The Fuji X Files

Swans and Cygnets. Fujifilm X-E2 with Fujinon XC50-230mm. f/7 @ 1/2000th I absolutely love using my Fujifilm X-E2. Just like I loved using the X-E1 before it. I'm surprised by how much I enjoy the rangefinder-style ergonomics, especially with the lightweight XC lenses, even though I come from a predominantly SLR camera-style background. That being said, I do prefer to use the X-E2 with an additional grip attached. As well as the thumb rest that attaches to the hotshoe. With these in place, handling is about right for such a small camera. Without them attached, it's just too small - even though I have average sized hands. Since it has a range-finder style body, the evf is off to the left of the camera - instead of in the middle as with SLR style bodies. You would think that this would be a positive - just raise the camera up to your right eye to shoot and the whole left side of your face is free. No nose-smudging of the lcd screen. Unfortunately, I'm left-eye dominant, and ...

Now that I have gone through my seven custom film simulation recipes on my Fujifilm X-E2 (see previous blog posts), the final stage of the process is to do a comparison. This will help me decide which custom recipe I want to use, depending on the subject and feeling I'm after in my photo.  I think I have a pretty good idea anyway, but seeing them all together will help me confirm my suspicions. The first time I did this, I discovered that all my recipes were far too similar, and I decided to start over again from scratch. Hopefully this time will be different? Black and White film simulation comparison for landscapes. Fuji Acros v Ilford HP5 Since I mostly shoot landscapes, I thought I'd start there with my comparisons. The image itself isn't anything spectacular, and it's taken at the wrong time of the day - noon on a bright day. But this is also a fairly good test since the dynamic range is at the extremes of what the sensor can handle. The compressed images for the w...

Last weekend (as I write this) I was in the neighboring town of Hokitika to try out my Ilford HP5 film simulation. I found myself wandering the back-streets on a drizzly afternoon - ideal conditions for black and white images, but not my normal subject matter. Although I wasn't really expecting much, I actually came away with a couple of images that I loved, and that really excited me (see the post here ). Urban exploration really isn't my thing - mostly because I live in a small town and don't really think of it as somewhere worth exploring (familiarity really does breed contempt)! But my brief afternoon spent exploring the streets of Hokitika made me re-evaluate that a little. I decided that if similar conditions (drizzly and cloudy) represented themselves here in Greymouth where I live, then I would take the opportunity to go out and explore my local town. All you need is Love. Fuji X-E2 with XC16-50mm. f/5.6 @ 1/280th, ISO 400. Ilford HP5 recipe This being Greymouth, I...

I've been shooting Jpeg-only with my X-E2 for about a month now, and have finally tested out all my film simulation recipes. The last one to test, as indicated in the heading for this post, was my Kodak Portra 400 film recipe - in the C4 slot on my X-E2. Motukiekie Moonscape. Fujfilm X-E2 with XC16-50mm. f/11 @ 1/3rd sec, ISO 100. Portra 400 recipe I've left testing the Portra 400 recipe until last because I think of it as fitting a fairly specific scenario. And I guess the clue is in the name - Portra. Do a quick Google search for Portra 400 on the interwebs and you will get hundreds of the kinds of images that this film was designed for.... Portraits. As you can tell from my blog, I don't do a lot of portraiture. Not now anyways. I used to spend most weekends shooting Weddings, and I guess the Portra film simulation would have come in very handy in those settings. But now I'm mainly a landscape photographer (if I'm choosing what to shoot), so a 'Portra' s...

I've probably mentioned before (a few times) that when I shoot 'real' film, I often choose black and white. Firstly for practical and budget reasons - it's cheaper and I can develop it myself. But second for aesthetic reasons - I love the look you get from true black and white film stocks. Black and white conversions from colour are not quite the same. And nor is shooting on the 'monochrome' setting on DSLRs. Lake Mahinapua Sludge. Fujifilm X-E2. f/8 @ 1/240th, ISO 400. 'C6' Ilford HP5 recipe Now having said that, I believe that the closest you can get to a 'true' black and white result shooting on digital is with the Fujifilm simulations (without selling your children and a kidney to buy the Leica Monochrom). For a start, the newer X-Trans III cameras have the Fuji Acros film look built right into the camera - how good is that! But even if, like me, you've got an older generation Fujifilm body, then the custom film simulations come to the ...

One of the major arguments for shooting Jpegs instead of RAW is that the 'look' you want is already baked into the file and you don't need to post-process the image. The whole SOOC (straight out of camera) movement has become very popular with the rise of Fuji film simulations and custom 'recipes'. I'm having a blast shooting with my custom film recipes on the Fuji X-E2 - but does this really mean that I'm only showing images SOOC? Is there no post-processing involved at all? And if there is, how much can you do on 'only' a Jpeg? Well, to answer the first question - No, I'm not just showing images SOOC. I do still process my Jpegs to get the final image. Some admittedly more than others. I thought it might be worthwhile looking at a few recent examples, where I have done a reasonable amount of post-processing work on a Jpeg, and discuss why. Original image. E100SW recipe SOOC On a recent trip to Rapahoe Beach to try out my Acros film recipe (post...

I'm quickly getting through the custom film simulations that I have programmed into the seven slots on my Fujifilm X-E2. And so far, so good. Recently on this blog, I've covered my Kodak Ektachrome E100SW recipe in the prime C1 slot, Fuji Acros recipe in C2, Kodak Gold 200 recipe in C7, and my Fuji Velvia film simulation in the C5 slot. That leaves just three to go; two more colour and one monochrome film simulation. Greymouth River. Fuji X-E2 with XC16-50mm + polariser. f/8 @ 1/70th, ISO 200. Agfa Optima In this post I want to look at the film recipe I have programmed into slot C3 - Agfa Optima 200. Agfa Optima 200 was a professional print film produced by Agfa from 1996 to 2005, and was their sharp, fine-grained print film with natural colours and pleasing skin tones. To be honest I never shot a lot of Agfa colour film, but I did shoot a lot of their black and white film back in the day as they were a supplier to school darkrooms across the country. So why do I have an A...

There's an old saying that goes "Make hay while the sun shines". Here on the South Island's West Coast (sometimes jokingly referred to as the 'Wet' Coast), you have to take that saying to heart and make photographs while the sun shines! The long-range forecast for the coming week (as I write this) is not looking great. Rain, with the chance of rain, interrupted by the occasional downpour of rain. So yeah, not good. Yes, I know, rain makes for great moody landscape photos. But I'm sorry, it's just not me. I can't really understand looking outside at the pouring rain and thinking "great - time to go and take photos"!? For a start, my gear isn't weather-sealed, so that's not good. But even when I did have weather-sealed camera gear, the last thing I really wanted to be doing with it was slogging around in the wet, constantly struggling to keep the front lens element clear of rain (not to mention my own glasses), just so I could catc...