How To Vsco Film For
This is part 1 of my. Be sure check out my guides to &I’m a big fan of the, and I’ve seen lots of other posts about VSCO Film 01. But I’ve always want more information about the films themselves.Sure, you could click through all the presets in VSCO Film 01 and just see what I think “looks good,” but I think a much better approach is to really understand the underlying films which are being emulated. By knowing each films strengths (and weaknesses), you can know exactly what to look for in a film and exactly when to use a particular film over another.If you spent 20 years shooting film professionally, you probably don’t need this guide, since you will already be intimately familiar with the films of VSCO Film 01.
But for the newest generation of photographers, like myself, who appreciate the aesthetic qualities of real film but haven’t spent any time with a film camera or in a dark room, film feels like a whole new world. What’s the difference between Kodak and Fuji? When should I use one class of film instead of another?
Does film speed matter when we’re talking about digital shots? How should I process the film to make it look authentic without going overboard?That’s why I made this “Missing Guide” to VSCO Film 01.We are really going deep to learn about the actual films in this pack. I’ll show you how the film manufacturers themselves describe their film, when and how to use the film, and my own before & after examples. So let’s jump in! VSCO Film 01 – The Modern Films. VSCO FILM 01 comparison – The modern films being emulated in this pack are known for their accuracy, so don’t expect wild, instagram-like transformations. At first glance, many of this films look similar, but there are important, subtle differences in how to best use each of them.VSCO Film 01 is described as “Modern Films.” What does that mean?
Well, all the films in this pack are still being produced (or have only just recently been discontinued) and are used widely today by photographers still shooting with film.From an aesthetic perspective, most of these films will have very natural color reproductions and extra-fine film grain. The films are calibrated to make skin-tones look even & natural, while giving scenes just enough contrast and luminosity.
If you want wild color swings, or an extreme “vintage-look,” this isn’t the film pack for you! VSCO FILM 01 – Great for Weddings, Portraits & MoreThe films in this VSCO film pack are really targeted at portrait photographers & wedding photographers (although there are additional uses). Almost all the films in the pack are known for their accurate skin-tone reproduction and fine grain structure. If you are a landscape photographer, fashion photographer, documentary photographer, or commercial photographer, there are other films (and film packs) that you should consider instead, which we’ll get into in future posts. Here’s what’s inside VSCO Film 01:.For each of these films, VSCO has offers a few presets that vary the intensity of the film effect.
In most cases they offer a (-) and (+) and a. We’ll cover how and when to use these variations in future posts, but for now, we will just focus on the standard variety, which is the variety that they calibrated to be closest to what you would expect with actual film. Sidenote: These are also essentially the same films offered. I’ll do a review of Mastin Lab’s Lightroom presets another time.
Fuji Pro Color Films inside VSCO Film 01The Fuji Pro color films are known for their accurate & pleasing skin tone reproduction. The white balance is neutral, although like all Fuji film, it tends to be just a touch “cooler” than the Kodak pro film, with more blue and green tones.The most famous and widely used of these films (and the primary one Fuji is still making) is the Fuji 400h film. And at least to my eyes, the 400h seems to be just the right balance of color & contrast. It really brings out beautiful light & texture without looking over processed. But there are great uses for each film.Fuji 160cOverview: Fuji 160C film creates “bright” and “clean” images.
There’s just a bit of extra fine film grain, and it really pushes the mid & high tones. It also has excellent skin tone reproduction – although in some cases I find that it washes out some details in the face. The colors also feel slightly desaturated verse the other films in this family. All combined, Fuji 160c gives images a nice “pop” and a simple, clean feel.Best for: Fuji 160C is great for for architecture & portrait photography.Be Careful of: The contrast added with Fuji 160C will make the gradations in skin tone appear a bit harsh and uneven if you don’t have very soft lighting.Example Image: The soft, even lighting in this image is ideal for Fuji 160c film. After applying the film preset, the skin takes on a porcelain quality, while the eyes, lips & hair benefit for the extra contrast. I could have used the 400h, but it may have felt a little dull in this scenario.NOTE: Just use the slider on the image to see what the image looked like before and after applying the VSCO preset. In all of these examples, the only thing that has been changed in each image is the application of the VSCO preset.
More Resources for Fuji 160c film:. Fuji 160c was recently discontinued by Fuji, you can still see the. Check out what people are doing with this film atFuji 400HOverview: Legendary skin tone reproduction, with silky smooth gradations from the highlights to the shadows. Just enough film grain, contrast, and saturation to give images a 3-dimensional quality without looking overdone.Best for: Wedding photography and fashion photography.Be careful of: Honestly, it’s hard to go wrong with this film as long as you’re using it for portraits, weddings or fashion photography. There’s a reason this film is still in so much demand with photographers around the world.Example Image: I positioned the lighting in this image to try to convey a feeling of depth and richness, but straight out of the camera, it still felt flat and uninteresting. The Fuji 400h preset instantly added depth and character to the image.
The skin tone is just perfect, and the gradations of colors in the shadow on the chair are so much richer and more interesting now. This is quickly becoming my go-to film & preset for portraits. More resources for Fuji 400h film:.
The film is. Find some inspiration at. “” with some beautiful examples of Fuji Pro 400H. A great at varying exposures. More by photographer Lisa O’DwyerFuji 800zOverview: Fuji 800z film is able to bring out natural, true-to-life skin tones in difficult situations, like low-light, flight-light, or mixed light. The film grain is much more noticeable than with the 160C or 400H, but in the right situations it can add a pleasant depth and texture to the image.
It also seems to me to be a little less saturated in the highlights and shadows, which is what makes it capable of evening out skin tones in difficult scenarios.Best For: Low-light or mixed light situations where accurate skin tones are important. It’s a great “rescue” film preset for documentary-type images where you don’t have control over light-sources.Be careful of: You will lose some saturation and add some graininess with this film, so just be sure that is the look you are trying to achieve. (Given that this is digital, by the way, you can also cheat and just edit the lightroom settings after you apply the preset. )Example Image: I took this image with very low, very flat light. You can see in the original that there are major differences in skin tone across the face because of the lighting conditions, in some places looking too green and in others too magenta. The Fuji 800z film does a beautiful job of cleaning this up. The skin looks much more natural and even, and the whole face just “pops” so much better of the background now.
Kodak Pro Color Films inside VSCO Film 01Kodak Pro film is known for it’s warm, vibrant tones. The Kodak film really makes skin tones look glowing and luminous. To my eyes, it looks a little less true-to-life than the Fuji Pro film, but this may be the look you are trying to achieve.Like the Fuji, in most situations I would recommend starting with the 400 variety. The Kodak Portra 400 is the most balanced and versatile of the bunch, and is often compared to the Fuji 400h.To see how Kodak’s Pro color films compare, Kodak has made us this handy chart. There’s even a few extra films in there that we’ll see in future film packs.Kodak Portra 160Overview: Like the rest of the Kodak Pro films, Kodak Portra 160 has very neutral tones which tend towards the warmer side of the spectrum. The 160 is has the least saturated colors of the Kodak Pro films, and the film grain is extremely fine.
The skin tones from the Portra 160 are light and luminous – almost glowing.Best for: Portrait photography, fashion photography, commercial photography.Be careful of: If you are looking for saturated colors, this is not your film. Also, if you’re not careful, this film can wash out details in your subject’s face.Example photo: You can really see the impact on skin tones and saturation in this image.
Without any retouch work, the skin is incredibly even and luminous. The tone of the blue hat shifts more towards teal, and the purple loses much of its vividness.
More Resources for Kodak Portra 160:. Here’s. Great.
GreatKodak Portra 400Overview: PORTRA 400 film hits the sweet spot of saturation, sharpness and contrast, with just a hint of film grain for added depth. Colors are vivid, skin is glowing. The saturation is enough to make this a viable film for travel & outdoor photography (though there are other films which are more generally more ideal for this).It gets compared a lot to Fuji 400h. To my eyes, the Portra 400 has a little less texture and depth to it than the Fuji 400h. The Portra feels shiny and perfect, whereas the Fuji feels more raw, organic and lived-in. So the Portra seems more suited to commercial & product photography, while the Fuji 400h is more ideal for wedding photography.
But the difference are subtle.Best for: Portrait, fashion photography, wedding photography & commercial photography.Be careful of: This is a great, versatile film and can be used in many situations.Example photo: The Portra 400 film preset here really makes the photo feel full of life and light. The skin tone feels more natural to me than the Portra 160, and the saturation levels are perfect. More resource for Kodak Portra 400:. Great.Kodak Portra 800Overview: The Kodak Portra 800 has the same great skin tones, but with added saturation and more noticeable film grain. It does a great job of really making the skin look great in even very difficult lighting situations. Out of the Kodak Pro color films, this one adds the most character and vibe with added film grain.Best for: Low light, natural portrait photography. Great skin tones with a bit of extra vibe.Be careful of: This adds a good amount of film grain, so if you are going for a clean, refine look, this isn’t your film.Example photo: The Portra 800 really improves the skin tone, adding some much needed luminosity to it. The film-grain also gives it more of a raw feel.
Modern Black & White Film inside VSCO Film 01In VSCO Film 01, VSCO also gives us three difference black & white films. Let’s go over each one briefly.Ilford HP5Ilford HP5, along with Kodak Tri-X, is one of the gold standards of modern black & white film. It has a medium contrast & slight grain. It’s rated at ISO 400, but photographers can push or pull the film during development to get a rating of ISO 200 to ISO 1600. Later VSCO packs give you the option to push or pull certain films, and we’ll look at exactly what that means in future posts.It’s a good choice for general purpose photography, street photography and black & white portrait photography.
More resources for Kodak Tri-X:.Kodak T-MAX 3200Kodak T-MAX originally came in 3 film speeds: ISO 100, ISO 400 & ISO 3200. The 3200 is actually a multi-speed film that in reality, is rated at ISO 800 and can be pushed up to ISO 3200 in development. Because of it’s incredible speed, it was used a lot in surveillance work and even in X-ray cameras. But it was discontinued by Kodak in 2012 due to limited demand.So what we have here in VSCO FILM 01 is a simulated effect of pushing Kodak T-MAX all the way to ISO 3200.
This gives photographers more of a raw, rough, vintage look. There is very noticeable levels of film grain, and the loss of details in the shadows that you would expect from pushing it to such high ISO levels.This film adds a lot of texture & character to photos, making it particularly well suited to city shots and street photography. Conclusions on VSCO FILM 01As you can see, there are a lot of exciting films in VSCO Film 01.
Now that you have a better understanding of each of them, I’d recommend you go back to your photos, and just experiment with the presets. Before you apply a filter, though, just pause and try to visualize what it will do to your photo. Will it increase saturation or decrease saturation?
Will it warm your photos up, or cool them down?With a little practice, you’ll become familiar enough with each film in the VSCO FILM 01 library to know exactly how & when to use it. You may even start to think about which film you will be using as you are in the process of shooting. Knowing how a particular film will react to the conditions of the environment will help you discover new possibilities and take your photography skills to the next level. Good morning, Nate.
Thank you for your in depth reviews and explanation. You’ve helped me narrow down my choice, but I need help for either keeping or thinning.Based on yout reviews, I’ve decided to purchase packs 01, 04, 05, and 06. Do you think I’ve made a good choice/selection? Are there any redundancies in my selection in terms of looks/style?
Which two packs would you suggest as must haves? I don’t want to experience buyer’s remorse once again:/Thank you for your time.Regard,Mike. Super guide(s) and exactly what I was looking for. I grew up shooting film but have forgotten most of the particular characteristics. I’m just a serious amateur looking to have some fun. A professional wedding photographer friend of mine was using 01 pack to wonderful effect. However, I’m thinking that since I like to take either landscapes or punchier snapshots of people/family, the 04 slide pack might be better suited to my needs.
Any thoughts?Love your consistent descriptions of each film followed by before/after demo and discussion. Very nicely done!. © 2016 Nate Photographic. All images are owned and copyrighted by Nathan Johnson (unless otherwise noted) and may not be used without his consent. Any film names or app names listed above are the brands and trademarks of their respective holders. None of the film producers or app produces listed on this page endorse or sponsor Nate Photographic, or any other content contained on this page, nor are any of the film producers or app producers affiliated with Nate Photographic. All trademarks and copyrights are the exclusive property of their respective owners.
This is part of my. Be sure check out my guides to & Also, be sure to I put together just for this post.My goal for this guide is to go in-depth on each film in VSCO FILM 02, showing you more about the history and uses of each film so that we can learn to use each film with intention.When you’re done with this guide, you shouldn’t have click through each preset until you find the one you want. You should be able to visualize how each film preset will affect your photo before you apply it.While VSCO does a wonderful job of accurately emulating film, they do a horrible job of supplying information on each film. So if you’re new to film or film emulation, it can feel like a bit overwhelming trying to determine which films to use with which photos.This is particularly true of VSCO FILM 02. For some reason, VSCO seems to have supplied even less information about this pack than others. There is no VSCO FILM 02 Walkthrough on the, no special instructions in the, and no special support category in the Basically, the only info they provide is on the and in their.
Which isn’t much.So, get ready, because there is a lot to go over in this pack! VSCO FILM 02 – A More Diverse PACKFirst, a quick recap of what we saw last time. In our we learned all about modern, professional portrait films from Fuji & Kodak.
Each film is either still available, or was just recently discontinued. The differences among the films from FILM 01 were quite subtle. They each had accurate color reproduction, very little saturation, low contrast, & beautiful skin tones. As we saw, this made VSCO FILM 01 particularly well-suited for wedding & portrait photography.VSCO FILM 02, however, is a more diverse pack. But lucky for us, that also makes it more useful. VSCO FILM 02 is a more diverse pack, with a mix of professional portrait film from Kodak and consumer “snapshot” film from Fuji.The films in this pack can be broken into at least 4 distinct groups, each with its own advantages. Fuji’s “Point and Shoot” Superia Film – Fuji Superia is somewhere in-between a professional portrait film (like we saw in VSCO 01) and a consumer film (which we’ll see more of in later packs). The skin tones are very usable (particularly Fuji Reala 100), but it has a bit more contrast, saturation & punch – just what you’d expect from a consumer film.
This makes Superia a great snapshot film. Pretty much anything you throw at it will look pretty good – from still life, to travel photos, to candids – and it has some of the quirks and characteristics that a lot of people associate with the “film look.”.
The Classic Kodak Portra Films – Prior to 2010, Kodak’s Portra films were broken out into two saturation levels. There was NC (“Natural Color”) and VC (“Vivid Color”). The “natural color” variation is quite similar to the low-saturation look of the modern Portra. The “vivid color” variation does exactly what you’d expect, slightly bumping up the vividness of images. Like it’s modern day equivalent, these older Portra films are perfect for wedding & portrait photography. Kodak Portra “UltraColor” – Kodak originally launched “Ultra Color” in the Portra lineup in 2002, but it was removed within two years, and rebranded as “Kodak UltraColor.” In truth, it should never have been a part of the Portra line-up. It’s not a portrait film.
How To Vsco Film For Free
It’s a super-saturated film. I find it works well with colorful travel photos or even commercial photography. Classic Black & White Films –In VSCO Film 01, we saw two classic B&W Films from Kodak: Kodak Tri-X and Kodak T-Max. In VSCO Film 02, we get two more classic B&W films: Fuji Neopan 1600 & Ilford Delta 3200. Personally, I feel that these two black and white films have more personality than what we saw in VSCO 01.So let’s take a closer look at each!Fuji Superia – A Classic “Snapshot” FilmPrior to now, we’ve only looked at “professional films.” Fuji Superia, however, is more of a “snapshot” film. It was (and still is) sold at a lower price point and is intended for consumer-level photographers.What exactly does this mean?These films were designed to produce more contrast, saturation and “punch” than what you’d get from a “Professional” film. Also as a general rule, it will also have more grain, greater color-shift, and less natural skin tones. But remember, the goal of film emulation isn’t necessarily to make something look more natural.
How To Vsco Film For Mac
This consumer-level film has its own aesthetic, which in many cases, may be closer to the the “look” you are trying to achieve than the professional level films.So let’s look at each of the Fuji Superia Films:. Fuji Superia 100 (actually Superia Reala). Fuji Superia 400 (actually Superia X-TRA 400). Fuji Superia 800 (actually Superia X-TRA 800). Fuji Superia 1600Fuji Superia “Reala” 100Overview: First, let’s get this straight: this is really Fuji Reala film. (I was able to confirm this with a VSCO rep). Fuji Reala was designed to be a bit closer to a professional portrait film than the other Fuji Superia films.
It has soft, subtle gradations and balanced contrast. The colors are bright but not too saturated. Still, it feels a bit less polished than the modern professional films, and skin tones can feel a bit “waxy.” It also adds a bit more “Fuji character,” tending more towards cool green and blue tones.Best for: This film works OK in a lot of situations. But because it is somewhere in-between a consumer film and professional film, it doesn’t entirely feel completely like either, which may be a disadvantage if you are trying to achieve a particular look. I find it works well with portraits that you want to feel just a tad less polished than what you’d get from a professional film.
There are some beautiful examples of what I mean when youExample Image: The Fuji Reala gives this image a bit more of the “pop” associated with consumer films, but still produces natural-feeling skin tones. More Resources of Fuji Superia “Reala” film:. by Stephen Dowling. – by Steve Huff Photo. by the blog Curating CutenessFuji Superia “X-TRA” 400Overview: Fuji Superia X-TRA 400 is a staple among consumer film shooters and is still widely used today.
This film brings with it some of the nostalgia associated with our collective memories of film. The color isn’t perfect or accurate, but as perfectly summed up, “This is the color of vacations and other happy memories.” All things considered, the skin tones are good, and colors feel natural but with a bit more vividness, especially violets and greens. The grain is already starting to become noticeable here at 400ISO (in contrast to the Fuji Pro 400H), but that can add to the feeling of depth.Best for: This is a really useful general purpose film. It adds a good amount of contrast, so make sure your light source is soft (overcast days are your friend). More Resources for Fuji Superia 800:.
– more great photos from Jim Grey, this time with Fuji Superia 800.Fuji Superia 1600Overview: Fuji Superia 1600 gives us even more of that gritty, moody consumer film-look. Film grain is very visible, shadows and highlights are faded and missing detail. It’s also balanced to work well in scenes with tungsten or fluorescent light.Best for: I love using this film on overcast days in the city. It just brings out this gritty, moody, lo-fi film appearance.Example Images: Fuji Superia 1600 just works magic on city shots. It adds this moody depth and lived-in feel to everything. More Resources for Fuji Superia 1600:.
from Fuji.Pre-2010 Kodak Portra FilmsPrior to 2010, Kodak had its Portra films broken out into three different varieties – Natural Color (NC), Vivid Color (VC), and Ultra Color (UC).The Pre-2010 Kodak Portra films give us a greater levels of control over saturation than Kodak’s current line up of Portra. More resources for Kodak 160NC and 160VC:. – a great walkthrough with wedding photographer Ken Keinow using Kodak Portra 160 VC.Kodak Porta 400NC and 400VCOverview: Again, this is similar to the modern Portra 400 film we saw in VSCO Film 01, with the addition of control over saturation. The 400NC has subtle color and natural skin tones, perfect for low directional light or on-camera flash. Motorola simlock calculator v2.5 rar: software free download windows 7. The 400VC film has more vibrant colors and slightly higher contrast to add “snap” to images shot in flat or overcast light.Best for: This film is excellent for portrait or wedding photography.
You can follow the guidelines above to determine which variant to use, or just try ’em both! For instance, in the case below, I like the NC version better. Kodak Porta 400 Ultra ColorOverview: Kodak 400UC film provides extremely high color saturation in low light or on-camera flash situations. In additional to adding intense saturation, it also has a tendency to tint greens more towards blue (and less towards yellow), which is a departure from other Kodak films.It was advertised originally as a sort of “best of both worlds” film, giving users deep, saturated color “without sacrificing skin tones.” It does an OK job of preserving skin tones, but it really is too saturated for most portrait work, and thus it was and was rebranded as simply Kodak Ultra Color.Best for: This film seems to work best for colorful still-life, landscape & travel photography. Only use it for portrait photography if (a) you really really need to get some saturation into the skin, or (b) you are taking a travel photo with and you want to have OK skin tones and good scene saturation levels.Example images.
This saturation of this film is really fun to play with!More Resources for Kodak Ultracolor:. (the new name for Portra 400UC).Fuji Neopan 1600Overview: Fuji Neopan 1600 is a professional black & white film which is no longer in production.
Compared to the other black & whites we’ve looked at so far, this one is known for having very heavy contrast and enhanced sharpness, with a tendency towards deep, rich blacks. The grain is noticeable, but not nearly at the level we’ll see in the 3200 speed films.Best for: Because of the amount of contrast this film adds, you’ll probably get the best results shooting with available light in low-light conditions. Shoot this in the evening without a flash, then watch the film add new life to your photo.Example Images. Similarly, this indoor scene have very little available light, and appears flat just doing a standard black and white conversion. The additional contrast and slight grain adds some much needed depth.More resources on Fuji Neopan 1600:. from FujiFilms. (no longer available for purchase).?Ilford Delta 3200Overview: Ilford Delta is ultra-speed, professional black and white film. It’s still available for purchase, and very much in use by black & white film shooters today.
This is a very grainy film, so if you like grain, this is your film! The contrast levels are much more subdued on this film vs. The Neopan 1600, so the tonality is much more nuanced.Ideal For: This is THE film for black & white street photography. The even contrast levels allow you to shoot in all kinds of lighting conditions, and the high film grain makes your shot feel like an instant classic.Example Images. This isn’t the greatest image, but even on a mediocre image like this, the tones and grain of the Ilford Delta 3200 film adds so much character.More resources on Ilford Delta 3200:. from Ilford.
from B&H Photo. from Australian photographer Daniel Klaas. – some great example shots of Ilford Delta 3200.FREE VSCO Film 02 Cheat Sheets DownloadSo there you have it – my in-depth look at every film in VSCO Film 02! To help make this knowledge a little easier to use as you process your own images, I put together a little cheat sheet for you.Just fill in the form, and hit “download.” I’ll send you a link to the free download right away! Thanks for this fantastic tutorial, Nate! I wanted to try one of the VSCO packs, and had no idea how to go about choosing, and ultimately chose 02 instead of 01, but still wasn’t sure what I should expect. I processed a few images, but still found myself scratching my head.
This is a HUGE help in showing me what to expect when I try each of these. A question for you. I shoot mostly images of people, although I love street photography and take the opportunity to shoot those when I travel for work. Do you find it helpful to adjust white balance before or after you apply the preset?.
So glad this was helpful 🙂 The short answer is that I make most white balance adjustments after applying presets. Here’s the longer answer: when I first import my images, I always start with the temp set to to 5500k and tint set to 0. This is what practically all films were balanced for, so in my mind, it’s a good place to begin. Then, I’ll try to determine what kind of look I’m going for. Do I want the image to feel cool or warm?
I’ll try a few presets I know will get me closer to that look. Then after applying the preset, I may fool around with the white balance a bit just to see if I can bring it any closer to the vibe I want. I think the important thing to remember is that there isn’t always a right or wrong white balance – it’s whatever brings your image closer to your vision for it!. © 2016 Nate Photographic. All images are owned and copyrighted by Nathan Johnson (unless otherwise noted) and may not be used without his consent. Any film names or app names listed above are the brands and trademarks of their respective holders.
None of the film producers or app produces listed on this page endorse or sponsor Nate Photographic, or any other content contained on this page, nor are any of the film producers or app producers affiliated with Nate Photographic. All trademarks and copyrights are the exclusive property of their respective owners.