Capturing Film with Fujifilm X-series
Why I choose Fujifilm X-series cameras as a film photography fan
My photography kit. Often I will leave with just the small 35mm prime on & use a preloaded film simulation. Photo taken on my Dji Mini 3 pro drone!
Creating film emulations for my wedding photography is the perfect way to balance the beauty and authenticity of film while ensuring the client receives hundreds of photos at an affordable price. There is no camera brand that produces a digital camera range with all the modern bells and whistles whilst providing me with the sensation of shooting film quite like the Fujifilm X-series line. Their cameras come with all the professional requirements: a good autofocus system, dual card slots, weather resistance, great image quality, etc – yet they harken back to a time when digital cameras weren’t around. I’m the first to admit that having all the benefits of a modern digital cameras in today’s professional setting is non-negotiable, but oftentimes we can get caught up in reading spec sheets and pixel peeping, comparing a percentage here and there in an autofocus system’s reliability, all to our detriment; we should put more focus in the photographic experience itself and keep in mind that every professional grade camera made today performs to the required standard. Let’s not be scared to enjoy ourselves, even in a professional setting.
Tactile controls – who doesn’t love a manual dial?
The tactile controls of the Fujifilm X-pro, X-100, and X-T series, along with the inclusion of a physical aperture dial on nearly all X-series lenses, was the biggest decider in my decision to commit to their ecosystem. Placing all your eggs in one proverbial basket can be a difficult decision, with hours spent reading engaging arguments about the benefits of each camera manufacturer, and with there being so many good cameras made today my decision was based more on feel than technical specifications. Having manual dials for ISO, shutter speed, and aperture, means that once I have dialled in drive settings etc before a shoot I don’t need to navigate through a single digital menu.
For professional work I will always check against the histogram and viewfinder for exact metering, but as a way of improving my skills I got in the habit of changing my settings whenever I entered a new scene, manually adjusting ISO, shutter speed, and aperture before metering in the viewfinder. Over the years this has given me confidence in my photography skills. If you want to simulate the analogue shooting experience, train yourself to shoot in manual using the dials!
The best camera is the one you have with you. The size of the Fujifilm cameras means mine is never far away. Horse and general store, Idaho. Kodak Gold film emulation.
Colour science - those sweet, sweet film simulations
No camera manufacturer takes their colour science more seriously than Fujifilm. Their cameras now come pre-loaded with 19 unique film simulations that can be applied to Jpegs in camera, resulting in high quality images straight out of camera. I always shoot Raw to both cards for professional work, but for personal work I often shoot Jpeg and hit the streets without the worry of editing whatever I shot that day, keeping me more focussed on the moment. You can also create custom “film recipes” that allow you to save a colour profile with specific adjustments of white balance, shadow and highlights, etc, creating in-body emulations that can be named and saved and then selected based on the look you want for each scene. For example, when travelling Thailand, I created two ‘film recipes’ – vintage Kodachrome and Kodak Ektar 100. I would cycle through these based on my mood and the qualities of a particular scene. Spending the time to create a few of these recipes and having them loaded on camera allows for a true simulation of shooting with film if you have the discipline to stick to one film stock throughout the day and avoid chimping between each shot!
There’s a great online community offering suggestions for various “recipes” based on setting combinations other Fujifilm users have discovered. No one is more prolific than Richie Roesch who runs FujiXweekly, a fantastic blog that offers readers film recipes with sample images for hundreds of different film recipes that Richie has painstakingly created over the years.
Size does matter
There’s no denying that mirrorless cameras have changed the photography landscape, drastically reducing the size of a professional kit; yet there are still large mirrorless bodies and zoom lenses out there and it all adds up! Who wants to be carrying around a massive camera system all day? Not me! Whatever the occasion, I always try and keep my kit as small as possible, and Fujifilm have found the perfect balance between size and image quality. The small bodies of the X-series cameras combined with their extensive roadmap of excellent lenses mean I have been able to create a powerful system that covers my every need. Keeping it small is perfect for weddings and elopements as well, where I’m required to be on my feet for hours a day and sometimes hike miles to get to the location. It also comes into play when I’m heading out for a day of street photography around Bristol. Sticking the tiny 35mm f2.0 prime on and walking out the door means I can shoot all day long using a Kodak film simulation and trick myself into thinking I’m shooting film. As the saying goes, the best camera is the one you have with you, and it is rare that I am found without mine - many of my favourite travel photographs have come about at unexpected moments.
Another favourite from the same location in Idaho, with a different horse walking up to say hello. Kodak gold film emulation. Shot on my Fujifilm X-T3 with the 35mm f2.0
Why not film?
If I get so much pleasure from film photography and spend hours perfecting film emulations, why don’t I just shoot film?
The answer lies in the benefits of digital photography -This is not specific to Fujifilm but the main reason why nearly all professional photographers choose to shoot digitally. I have family who were married thirty years ago, all shot on film, and the photographer lost all the rolls. I don’t know the specifics and I don’t need to – whatever happened, this is not an option! Although digital isn’t fool proof, you can drastically reduce the chance of this happening. I always shoot with two cameras, and these both save files onto two SD cards. As soon as I finish the shoot files are uploaded to two separate hard drives and onto the cloud.
Flexibility of multiple film emulations – When shooting in RAW I’m able to apply different film emulations to the same photograph and choose which one suits the scene and lighting conditions best. When shooting in film you are stuck with whatever film stock you chose for the project. I like the flexibility. The editing process is also more forgiving with digital files allowing for some leeway with exposure etc.
Keeping the costs down - Film can get expensive… very expensive. Shooting digitally allows me to maintain affordable prices while still offering the beauty of film!
Using a Fujifilm camera allows me to extend my love of film beyond my editing process and creates a more cohesive feel from start to finish. With a little discipline it’s possible to trick yourself into thinking you’re shooting film for a day! No digital camera can ever truly recreate the act of shooting film, but with a little discipline and the right choice of camera we can get close!