When Fujifilm released the X-T50 last year, it had a new feature: a Film Dial. In my pursuit of figuring out how to use it effectively, I created the Film Dial Recipe set, a group of 14 Recipes that are really just one “Universal Recipe” (set of settings) that work well with any of the 20 film simulations (I grouped all four Acros options together, as well as all four Monochrome; hence 14 Recipes and not 20). This technique makes the X-T50—and now the X-M5, which also has the Film Dial—more versatile than the other X-series cameras for the straight-out-of-camera photographer. At least so I thought.

As it turns out, this technique can be used on any Fujifilm camera, simply by assigning one of the customizable knobs, wheels, rings, or buttons to activate the film simulation menu. The X-S10 and X-S20 have an unmarked knob on top that are factory-default set for this purpose. On other cameras, the rear command dial (R-Dial in the Fn settings menu) can be set to activate the film simulation menu. On my Fujifilm X100VI, I programmed the Control Ring to adjust the film simulation. On one hand the Film Dial is preferable: you can see what the film simulation is set to just by looking at the camera, it can be adjusted with the camera powered off, and it won’t reset when the camera is powered on. On the other hand, the non-Film Dial cameras are preferable: you have quick access to all 20 film simulations, and not limited by the 12 slots found on the Film Dial. There are advantages and disadvantages to both, and I prefer the Film Dial personally. But the light bulb moment for me was realizing that the Film Dial Recipe can be used on many cameras, and not just those with the Film Dial—I use it regularly on several different models, including my X100VI, X-T5, and GFX100S II.

Fujifilm’s film simulations are good straight-out-of-the-box, but with some parameter adjustments, they can become great. To get the most out of the various film simulations, you need to make changes to the factory-default settings (a.k.a. use Film Simulation Recipes). However, the Film Dial becomes problematic when you do this because rarely do multiple film simulations look good with the same Recipe settings. Sometimes they do, such as with Kodak Portra 400 v2, Vintage Vibes, and Ferrania Solaris FG 400, which require the same exact settings (note: set Color Chrome FX Blue to Off on X-Trans V), but use three different film simulations: Classic Chrome, Classic Negative, and Eterna Bleach Bypass. Most of the time, however, whenever you use a different film sim than what the Recipe calls for, the results are less than spectacular, such as when Omar Gonzalez accidentally used Classic Chrome instead of Classic Negative with the Agfa Vista 100 Recipe. Creating a “Universal Recipe” like the Film Dial Recipe is not an easy task.

Not content with having just one “Universal Recipe”, I set out to create another. I’ve been working on this one for more than three months now, and I’m excited to share it with you. It can be used in conjunction with the Film Dial on the X-T50 and X-M5; however, it can also be used on any fifth-generation X-Trans camera or even the latest GFX models. I created this Recipe on my Fujifilm X100VI, and all of the photos below were made using that camera. Also, if you don’t want to use it as a “Universal Recipe” but you like the results of just one of them—such as Classic Negative (a.k.a. “Fujicolor Superia 200”) below—simply use that one standalone. Or pick your favorite three and use it in conjunction with the Film Simulation Bracket feature.

I wanted this new universal option, which I’m calling Universal Negative, to be different than the Film Dial Recipe set. I didn’t want to merely repackage a small adjustment to it; I wanted something significantly divergent, and maybe a tad more film-like. Hopefully that’s what I accomplished here. My plan is to have both this Universal Negative Recipe set and the Film Dial Recipe set programmed into at least one of my cameras (right now it’s my X100VI), which really just opens up the opportunity to achieve various looks in-camera. It’s kind of like having C1-C35, instead of just C1-C7. While this is intended for fifth-generation models (currently: X-H2s, X-H2, X-T5, X-S20, X100VI, X-T50, and X-M5), it can also be used on X-Trans IV (except the X-T3 and X-T30); however, blue will render slightly less deeply on Classic Chrome, Classic Negative, Eterna, and Eterna Bleach Bypass, and some film sims won’t be available.

Film Simulation: Any (See Below)
Dynamic Range: DR400
Grain Effect: Strong, Small
Color Chrome Effect: Strong
Color Chrome FX Blue: Strong 
White Balance: 4000K, 0 Red & -5 Blue
Highlight: 0
Shadow: -2
Color: -2
Sharpness: -2
High ISO NR: -4
Clarity: 0
ISO: Auto, up to ISO 6400
Exposure Compensation: -1/3 to +2/3 (typically)

Additionally, for Acros and Monochrome, set Monochromatic Color to WC 0 & MG 0 (a.k.a. Off). Also, Color will be disabled for Acros, Monochrome, and Sepia. For Eterna and Acros, ISO can be up to ISO 12800.

Provia/STD — “Universal Provia”

This “Universal Provia” Recipe doesn’t much resemble real Provia film, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t produce an appealing aesthetic. It is true-to-life with a slight analog vibe, perhaps reminiscent of a Fujicolor Crystal Archive print. It’s kind of a Goldilocks Recipe—not too vibrant or muted, not too contrasty or flat, not too warm or cool. For best results, use in sunny daylight; however, it can do well in shade, indoor natural light, and even blue-hour with artificial light.

Velvia/Vivid — “Velvia 100F”

Velvia was the go-to film for vibrant landscape photography. If you wanted the colors to pop, Velvia 50 slide film is what you’d want to use. There were multiple versions of Velvia, and Velvia 100F (not to be confused with Velvia 100) was the least saturated of them all. This “Velvia 100F” Recipe isn’t strictly modeled after the emulsion, but it is in the ballpark, and close enough to name this after the film. This is an excellent option for colorful pictures that are not over-the-top vibrant. Great for sunny daylight landscapes, golden hour, sunrise/sunset, and even some nighttime situations.

Astia/Soft — “Indoor Astia”

This “Indoor Astia” Recipe is my favorite of all these for indoor natural light photography. It’s also good for sunny daylight, dreary overcast, and nighttime pictures. While this Recipe is more similar to actual Astia 100F film than the film simulation is when set to the factory default settings, it’s not necessarily a good match for the emulsion.

Classic Chrome — “Elite Chrome”

Elite Chrome was Kodak’s consumer-grade version of Ektachrome color slide film, produced in the late-1990’s and early-2000’s. While this “Elite Chrome” Recipe wasn’t modeled after the emulsion, surprisingly it does resemble Elite Chrome 100 film to a degree. For best results, use in sunny daylight; however, it does do well in overcast and blue hour light.

Reala Ace — “Retro Negative”

Reala Ace is Fujifilm’s newest film simulation. It’s purportedly based on Reala film, but it’s not a very close replication of that emulsion, which is in the Superia line, and more similar to Classic Negative. Instead, Reala Ace is nearer to the Fujicolor PRO 160 line, and shares similarities with PRO Neg. Std and PRO Neg. Hi. Reala Ace probably should have been named PRO Neg. C, since it is most similar to Fujicolor PRO 160C film. Of the three “PRO Neg.” film sims, Reala Ace is my personal favorite. This “Retro Negative” Recipe is reminiscent of color negative film from the 1980’s and ’90’s, and might even remind you of some photos printed in magazines from that time frame. I found it is quite excellent for golden hour and blue hour photography; however, it’s good for a lot of different subjects and situations, including rainy days, natural light indoors, and portrait photography.

PRO Neg. Hi — “Fuji Negative”

This “Fuji Negative” Recipe is generally similar to various Fujicolor negative films, without mimicking any one specifically. This is probably my favorite of this group for overcast light, but it also does well in sunny daylight and blue hour.

PRO Neg. Std — “Pulled Negative”

Pulling film means to overexpose a little, then reduce the development time to compensate. The results are lower contrast photos with less pop. You could consider this “Pulled Negative” Recipe a one-stop pulled version of the “Fuji Negative” Recipe above. This Recipe is one of the best of this group for artificial light situations, such as nighttime and indoors.

Classic Negative — “Fujicolor Superia 200”

This “Fujicolor Superia 200” Recipe is probably my favorite of this group. Inadvertently, it’s reminiscent of Fujicolor Superia 200 color negative film, which was introduced in 1998 and discontinued in 2017. I especially like this Recipe for indoor natural and artificial light situations; however, it’s good for many subjects and light scenarios.

Nostalgic Neg. – “Americana Film”

Nostalgic Neg. is the second most recent addition to the film simulation lineup, and is modeled after American New Color images from the 1970’s. The Nostalgic Neg. film simulation has a strong Kodak aesthetic, particularly photographic prints from five decades ago. This is the warmest film sim, which means that this “Americana Film” Recipe is the warmest of this group. It’s great for portraits or any situation where you want a retro rendering.

Eterna/Cinema — “Eterna Film”

This “Eterna Film” Recipe is the second lowest saturated and least contrasty of all the color options in this series. It has a lovely soft cinematic quality that is especially great for taming high-contrast scenes; however, it has a limited use-case where it does well. I had trouble finding scenarios where it was the most appropriate option for the situation, but occasionally I did.

Eterna Bleach Bypass — “Chrome City”

Eterna Bleach Bypass has the lowest saturation and highest contrast of all of the film simulations. Bleach bypass is a development technique where the bleach step is reduced or eliminated, resulting in a high-contrast, low-saturation image that almost appears like a B&W picture over a color picture. It can be used in still photography, but is more commonly found in motion pictures (think Saving Private Ryan). This “Chrome City” Recipe is reminiscent of LomoChrome Metropolis film, which is an emulsion by Lomography that mimics the aesthetic of the bleach bypass technique. The results from this Recipe can be spectacular, and it’s one of my favorites from this group; however, it’s definitely not for every subject or situation.

Acros, Acros+Y, Acros+R, Acros+G — “Acros Negative”

Fujifilm introduced Neopan Acros black-and-white negative film back in 1952. Neopan Acros came in four versions: ISO 100, ISO 400, ISO 1600, plus an ISO 400 version for C41 development that was actually repackaged Ilford XP2 Super 400. Neopan Acros was briefly discontinued in 2018, and reintroduced in 2019 as Neopan Acros 100 II. Curiously, the new version is actually manufactured by Harman (the parent company of Ilford), although it behaves quite similarly to the original.

Typically, I prefer contrasty black-and-white pictures; however, this “Acros Negative” Recipe is fairly low-contrast. It has to be used thoughtfully, or else the pictures will look slightly muddy. The Acros filter options (+Y, +R, +G) are your friend, and this Recipe thrives on high-contrast scenes. In the right situations, the results can be wonderful. For grainer pictures, use higher ISOs, as the Acros film sim has built-in Grain that increases with the ISO. If I could only pick one Acros option for the “Acros Negative” Recipe, I’d go with Acros+R.

Monochrome, Monochrome+Y, Monochrome+R, Monochrome+G — “B&W Negative”

The Monochrome film simulation is simply Provia with the color turned off. It was the standard B&W film sim until the introduction of Acros on X-Trans III. Generally speaking, I like Acros much more than Monochrome, as Acros has more of an analog feel to it; however, Monochrome does have a slightly harsher tonality, so there are times that the Monochrome film simulation could be preferable, and you might choose this “B&W Negative” Recipe. Similar to the “Acros Negative” Recipe above, this one thrives in high contrast light, and the filter options (+Y, +R, +G) are your friends.

Sepia — “B&W Sepia”

Last and least is Sepia. This film simulation has been around for a long time, but very few use it. If Fujifilm discontinued it, most probably wouldn’t even notice. Sepia is a darkroom technique where you bathe B&W prints in a chemical for archival and artistic purposes. Most commonly, Sepia baths are quick, and the toning subtle; however, the prints can be left in longer, resulting in a pronounced reddish/brown tone (this film simulation replicates that), which was popular a hundred or more years ago. For a more subtle effect, simply use either “Acros Negative” or “Monochrome Negative” with Monochromatic Color set to WC +2 MG -2. Most likely you’ll skip this one, but if you’re looking for something different, maybe give it a try.

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Fujifilm X100VI in black:
Amazon, B&H, Moment, Wex, Nuzira
Fujifilm X100VI in silver:
Amazon, B&H, Moment, Wex, Nuzira

See also: Fujifilm X-T50 Film Dial Settings + 14 Film Simulation Recipes