simulation recipe that you’ve been waiting for! Well, maybe that’s an exaggeration, but if you like my Kodachrome II or Portra 400 recipes, which are both very popular, you’ll likely also appreciate this one. It’s in the same neighborhood as those, producing a classic Kodak analog aesthetic. I think many of you will like this film simulation recipe.
Last week I was contacted by a Fuji X Weekly reader who wanted help creating an in-camera look that was similar to the pictures from this other photographer. It didn’t take me long to realize that the photographer in question was using a digital camera (Nikon D750) and applying a plugin preset (most likely VSCO) to achieve the desired look. If I had to take a guess, I would say that the preset is supposed to resemble Kodak Portra 400, although probably one of the alternative versions and not the straight Portra 400 preset. Anytime that I get one of these requests I always make an attempt to create it, although oftentimes my efforts are not successful and no recipe is made. This time, my first stab at it was pretty close, and a little refining made it even closer. I was able to quickly create a film simulation recipe that produces similar results in-camera to what that other photographer is getting with software.
The reason that I named this recipe Kodacolor and not Portra is that, to me, it looks more like Kodacolor VR than Portra, although the aesthetics of these two films are quite similar. Portra is the better film with improved grain, more tolerance to under and over exposure, and slightly more accurate skin tones, but overall the films produce very similar looks. Kodak originally developed Kodacolor VR film in the early 1980’s for their Disc cameras, which used a film cartridge resembling a computer floppy disc (or the “save icon”), allowing the camera to be small and easy to use. It made tiny exposures on the disc of film, and the film prior to Kodacolor VR, which was called Kodacolor II, was too grainy and not sharp enough for the small exposure to produce good results. Kodak’s solution was to create a sharper film with finer grain, which they originally named Kodacolor HR, and quickly renamed Kodacolor VR after making a small improvement. Kodacolor VR was available in ISO 100, 200, 400 and 1000 film speeds. This film simulation recipe most closely resembles Kodacolor VR 200, in my opinion. Kodacolor VR was replaced by Kodacolor VR-G in the mid 1980’s, which was later renamed Kodak Gold. Kodacolor VR was technically discontinued in 1986, but the ISO 200 version was renamed Kodacolor 200 and later ColorPlus 200, which is surprisingly still available today.
Kodak Flying Disc – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
One characteristic of Kodacolor VR is that it’s not particularly tolerant to underexposure (for color negative film), so a common technique was to overexpose the film (to prevent accidental underexposure). The side-effect of this, which is a common side-effect of most Kodak color negative films, but it’s especially pronounced on this particular film, is cyan sky. Blues tend to become an unnatural lighter color. That’s what this film simulation recipe looks like: Kodacolor VR 200 that’s been overexposed. It’s also a close proximity to Portra 400 that’s been overexposed, although it’s not quite as strong of a match for that as Kodacolor VR.
Classic Chrome
Dynamic Range: DR400
Highlight: -1
Shadow: +2
Color: -2
Sharpening: +2
Noise Reduction: -4
Grain: Strong
Color Chrome Effect: Off
White Balance: 6300K, -1 Red & -4 Blue
ISO: Auto up to ISO 6400
Exposure Compensation: +2/3 to + 1-1/3 (typically)
Example photographs, all camera-made JPEGs captured using my Kodacolor film simulation recipe on my Fujifilm X-T30:
Echo Canyon Morning – Echo, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Morning Light In Echo Canyon – Echo, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Tree On The Rocky Ledge – Echo, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Western Cliff – Echo, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Rock Bowl – Echo, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Echo Mesa – Echo, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Summer Witches – Echo, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Trees Dotting The Rock – Echo, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Blue Sky Rocks – Echo, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Weber River Thistle Blooms – Coalville, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Yucca Blossoms – South Ogden, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Sky Tree – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Sycamore Seeds – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Green Cottonwood Leaf – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Cottonwood Sun – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Vintage Sunset – Ogden, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Blue Hole – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Summer Clouds Behind The Green Hill – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Summer Blue & Green – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Big Cloud Behind The Mountain – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Grey Sky Hill – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Car Wash – South Ogden, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Burger Umbrellas – Ogden, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Renew or Replace – Riverdale, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Red Curve – Riverdale, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Red Corner – South Ogden, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Moore Motor – Coalville, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Better Days Behind – Coalville, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Building For Sale – Coalville, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Brick Angles – Coalville, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Suburban Garage – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Gas – Echo, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Gas Cafe – Echo, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Neighborhood Fence – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
The Joy of Driving Rain – Layton, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Man of Steel – Coalville, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Bicycle Back Tire – South Weber, Utah – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Chaos Wheel – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Hat On A Bed – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Couch Pillows – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Wall Curtain – Layton, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Intelligence Game – Layton, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
The Trouble With Age – Layton, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Ketchup – Riverdale, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Orange – South Ogden, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Playing With Fire – South Ogden, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Mastrena – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Be The Light – Ogden, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Adidas – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Balloon Maker – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Standing In The Water Balloon Pool – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Water Balloon Fight – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Recording Summer Fun – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Wearing Grandpa’s Hat – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Johanna – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Echo Canyon Morning Freight – Echo, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Freight Train At Echo – Echo, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
Eastbound Freight Through Echo Canyon – Echo, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 – Kodacolor
See also:
Kodacolor, Part 2
Kodacolor for X-Trans II
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