Elite Chrome | FUJI X WEEKLY

Fujifilm X-Trans IV Film Simulation Recipe: Elite Chrome 200

Posted on November 1, 2021 by Ritchie Roesch

*Master Master* – Clearfield, UT – Fujifilm X-E4 – “Elite Chrome 200”

Elite Chrome 200 was a “high-ISO” color transparency film made by Kodak during the 1990’s and into the mid-2000’s. It was one of those films you could find at most corner drug stores, and you typically would chose it if you ran out of film while out-and-about and needed something. Elite Chrome was a low-budget Ektachrome film. A rumor that I remember about Elite Chrome 200 is that it was actually Ektachrome E200 that didn’t pass the quality control inspection, but I have no idea if that was true or not. Interestingly, Kodak claimed that Elite Chrome 200 was the lowest-contrast ISO 200 reversal film on the market. Because of how it responded to C-41 chemistry, it was a popular option for cross-processing.

I shot several rolls of Elite Chrome 200 film back in the day. Unfortunately, Ektachrome had a tendency to fade over time—it’s not an especially great archival film. I actually made a recipe mimicking faded Elite Chrome 200. This recipe is more like if the film wasn’t faded. I wasn’t intentionally intending to recreate Elite Chrome—in fact, I stumbled into this recipe when I used Classic Chrome instead of Classic Negative with my Fujicolor Superia 800 recipe. I was pretty shocked by just how good it looked! Sometimes changing the film simulation can produce good results, and sometimes (like when Omar Gonzalez used Classic Chrome instead of Classic Negative with my Agfa Vista recipe) it doesn’t produce good results. Fortunately for you, this is an example of when it works, and it just so happens by chance to resemble Elite Chrome 200 film.

*The Fallen* – Fruit Heights, UT – Fujifilm X-E4 – “Elite Chrome 200”

This film simulation recipe is compatible with all X-Trans IV cameras, except for the X-T3 and X-T30. If you have an X-Pro3, X100V, X-T4, X-S10, X-E4, or X-T30 II, this recipe is completely compatible with your camera. If you do have an X-T3 or X-T30 and want to use this recipe, you’ll have to ignore Grain Size (set it to Strong), ignore Color Chrome FX Blue, and ignore Clarity. In lieu of Clarity, use a diffusion filter, such as a 10% CineBloom or 1/4 Black Pro Mist.

Classic Chrome
Dynamic Range: DR400
Highlight: -1
Shadow: +1
Color: -1
Noise Reduction: -4
Sharpening: -1
Clarity: -4
Grain Effect: Strong, Large
Color Chrome Effect: Strong
Color Chrome Effect Blue: Weak
White Balance: Daylight, -1 Red & -3 Blue
ISO: Auto, up to ISO 6400
Exposure Compensation: +1/3 to +2/3 (typically)

Example photographs, all camera-made JPEGs using this Elite Chrome 200 film simulation recipe on my Fujifilm X-E4 & Fujifilm X100V:

*Pumpkin Head* – Fruit Heights, UT – Fujifilm X-E4

*Colorful Fall Trees* – Farmington, UT – Fujifilm X100V

*Little Yellow Leaf* – Fruit Heights, UT – Fujifilm X-E4

*October Tree Trunks* – Fruit Heights, UT – Fujifilm X-E4

*Sunlight In The Golden Forest* – Fruit Heights, UT – Fujifilm X-E4

*Autumn Forest Light* – Fruit Heights, UT – Fujifilm X-E4

*Autumn Woods* – Fruit Heights, UT – Fujifilm X-E4

*Autumn Creek* – Fruit Heights, UT – Fujifilm X-E4

*Late October Leaves* – Fruit Heights, UT – Fujifilm X-E4

*Raindrops on a Branch* – Farmington, UT – Fujifilm X100V

*Leaves on Old Fallen Tree* – Fruit Heights, UT – Fujifilm X-E4

*Jo in the Forest* – Fruit Heights, UT – Fujifilm X-E4

*Happy Johanna* – Farmington, UT – Fujifilm X-E4

*Evening Interstate* – Farmington, UT – Fujifilm X100V

Find this film simulation recipe and many more on the Fuji X Weekly — Film Recipes App!

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My Fujifilm X-T30 Kodak Elite Chrome 200 Color Fade Film Simulation Recipe

Posted on September 21, 2019 by Ritchie Roesch

JTPX 1204 – North Salt Lake, UT – Fujifilm X-T30 “Elite Chrome 200 Color Fade”

I recently ran across some old slides that I had forgotten about, and one of those color transparencies was a frame of Kodak Elite Chrome 200 that was beginning to fade and change color. The picture wasn’t especially good, but it looked interesting because of how the image was transforming. Elite Chrome was a version of Ektachrome, which has been dubbed Fade-a-chrome, as it’s very prone to fading and discoloration, especially if not stored correctly, which this particular picture wasn’t. You can see the fading Elite Chrome 200 photograph below.

I wondered if I could create a film simulation recipe that mimics the look of fading Elite Chrome 200. I experimented with the settings a bunch, but couldn’t get it to look right. After showing my wife, Amanda, she suggested that the digital picture looked too crisp, too detailed. I made some more modifications, and found myself much closer. Not perfect, but very close. I made more changes and adjustments, but unfortunately I couldn’t get it to look better, so I went back to those settings that were very close to being right, which is the recipe here.

DGNO Locomotive – Dallas, TX – Canon AE-1 & Kodak Elite Chrome 200 35mm film

One addition to this film simulation recipe that you’ve never seen in any of my other recipes is Image Quality. I have always used Fine, because it’s the highest quality setting, but in this case Fine was, well, too fine. I set it to Normal instead so as to better mimic the transparency. While I’m sure this particular recipe is not for everyone, those looking for something that resembles film from decades ago might appreciate it, as it has an analog aesthetic, and a look that’s a bit unusual, perhaps a bit lomographic (did I just make up a word?).

Classic Chrome
Dynamic Range: DR200
Highlight: 0
Shadow: +2
Color: -2
Noise Reduction: +2
Sharpening: -4
Grain Effect: Strong
Color Chrome Effect: Strong
Image Quality: Normal
White Balance: 8300K, +4 Red & +8 Blue
ISO: Auto, up to ISO 6400
Exposure Compensation: 0 to -2/3 (typically)

Example photographs, all camera-made JPEGs using this Kodak Elite Chrome 200 Color Fade recipe on my Fujifilm X-T30:

Green Locomotive – North Salt Lake, UT – Fujifilm X-T30

Tank Rider – North Salt Lake, UT – Fujifilm X-T30

Tracks By The Refinery – North Salt Lake, UT – Fujifilm X-T30

American Joe – Layton, UT – Fujifilm X-T30

Neighborhood Patriotism – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30

Sidewalk Tricycle – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30

Red Flag – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30

Peek – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30

One Eye Open – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30

Evening Bike – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30

Fence & Path – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30

Out Flowing – North Salt Lake, UT – Fujifilm X-T30

Mountain Sky – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30

Wet Red Rose – Layton, UT – Fujifilm X-T30

Rose Blossom Fence – South Weber, UT – Fujifilm X-T30

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10 Old Color Slides

Posted on September 19, 2019 by Ritchie Roesch

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I opened up a box in the garage. I was looking for something, and I hoped that I would find it in there. The box had been packed for many years. It was loaded and closed up when I moved from Arizona to California in 2011. I guess whatever was in there wasn’t important, because it remained closed for many years. I commented about this box to my wife once, “Let’s just toss it, since we obviously don’t need whatever is in there.” I’m glad that I never followed through with that, because when I dug through the contents of the box I discovered some old slides that I had forgotten about.

It was fun to look at the old slides, most of which I had captured in 1999, but a few were from 1998, and some as recently as 2005. It was great to reminisce as I viewed the different pictures. Most of the exposures weren’t particularly good. Something that I have discovered over the years is that I was never as good of a photographer as I thought I was. Time has a way of humbling you, I think. While there are a few decent shots, some pictures that I really thought were worthwhile are actually cringe-worthy. Still, I separated the “best” slides from the rest and had them scanned. I never scan my old slides because it’s expensive to do so, but I thought it would be fun to do it in this case.

The Kodachromes appear to have a cool color cast, but in reality they don’t. That’s the difference between scanning them and viewing them through a projector or light table. I could have corrected that in software, but I chose not to. The Elite Chrome 200 shot is clearly fading, showing discoloration from age and inappropriate storage. Elite Chrome was a version of Ektachrome, and Ektachrome has been referred to as Fade-a-chrome for not having an especially long shelf life. It looks kind of neat, though, so I had it scanned. The actual slide seems a tad more red/purple than the digital version, but it’s close. In the early days, a lot of my photography had transportation themes, such as trains, trucks and airplanes, so you see that represented here (mostly trains). Even though these are old pictures, and despite the only Fujifilm connection being the singular Provia frame, I thought it might be worthwhile to share. I hope that you appreciate the ten slides below.