Fujifilm film simulations and the light each one suits

The film simulation is the first line of every Fujifilm recipe, and the one that decides most of the result. It sets the colour response and the default tone curve before white balance, tone, grain or anything else gets applied. This post covers the colour simulations on current X-Series and GFX bodies, plus Acros, with what each one does and the light it handles well. For how the simulation fits with the rest of a recipe, start with Fujifilm film recipes, explained setting by setting.

The three slide films

Provia, Velvia and Astia are named after Fujifilm's reversal films and were the first simulations on X-Series cameras.

Provia (labelled Provia/Standard) is the default. Saturation and contrast are both moderate, and it's the most neutral base on the camera, which makes it a good starting point for a recipe that gets its character from white balance shift and tone rather than from the simulation.

Velvia (Velvia/Vivid) is the saturated one, with strong contrast and dense greens and blues. It's built for landscapes in flat or overcast light, where it adds the punch the scene lacks. In hard midday sun it goes too far, and on skin it turns reds unflattering quickly.

Astia (Astia/Soft) keeps colour fairly saturated but softens contrast and treats skin gently. It's the portrait simulation for people who find Pro Neg too flat, and it handles bright, colourful scenes in harsh light better than Velvia does.

Classic Chrome

Classic Chrome arrived in 2014 and is still the simulation most recipes are built on. Colour is muted, blues lean slightly teal, and shadows are firm, which gives it the look of a printed documentary magazine page. It's forgiving in almost any light, and it takes a warm white balance shift well, which is why so many recipes pair it with a white balance shift towards red and away from blue. On an overcast day with no shift it can look drab.

The negative films

Pro Neg Std and Pro Neg Hi come from Fujifilm's studio portrait negative films. Std is the softest colour simulation on the camera, with low contrast and gentle, accurate skin, and it rewards controlled light. Hi adds contrast for portraits in flatter light.

Classic Negative arrived with the X-Pro3 in 2019, modelled on Fujifilm's consumer negative film. Contrast is hard, and colour shifts with brightness, so shadows lean cyan while highlights go warm and slightly magenta. It gives snapshots that everyday colour-print look. Because the shadows are already dense, Classic Negative recipes often lower Shadow and add a little exposure.

Nostalgic Neg arrived with the GFX100S in 2021 and reached X-Series with the X-H2S in 2022. It puts an amber tone into the highlights while keeping shadows open and detailed, and it's aimed at the look of 1970s American colour photography. Golden hour and warm interiors suit it well. In cool blue light the amber can fight the scene.

Reala Ace is the newest, introduced with the GFX100 II in 2023. Fujifilm describes it as faithful colour with hard tonality: colour close to Provia's accuracy, with more contrast. It's the safest choice when you want colour that looks right more than colour that looks like a film.

The cinema pair

Eterna (Eterna/Cinema) is based on Fujifilm's motion picture film and arrived with the X-H1 in 2018. Saturation is low, contrast is soft and shadows hold a lot of detail, so the file looks graded straight out of the camera. Recipes built on Eterna usually add contrast back through Shadow, because the default can look washed out on a small screen.

Eterna Bleach Bypass, from the X-T4 in 2020, imitates skipping the bleach step when developing film. Saturation drops further and contrast goes up sharply. It suits hard light, industrial scenes and anything gritty, and it's unforgiving on skin.

Acros and the monochrome options

Acros is Fujifilm's monochrome simulation, with deep blacks, fine tonal gradation and its own grain that gets more visible as ISO rises. It comes in four versions: plain, and with a yellow, red or green filter. The yellow filter darkens blue sky slightly, the red darkens it a lot and lightens skin, and the green darkens reds and lifts foliage. Plain Monochrome, with the same filter options, is flatter and has none of Acros's grain behaviour. Sepia is a toned monochrome.

On a monochrome simulation the Color setting does nothing, and newer bodies offer a Monochromatic Color adjustment instead, which tints the image warm or cool and green or magenta.

Choosing by light

In overcast or flat light, Velvia, Classic Negative and Reala Ace put contrast back in. In hard midday sun, Classic Chrome and Astia hold up, and Eterna Bleach Bypass leans into it. For golden hour and warm interiors, Nostalgic Neg and Classic Chrome with a warm shift both work. For portraits, try Astia, Pro Neg Std or Reala Ace. For low light and high ISO, Acros turns noise into grain that looks intentional.

Which of these your camera has depends on its processor generation, and the pillar post lists which bodies lack which simulations.

Trying a simulation before dialling it in

Luma writes a new Fujifilm recipe every morning, and the film simulation is its headline. Its Advanced Preview applies a saved recipe to one of your own photos locally, so you can compare, say, Classic Chrome and Nostalgic Neg on the same frame. The preview is an approximation built on per-channel colour shifts and hasn't been profiled against real camera JPEGs, so use it to choose between looks and let the camera have the final say.

Luma is a CraftedPxl project, in open beta at lumaphoto.app. More on the Luma project page.