Film Simulations on the Fujifilm X-T30

Provia

Provia is the default film simulation. It emulates the medium-speed (ISO 100) Fujichrome Provia 100 daylight-type slide film. The film was used in a wide variety of situations and offered ultrafine grain, rich tone reproduction, average contrast, and mildly saturated colors. This extremely versatile simulation is great for landscapes and portraits; it is your go-to setting for most of your JPEG shooting needs.

Velvia

In 1991, Fujifilm released the low-speed (ISO 50) daylight-type slide film Velvia (for Velvet Media). It features highly saturated colors, high contrast, and excellent sharpness. It quickly became a favorite of many landscape photographers. It is, however, not great in overcast weather, a problem when one loads one roll of film into a camera at a time. As a simulation, though, it is perfect as one can choose it for scenes it is most suited for.

Astia

Emulating medium-speed (ISO 100) daylight-type slide film Fujichrome Astia 100F, this simulation has softer colors than Provia and excels at skintone rendering. It is therefore an ideal choice for portraits, but thanks to its extremely fine grain, it is also excellent for indoor and product photography. It is a perfect choice in high contrast situation or on cloudy days when Velvia can become far too contrasty.

Classic Chrome

You won't hear this from Fujifilm for obvious reasons, but Classic Chrome is meant to emulate Kodachrome, my slide film of choice before I went digital. I prefer its soft, muted colors to the (to me) over-saturated Velvia. Of course, the Kodachrome film I used was very slow (ISO 25), but with this simulation, I can enjoy the muted look of Kodachrome at higher ISO settings.

Pro Neg. HI

The next two simulations emulate the daylight-type NPS 160 Pro print film. This was a popular choice for wedding and portrait photographers; it had a speed of ISO 160 and featured smooth, natural rendition of skin tones, extremely fine grain, rich gradation, optimal gray balance, and high sharpness. Contrast was minimal and the colors were muted. The film was also a favorite of street photographers.

Pro Neg. STD

This is nearly the same as the preceding simulation. Tonality is slightly lower, the image a bit flatter, contrast minimal, and skin tones are enhanced. This and the previous simulation share a comparable interpretation of color, situated somewhere between the unsaturated look of Classic Chrome and the natural appearance of Provia. The result is comparable to that obtained by shooting with Kodak Portra film.

Eterna Cinema

This simulation emulates the Fujifilm Eterna Cinema motion picture film. With the lowest contrast and color saturation of all simulations, it gives videos that cinematic look, but of course, the simulation is perfectly usable for still images. The overall look then resembles an even more muted Pro Neg. STD (though, like all simulations, it may be tweaked, for example to boost color and contrast a bit).

Acros

Acros emulates the Fujifilm Neopan 100 Acros medium speed (ISO 100), ultra-high-image quality black and white negative film. It has a very complex grain structure that requires extensive processing; for this reason, it is only available in recent cameras. This simulation is capable of holding details in both highlights and shadows. At higher ISO values the grain becomes more pronounced and film-like.

Acros + yellow filter

This simulation adds a yellow filter to the standard Acros simulation. Yellow filters are the most subtle of all the color filters used in black and white photography. They absorb all colors except yellow, so they slightly darken blue skies and purple objects while brightening green, red, orange, and yellow. Yellow filters are frequently used in portrait photography as they make skin tones appear more natural.

Acros + red filter

This simulation adds a red filter to the standard Acros simulation. Red filters are the least subtle of all the color filters used in black and white photography. They absorb all colors except red, so they dramatically darken blue skies. They also improve tonal differences between flowers and foliage in nature photography and help penetrate haze and fog under difficult atmospheric conditions.

Acros + green filter

This simulation adds a green filter to the standard Acros simulation. Green filters are not used as often as yellow and red filters, but they are extremely helpful when taking pictures of landscapes with leaves of slightly different hues. They lighten green foliage which often appears too dark when photographed without a filter. Green filters give a lighter, more natural look to certain landscapes.

Monochrome

This is the original Fujifilm black and white simulation, and it is found in all Fujifilm Series X cameras. It does not have the rich tonality of the Acros simulation, nor the same film-like grain when pushed to ISO 3200, but it is still a highly usable simulation that produces very attractive images. When one does not have a camera with the Acros simulation, Monochrome is a very useful alternative.

Monochrome + yellow filter

This simulation adds a yellow filter to the standard Monochrome simulation. Yellow filters are the most subtle of all the color filters used in black and white photography. They absorb all colors except yellow, so they slightly darken blue skies and purple objects while brightening green, red, orange, and yellow. Yellow filters are frequently used in portrait photography as they make skin tones appear more natural.

Monochrome + red filter

This simulation adds a red filter to the standard Monochrome simulation. Red filters are the least subtle of all the color filters used in black and white photography. They absorb all colors except red, so they dramatically darken blue skies. They also improve tonal differences between flowers and foliage in nature photography and help penetrate haze and fog under difficult atmospheric conditions.

Monochrome + green filter

This simulation adds a green filter to the standard Monochrome simulation. Green filters are not used as often as yellow and red filters, but they are extremely helpful when taking pictures of landscapes with leaves of slightly different hues. They lighten green foliage which often appears too dark when photographed without a filter. Green filters give a lighter, more natural look to certain landscapes.

Sepia

Strictly speaking, this is not a simulation at all but a black and white rendition with Sepia toning. I do not expect to use this simulation very often; I have played around with Sepia effects in the past, but only in Silver Efex Pro 2 where the sepia effect as well as other aspects of the black and white image can be varied to a far greater extent. Still, it's nice to have the simulation available.

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