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Getting a Wes Anderson Look from your Fujifilm Camera + 4 new Film Simulation Recipes!!!!

Posted on April 25, 2023 by Ritchie Roesch

*Yellow Cactus Blooms* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5 – Vibrant Arizona Recipe

Everyone is after a Wes Anderson look right now!

When I first watched the trailer for the upcoming Wes Anderson movie Asteroid City, I thought perhaps it might be possible to mimic the aesthetic on my Fujifilm X-T5; however, I quickly realized that it’s not possible straight-out-of-camera. The movie has an orange and teal look, and I’ve tried unsuccessfully for years to achieve that on Fujifilm. In order to get orange and teal, the White Balance Shift requires plus red for orange and minus red for teal; it’s not possible to do both, so you must decide which one you want: orange or teal? After a few hours of unsuccessfully trying to get the settings right, I gave up.

Then I saw your pictures on Instagram. Specifically, there were photos captured using the Bright Summer, Bright Kodak, Kodak Portra 400 Warm, and Pacific Blues Film Simulation Recipes that had some Wes Anderson vibes to them, which convinced me to try again. I directly compared those four Recipes to Asteroid City screenshots, and decided that Bright Summer and Bright Kodak were the closest; however, none of them were quite right. So I set out to get a little closer—as close as I could—knowing that I wouldn’t be able to achieve a perfect match, but I hoped it would be similar enough that at a cursory glance it would pass for Asteroid City.

*Popeyes* – Litchfield Park, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4 – Vibrant Arizona Recipe

Knowing that most of you don’t have an X-Trans V camera, I made a version for X-Trans IV models, too, since the majority of those who shoot with Recipes do so on X-Trans IV cameras. Also, I figured that some of you won’t be satisfied with the results, and are after an even closer facsimile of Asteroid City, so I have some advice for that, too, a little further down, but it does require a small amount of post-editing with Capture One.

While attempting to mimic Asteroid City, I was inspired by another Wes Anderson film: The French Dispatch, specifically, the indoor scenes of the newspaper office, so I made Film Simulation Recipes for that, too—one for X-Trans V and another for X-Trans IV. I don’t know what the light situation was exactly in those scenes, so I don’t know if it would render similarly under identical light, but it does produce convincing results in certain artificial and mixed light scenarios.

If you are after a Wes Anderson look, check out the four Film Simulation Recipes below!

Vibrant Arizona (X-Trans V)

*Look that Way* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5 – Vibrant Arizona Recipe

The Vibrant Arizona Film Simulation Recipe can be characterized as bright, colorful, and warm, yet still classic-analog-like, with some similarities to overexposed Kodak negative film. While not an exact match, I’m confident that it is as close as you’re going to get to an Asteroid City aesthetic straight-out-of-camera. The movie takes place in a fictional northern-Arizona town (although it was filmed in Spain, apparently), so that is why I’m calling it Vibrant Arizona.

An important note is that this Recipe uses D-Range Priority (a.k.a. DR-P), which takes the place of Dynamic Range and the Tone Curve (Highlight and Shadow). I don’t have a lot of Film Simulation Recipes which utilize D-Range Priority, but there are a few, including Pulled Fujicolor Superia, Scanned Superia, and Portra-Style, the last of which has some similarities to Vibrant Arizona.

This particular Recipe is for X-Trans V cameras, which (as of this writing) are the Fujifilm X-T5, X-H2, and X-H2s. For best results, use in sunny daylight. I shot in both the 3:2 and 16:9 aspect ratios, and preferred the latter for a more cinematic feel.

Film Simulation: Classic Chrome
Grain Effect: Weak, Small
Color Chrome Effect: Off
Color Chrome FX Blue: Weak
White Balance: 4350K, +6 Red & -8 Blue
Dynamic Range: DR-P Strong
Color: +4
Sharpness: -2
High ISO NR: -4
Clarity: -3
ISO: Auto, up to ISO 6400
Exposure Compensation: +2/3 to + 1 1/3 (typically)

Example photographs, all camera-made JPEGs using this Vibrant Arizona Film Simulation Recipe on my Fujifilm X-T5:

*Backyard Spring* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Spring or Fall?* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Blue Star* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Ocotillo & Saguaro* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Palo Verde on Rocks* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Rocks & Vista* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Arizona View* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Girl with a Camera* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Contemplation* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Over There* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Please Let Me Get Back to Playing* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Deere in the Desert* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Apartment Palm* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Sonoran Desert* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*The Yellow Desert* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*A Cactus Blossom* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Main Fountain* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

Vibrant Arizona (X-Trans IV)

*Red Light* – Avondale, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4 – Vibrant Arizona Recipe

Because X-Trans V cameras render blue more deeply on some film simulations, the X-Trans IV version of this Recipe calls for Color Chrome FX Blue to be set to Strong instead of Weak, and is otherwise identical. This Vibrant Arizona Film Simulation Recipe is compatible with the Fujifilm X-Pro3, X100V, X-T4, X-S10, X-E4, and X-T30 II cameras. For the X-T3 and X-T30, you can ignore Grain size and Color Chrome FX Blue (since your camera doesn’t have those options), and use a 1/4 Black Pro Mist or 10% CineBloom diffusion filter in lieu of Clarity; however, it will look slightly different. For newer GFX models… I’m not sure if you should use this version or the X-Trans V version, but one of the two should work well on your camera—try them both, and see which you prefer.

Film Simulation: Classic Chrome
Grain Effect: Weak, Small
Color Chrome Effect: Off
Color Chrome FX Blue: Strong
White Balance: 4350K, +6 Red & -8 Blue
Dynamic Range: DR-P Strong
Color: +4
Sharpness: -2
High ISO NR: -4
Clarity: -3
ISO: Auto, up to ISO 6400
Exposure Compensation: +2/3 to + 1 1/3 (typically)

Example photographs, all camera-made JPEGs using this Vibrant Arizona Film Simulation Recipe on my Fujifilm X-E4:

*Bird in a Palm* – Avondale, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4

*Green Sign* – Avondale, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4

*Two Palm Building* – Avondale, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4

*Indicative?* – Litchfield Park, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4

*Spring or Autumn?* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4

*Bougainvillea Branch Blossom* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4

*Pink & Yellow* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4

*Bougainvillea Garden* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4

*Green Meets Red* – Avondale, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4

Asteroid City Edit

If you aren’t satisfied with how well the Vibrant Arizona Film Simulation Recipe matches Asteroid City, there is a quick and easy Capture One edit that will make your pictures even closer to the aesthetic of the motion picture film. Simply import your straight-out-of-camera JPEGs (not the RAW!) into Capture One, find the Basic Color Editor, and make these adjustments:

Cyan
Hue -30
Lightness -20

Blue
Hue -20
Saturation +50

Those are the adjustments that I made to the picture above plus the five images below. You might have to stray from the above settings and modify the exact parameters, just depending on the photographs, but for these six, I followed them precisely and made no other changes. With this edit, the pictures are pretty convincing, and there’s no doubt that we’re mimicking Wes Anderson’s Asteroid City. Even though this will get you closer to the movie aesthetic, I personally prefer the unedited versions.

*Yellow Pillow* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5 – Indoor Angouleme Recipe

There was a moment while creating the above Recipes that I became particularly frustrated with the process, so I took a break, and instead worked on a different Wes Anderson look. I was inspired by the indoor scenes inside the newspaper office in the movie The French Dispatch, so I began working on a Film Simulation Recipe to mimic that aesthetic. The look is warm when shot in warm light, with somewhat muted colors and low contrast. This is a much different aesthetic than Asteroid City, but it is another Wes Anderson film that’s popular right now.

While the movie takes place in a fictional French town, it was filmed in the real town of Angouleme, which apparently (and appropriately) is known as the City of the Image. While these Recipes look quite interesting in outdoor daylight situations, they are intended for artificial and mixed indoor lighting, which is where they really shine. That’s why I’ve named the two Film Simulation Recipes below Indoor Angouleme. Although none of the movie was filmed in the 16:9 aspect ratio, I used it for these Recipes, but feel free to use whichever aspect ratio you prefer.

Indoor Angouleme (X-Trans V)

*Red Chair* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5 – Indoor Angouleme Recipe

This version of the Indoor Angouleme Film Simulation Recipe uses the new Nostalgic Neg. film simulation. It also utilizes the Auto Ambience Priority White Balance, which I’ve only used once before (on the Ektachrome 320T Recipe). Indoor Angouleme is compatible with X-Trans V cameras, which (as of this writing) are the Fujifilm X-T5, X-H2, and X-H2s. Those with newer GFX cameras can use it, too; however, it will likely render slightly differently.

Film Simulation: Nostalgic Neg.
Grain Effect: Weak, Small
Color Chrome Effect: Strong
Color Chrome FX Blue: Weak
White Balance: Auto Ambience Priority, -2 Red & -6 Blue
Dynamic Range: DR400
Highlight: -2
Shadow: -2
Color: -1
Sharpness: -2
High ISO NR: -4
Clarity: -3
ISO: Auto, up to ISO 6400
Exposure Compensation: +2/3 to +1 (typically)

Example photographs, all camera-made JPEGs using this Indoor Angouleme Film Simulation Recipe on my Fujifilm X-T5:

*Iced or Hot?* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Artist at Work* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Making Salad* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Joshua in Front of a Curtain* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Spectacular Suburban Sunset* – Surprise, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Pergola Corner* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Roof Ridge* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Sun Peeking Behind Wall* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Big Bloom* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*A Pink Rose* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

Indoor Angouleme (X-Trans IV)

*Water, Fish, and View* – Avondale, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4 – Indoor Angouleme Recipe

The Nostalgic Neg. film sim is somewhat similar to Eterna, and can sometimes be closely mimicked with it. Since X-Trans IV models don’t have Nostalgic Neg., I used Eterna instead. While this version isn’t 100% identical to the X-Trans V Recipe, it is pretty close overall, and retains the same feel.

This version of Indoor Angouleme is compatible with the Fujifilm X-Pro3, X100V, X-T4, X-S10, X-E4, and X-T30 II cameras. To use it on the X-T3 and X-T30, ignore Color Chrome FX Blue and Grain size (since your camera doesn’t have those options), select regular AWB (since your camera doesn’t have the Ambience option), and use a 1/4 Black Pro Mist or 10% CineBloom diffusion filter in lieu of Clarity; however, it will look slightly different.

Film Simulation: Eterna
Grain Effect: Weak, Small
Color Chrome Effect: Strong
Color Chrome FX Blue: Strong
White Balance: Auto Ambience Priority, -1 Red & -6 Blue
Dynamic Range: DR200
Highlight: -1
Shadow: -1
Color: +4
Sharpness: -2
High ISO NR: -4
Clarity: -3
ISO: Auto, up to ISO 6400
Exposure Compensation: 0 to +2/3 (typically)

Example photographs, all camera-made JPEGs using this Indoor Angouleme Film Simulation Recipe on my Fujifilm X-E4:

*Tabletop Succulent* – Litchfield Park, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4

*Bookshelf Plant* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4

*Sugar & Creamer* – Litchfield Park, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4

*Alignment* – Litchfield Park, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4

*1:10* – Litchfield Park, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4

*Green Planet* – Litchfield, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4

*White Rose* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4

*Pink Blossomed Rose* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-E4

Find these Film Simulation Recipes and nearly 300 more on the Fuji X Weekly — Film Recipes App!

This post contains affiliate links, and if you make a purchase using my links I’ll be compensated a small amount for it.

Fujifilm X-T5 in black:  Amazon  B&H  Moment
Fujifilm X-T5 in silver:  Amazon  B&H  Moment
Fujifilm X-E4 in black: Amazon   B&H  Moment
Fujifilm X-E4 in silver:  Amazon B&H  Moment

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Creative Collective 031: Comparing 10 Recipes For Indoor Photography — Part 1

Posted on October 7, 2022 by Ritchie Roesch

*Sunlit Table Corner* – Avondale, AZ – Fujifilm X100V – “Kodak Royal Gold 400”

You might have a favorite Film Simulation Recipe, but when the light changes you’re disappointed with the results. This is a pretty common problem, and not unique to Fujifilm or even a new issue to photography. This happens because many of my recipes are modeled after or are inspired by analog film, and this is a long-time film problem.

With a few rare exceptions, film is either daylight balanced (usually around 5500K) or tungsten balanced (typically 3200K)—one for use in daylight, and the other for use in artificial light. If you encountered light outside of the temperature that the film was intended to be shot in, you would either accept the results or use a color correction filter (described in this article) to fix the imbalance. Many Film Simulation Recipes have this same issue: they’re intended to be used in a specific light condition, and outside of that they might not produce the best results.

*CocoLove* – Jackson Hole, WY – Fujifilm X100V – “Serr’s 500T”

When shooting film, your best option is to use the correct film for the situation; with recipes, I think this is also the best solution. Sometimes this isn’t practical, and so you could use color correction filters (both with film and film simulations), although carrying around a bag full of filters isn’t an especially convenient option. With digital, you have an added solution: adjust the white balance, which is essentially the digital equivalent of using color correction filters. For the sake of this article, we’ll focus on the first option, which is selecting a Film Simulation Recipe that does well in the light situation that you find yourself shooting in.

With over 250 Film Simulation Recipes on this website (and the Fuji X Weekly App), it can be hard to know which ones perform best in which light. In this article (and hopefully additional articles in the future), we’re going to compare how 10 recipes perform in various light conditions. It should be enlightening, and hopefully you’ll have a better understanding of when to use which recipes.

Before we jump into it, I think it’s important to briefly discuss Kelvin. The measurement of the temperature (warm or cold) of light is called Kelvin, and the scale is pretty large, ranging from 0 to 20000—the lower the number, the warmer the light, and the higher the number, the cooler the light. The typical temperature of a candle flame is 1900K. Artificial light (incandescent lights, halogen bulbs, fluorescent tubes, etc.) is usually between 2800K and 4300K, depending on the specific bulbs being used. “Golden Hour” light (sunrise and sunset) is around 3500K. Morning and afternoon sunlight (outside of golden hour) is typically between 4500K and 5000K, while midday sunlight is typically 5600K. Overcast sky often ranges from 6000K to 9000K, and shade can be 8000K to 10000K. Your camera’s white balance is designed to “balance” these temperatures so that white is white—a warm light will need a cool white balance, and a cool light will need a warm white balance.

With that prerequisite understanding, let’s take a look at how 10 different Film Simulation Recipes handle various Kelvin temperature light conditions.

Note: This was a Creative Collective article, but now it’s available to everyone.

The 10 Film Simulation Recipes we’re going to look at today are Kodak Royal Gold 400, Agfa Vista 100, AgfaChrome RS 100, Melancholy Blue, Fujicolor NPL 160T, CineStill 800T, Serr’s 500T, Fujicolor NPS 160 Pulled, Reggie’s Portra, and Everyday Astia.

I photographed a little scene illuminated by one Phottix Nuada R3 II LED lamp (which has an adjustable temperature), plus one warm incandescent bulb that was both dimmer and further from the scene (its impact was very minimal, but still worth noting). The Phottix light can be set from 3200K to 5600K. I attached my Fujifilm X100V to a tripod, and photographed the scene over and over, adjusting the Kelvin temperature of the lamp in-between shots.

We’re going to look through a whole bunch of pictures, then we’ll analyze the results afterwards, making a few observations and conclusions at the end. We’re going to start with the coolest light and end with the warmest. The Kelvin value above each set is the temperature of the light source.

5600K

4700K

4200K

3700K

3200K

I’m going to give a quick word about each Film Simulation Recipe, although I’m sure you’ve drawn some of your own conclusions already just from observing the pictures.

The Kodak Royal Gold 400 recipe is warm. It’s intended to produce warm results in daylight (which, remember, is actually a cool light). If you are photographing in cool light and want to combat that (or “balance” it), this recipe is a good choice. Look carefully at the picture at the very top of this article, and you’ll note that this recipe wasn’t quite warm enough to prevent all of the shadows from rendering blue. This recipe isn’t a good match for warm light situations, and is probably best avoided when photographing with artificial lights.

Agfa Vista 100 is another recipe intended for daylight photography. It’s not quite as warm as Kodak Royal Gold 400 (so it does a little better in warmer light), but it’s definitely meant to be used in cool light. If you (for some reason) encountered purple light that you wanted to “balance” (not render purple), this would be a good recipe to use due to its green cast. I wouldn’t choose this recipe for warm light situations.

Because the AgfaChrome RS 100 recipe has a slight cool cast, even though it is meant for daylight photography, it does well in some warm light situations, although it certainly depends on just how warm the light is. This wouldn’t be my first choice for artificial light, but it’s definitely not the worst recipe to use, either.

Melancholy Blue is similar to AgfaChrome RS 100 in that, while it is intended for daylight photography, because it has a cool cast, it does well in artificial light, even more so than the AgfaColor recipe. I wouldn’t purposefully set out to use this recipe in artificial light, but if I were using it in daylight and then the light changed, I wouldn’t likely be too disappointed with the results.

You might be surprised by the red cast in the Fujicolor NPL 160T recipe. After all, isn’t it supposed to be Tungsten balanced? This recipe is intended for and really shines in “blue hour” light, and that’s when I recommend using it.

CineStill 800T is a great option for artificial light (particularly in the 3700K and 4200K examples above). It has a strong blue cast when used in daylight situations.

Serr’s 500T is similar to CineStill 800T: great for artificial light (particularly in the 3200K and 3700K examples above), but it has a very strong blue cast in daylight situations.

I’m going to lump the last three recipes—Fujicolor NPS 160 Pulled, Reggie’s Portra, and Everyday Astia—together in one paragraph. What these three recipes have in common is that they use Auto White Balance, which adjusts to the light, whatever the light is. If you use an Auto White Balance recipe, you can know that the results will be good whatever light you encounter because it has that versatility. If you are a Patron on the Fuji X Weekly App, you can find these recipes quickly and easily using the Filter by White Balance tool.

You can choose a recipe to match the light, such as Kodak Royal Gold 400 in daylight or CineStill 800T in artificial light. You can choose a recipe and just accept the results you get with it, even if they look a little strange. You can use an Auto White Balance recipe and not worry about the light. There’s nothing wrong with any of these approaches—find the one that works best for you, or maybe use each of them at different times and in different scenarios. If you are not sure which recipe to use, I recommend either using it as an opportunity to experiment, or take the less risky route of selecting a recipe that uses Auto White Balance.