On Fujifilm Color Science

The phrase gets overused to the point of meaninglessness but in Fujifilm's case it points at something real. The film simulations are not filters applied on top of a neutral rendering. They are the rendering. Provia, Velvia, Classic Chrome — each one is a different interpretation of the sensor data, with different contrast curves, different color relationships, different shadow behavior.

Classic Chrome is the one I keep coming back to. It pulls saturation down and pushes contrast up in a way that feels like memory rather than documentation. Shots from three years ago look like they happened further away than they did. That is either a flaw or exactly the point depending on what you are trying to do.

The Sony files are technically superior in most measurable ways. More dynamic range, cleaner high ISO, better autofocus. And they look like what they are — technically superior files. The Fujifilm files look like photographs. The distinction is not nothing.