Pacific Blues | FUJI X WEEKLY

Pacific Blues — Fujifilm X-T5 (X-Trans V) Film Simulation Recipe

*Up or Down* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5 – “Pacific Blues”

I published the Pacific Blues Film Simulation Recipe just four months ago, and it has already become one of the most popular on Fuji X Weekly. The aesthetic is intended to emulate Lucy Laucht‘s Spirit of Summer series, particularly the Positano Blues photographs. While it is intended for a summer day at the beach, the recipe works great for many different subjects and situations. Foggy mornings? Yes! Dreary overcast? Yep! Desert landscapes? Sure! Garden flowers? Autumn leaves? Dramatic portraits? Absolutely. And lots, lots more. I’ve even seen some really interesting night photographs with it. Try this recipe for many different light scenarios and different subjects—you’re bound to love it!

Pacific Blues was made for X-Trans IV cameras, and I discovered that a slight tweak is needed for X-Trans V models, because the new sensor renders blues just a little deeper on some film simulations. For X-Trans IV recipes that use Classic Negative, Classic Chrome, Eterna, or Eterna Bleach Bypass and calls for Color Chrome FX Blue Strong, you’ll need to adjust it to Weak on X-Trans V; if it calls for Color Chrome FX Blue Weak, you need to adjust it to Off. If it calls for Color Chrome FX Blue Off, well, you just have to know it will render differently on X-Trans V and there’s nothing you can do about it. For Pacific Blues, setting it to Weak instead of Strong makes it compatible with X-Trans V.

*Misty Saguaro* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5 – “Pacific Blues”

If you have an X-Pro3, X100V, X-T4, X-S10, X-E4, or X-T30 II, you’ll want to use the original Pacific Blues Film Simulation Recipe. For those with an X-T3 or X-T30, unfortunately Fujifilm never gave your camera the Classic Negative film simulation, so you cannot use Pacific Blues. For those with GFX, if it’s an older model, I think the X-Trans IV version is likely most compatible, and for newer models, this version is likely most compatible; however, I have not tested either version on any GFX model to know for sure. If you have an X-H2, X-H2S, or X-T5 (or any other X-Trans V camera that is released after publication), this is the Pacific Blues recipe that you want to use.

Film Simulation: Classic Negative
Grain Effect: Strong, Large
Color Chrome Effect: Strong
Color Chrome FX Blue: Weak
White Balance: 5800K, +1 Red & -3 Blue
Dynamic Range: DR400
Highlight: -2
Shadow: +3
Color: +4
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 “Pacific Blues” Film Simulation Recipe on my Fujifilm X-T5:

*Minolta Garden* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Ground Leaves* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Wet Lightbulb* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Flower in the Rain* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Wet Red Rosebud* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Wet Red Bougainvillea* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Afternoon Bougainvillea* – Bcukeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Illuminated Branch* – Buckeye, AZ Fujifilm X-T5

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

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

*Misty Morning Desert* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Foggy Tree* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Neighborhood Fog* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Autumn Walkway* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

*Lifting Clouds Over Veiled Ridge* – Buckeye, AZ – Fujifilm X-T5

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

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Fujifilm X-E4 (X-Trans IV) Film Simulation Recipe: Pacific Blues

Posted on August 4 by Ritchie Roesch

*Coastal Blooms* – San Simeon, CA – Fujifilm X-E4 – “Pacific Blues”

Sometimes—like “Arizona Analog“—Film Simulation Recipes come together quickly, and sometimes—like this recipe—they don’t. This particular recipe has been in the works for over a year! I’ve made several attempts, and I finally feel satisfied that it is right—or at least as “right” as I’m going to get it. But what is it?

I’ve had a few requests to mimic the aesthetic of Lucy Laucht‘s Spirit of Summer series, particularly the Positano Blues photographs. Lucy is most known for shooting with Leica cameras—both film and digital—but she also uses others, and I wasn’t sure what she employed for this project. Recently I discovered that Positano Blues was shot on film, but (as far as I’ve found) she doesn’t discuss which film. I did find a reference (not related to this specific project) that mentioned she has used Kodak Gold and Kodak Portra, and that she digitally edits the film scans to some degree. She mentions using VSCO with her digital images, and I wonder if she also utilizes it with her film, too. When I first saw the pictures in this series, I thought it had a Classic Negative vibe—a film simulation that emulates Fujicolor Superia film. Lucy’s pictures are warmer than Superia typically is, but so much depends on how a film is shot, developed, scanned, etc., on how exactly it looks, and she certainly could have used warming filter. No matter the film and process used by Lucy, there’s a certain “look” to the Positano Blues photographs that is recognizable and beautiful—no wonder why people want to emulate it!

*Coast Blue* – San Simeon, CA – Fujifilm X-E4 – “Pacific Blues”

While Lucy Laucht’s pictures have a recognizable aesthetic, there are subtle differences between the images. Once you study them closely, you realize that some are warmer and some are cooler. Colors are rendered slightly different in some pictures. In past attempts, I felt like I’d get it “right” for one picture but “wrong” for others; however, with this final attempt, I feel like it’s possible to get close to the “look” of most of the Positano Blues photos. I’m very satisfied with how this one turned out, and I know that many of you will appreciate it, too. Obviously it is intended for a summer day at the beach, but it will do well in many different daylight situations. This “Pacific Blues” Film Simulation Recipe is compatible with the Fujifilm X-Pro3, X100V, X-T4, X-S10, X-E4, and X-T30 II cameras. I assume that it will also work on the X-H2s and newer GFX cameras, but I haven’t tried it to know for sure.

Classic Negative
Dynamic Range: DR400
Highlight: -2
Shadow: +3
Color: +4
Noise Reduction: -4
Sharpness: -2
Clarity: -3
Grain Effect: Strong, Large
Color Chrome Effect: Strong
Color Chrome Effect Blue: Strong
White Balance: 5800K, +1 Red & -3 Blue
ISO: Auto, up to ISO 6400
Exposure Compensation: +2/3 to +1 (typically)

Example photographs, all camera-made JPEGs using this “Pacific Blues” Film Simulation Recipe on a Fujifilm X-E4: