When I talk about Processing Fuji raw files, I mostly cover Capture One and Lightroom (with X-transformer). While I still think that Capture One is the best overall option, there is another application that I've been using a lot lately, and that is Exposure X5. While it is not as fully featured as Lightroom or Capture One, it does have some unique attributes. For Fuji Shooters, it offers some appealing options, depending on your preferences.

Please note that this isn't a comprehensive review or a detailed tutorial. I'm just sharing my experiences and thoughts using the software. I have a more thorough review of this which you can find here. If you want more details, and a full tutorial, let me know in the comments and I'll consider it in the future.

The Basics

Let me cut to the chase. You're probably wondering how it does on details and does it suffer from any of the issues of smearing hat Lightroom does? It does not. The quality is perfectly fine. It's not quite as clean as Capture One, but the differences are pretty small. I haven't noticed any of the typical problems with edge artefacts, worm artefacts or detail smearing. So from that aspect, it's perfectly fine.

There are presets to match the Fuji film simulation modes, but in my opinion, they're not that accurate, especially compared to Capture One or Lightroom. If you want an exact replica of the in-camera Jpegs, this won't be it. However, that would miss the advantages of the software. If you don't have an issue with your images not matching Fuji's in-camera simulations exactly, you can get some really good results by using the presets that are simulations of the actual film, rather than the ones which try to match the Fiji X-Series picture modes.

Film Simulations

Before Exposure was a stand-alone raw editor, it was a plug-in for Lightroom and Photoshop and was designed to simulate film. It was one of the first significant film simulators, and it's been around in one form or another for some time. I did a review of it a while ago, and so, check that out if you haven't already read it.

The point is, simulating film is the main thing it's famous for, and while it has added a bunch of stuff since then, it is still one of the key features of the software. I've found that the results can be somewhat mixed, and how accurate the results are, depends on the camera and type of file you're using. In the previous review, I had been trying it with lots of different cameras, and both as a plug-in and on Raw files, and as I said, the outcome was mixed. I found that some weren't particularly accurate.

Exported Image using Provia 100 Film Preset

The problem with reviews is that when writing them, you've often had only a short period to try the software out. Now that I've been using this on and off for a while it's grown on me a bit. More recently, I've been trying it on images shot on my various fuji cameras, and I've been pleasantly surprised by the results.

On Fuji RAW files, the results are nice, at least in my opinion. For example, using the Provia 100X film preset in the Slide Films folder is much better looking than the Provia in the Camera Matching Presets folder. It may not be 100% accurate, but the results are quite pleasant looking, in my opinion. The Astia and Velvia films are quite lovely too, and the Velvia is more like the actual film than Fujis in-camera version in my opinion. The print films are also quite good, and the Fuji Pro films work really well with Fuji raw files, as do the Fuji Reala presets, and the Kodak Portra presets.

There's a really good Neopan(Acros) preset too, and some good Ilford and Kodak black and white films.

As I said, this isn't for you if accuracy is your primary goal, but if you're willing to experiment and try different options, you might be surprised by the results, I certainly was.

Sharpening and Grain

There are a couple of things to be aware of. Sharpening is set to zero for Fuji raw files. I believe that the reason for this is because it is emulating film, you don't want the images super sharp. I do think that there is a degree of pre-sharpening happening as part of the raw decode, but it's not excessive. However, you can set a value of about 40 in the detail panel, and you'll get good clean results. If you prefer a softer film-like look, then leave it at zero.

Exposure X5 Suggested Sharpening settings

Note that there are two sharpening settings—one in the "Detail" panel, and one in the" Focus" panel. The one in the Detail panel is the one you should be using. The sharpening controls in the focus panel are more for creative sharpening, and the effects are stronger and best suited to post-raw sharpening. The focus panel also lets you creatively blur images, with a way to create a soft glow like blur that is quite like real film.

Fuji Neopan Acros 100 Preset with additional soft glow (see screenshot above)

Most of the film presets come with some kind of grain as part of them. Unlike Lightroom and Capture One, Exposure will do colour grain simulation, so the grain results are much more like real film than you can get with other software. Grain simulation is one of the software's best features. You can also control the grain amount separately for shadows, highlights and mid-tones. There's also a sider for "push processing" that will boost the grain.

However, if you want the results without grain, just set it to zero.

Conclusion

Exposure X5 isn't the most comprehensive software )although it is pretty good) and some of its tools are quite specialised. If you want a completely accurate representation of Fuji Files, then this isn't the software for you. However, if you like film and want to get the most film-like results from your Fuji raw files, then, in my opinion, this gives you all of the tools you need to make a pretty good film like emulation. There are so many variables that go into shooting real film (scanning, developing etc.) that it's hard to say how accurate the results are compared to the actual film, but they do look good, and for some that will be enough. You may need to tweak the supplied presets to get them how you like them, but the results are not bad.

I’m not suggesting this as a replacement for Capture One or Lightroom (although you probably could use it that way depending on your needs.) Either way, if you are shooting Fuji and want some film-like results, it's certainly worth trying. There is a trial version that you can download, and use for 30 days, so there's no harm in trying. As I said in the intro, this is only a quick overview, and there's lots more to this software, so if there's interest, I'll keep covering it.

Here are a few more examples. These aren’t great photos, but just what I had to hand as I was writing this. Taken on a Fuji X-E1 and X-Pro2… (Click to view large). I’m not putting up comparisons as it’s too hard to do properly on Squarespace, but if you want to see how it works, download the trial and try it for yourself on your own images.

P.s. This isn't a sponsored post, and I have no affiliate links with the software company that makes Exposure. They did send me a copy to review ages ago, but this post is entirely my own idea and not requested or solicited or in any way paid for.

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