Fujifilm settings for travel photography

Table of Contents
1. Image Quality Setting
2. AF/MF Setting
3. Shooting Setting
4. Flash Setting
5. User Setting
6. Sound Setting
7. Screen Setting
8. Button/Dial Setting
9. Power Management
10. Save Data Settings
11. Connection Setting
12. The Quick Menu
13. These Fujifilm settings for travel photography are recommendations only

Image Quality Setting

IMAGE SIZE
MEDIUM 3:2. This only matters if you’re recording JPEG or RAW+JPEG. Your RAW output is going to be
Large 3:2 no matter what. But the camera can crop and downsize your JPEG output if you’d like.
The Medium size, on a 24MP sensor, is resized to 12MP, with dimensions of 4000 x 3000 pixels. That’s
plenty big! It’s massive for display on blogs & social media, and enough to give you great prints up to
11″x14″ and up to 24″x30″ if you need to. If your photos are only destined to social media or the family
digital album, you could even go down to Small, which is 25% of the full sensor output (3000 x 2000 pixels
on a 24MP camera).
While a square or letterbox format can make your photos uniquely cool, I wouldn’t let the camera crop
them at capture. Do it later in a post-processing program, which you can even do on a smartphone in
Snapseed or Lightroom. Record the full 3:2 rectangular shape.

IMAGE QUALITY
FINE+RAW. I record both RAW and JPEG and I always want the best JPEG file quality possible, which
is Fine. Anything below that will have information “discarded” when the JPEG is saved. Memory cards can
hold so much information these days that there’s no reason to reduce the JPEG quality.
RAW RECORDING
Lossless Compressed. Yes, uncompressed is “better” than Lossless Compressed – if you’re zooming in to
100% on high-definition monitors and doing scientific analysis of each pixel. But that’s not how people
look at pictures. Lossless Compressed will still give you stunning RAW files that on the outside you’ll never
be able to tell from Compressed. And they’re much smaller, allowing you to fit more files on a card and
more quickly transfer files.
Just note that some programs, like Mac Finder and Photos, can’t “decode” the Fujifilm RAW compression.
Capture One, Light room, and other paid programs can.
LONG EXPOSURE NR
OFF. This feature attempts to reduce noise in long exposures by taking another “reference” exposure after
your original exposure to map out “hot” pixels and remove them. This will double your exposure time on
long exposures, and the benefit for travel photographers usually isn’t worth it. I’d rather be able to take
photos in more rapid succession.
COLOR SPACE
sRGB. There’s a lot of misinformation out there that says Adobe RGB is better than sRGB. I fell for it for a
long time. It’s true that Adobe RGB color space is bigger than sRGB, but that doesn’t make it better for
travel photographers. You should only choose Adobe RGB if you have specialty printing equipment in your
home studio and are familiar with color mapping.
Everyone else should be selecting sRGB. Phones, TVs, computer monitors, tablets, etc. are all in
the sRGB color space. If you want your colors displayed accurately, your photos should be speaking the
same language as your viewers’ devices, in sRGB.
JPEG SETTINGS
I’m not going to go over settings like Highlight Tone, Shadow Tone, Color, Film Simulation, etc. in this post.
These aren’t really Fujifilm settings for travel, but rather dependent on your own style. You can read more
information about specific posts I’ve written about:
 Creating Fujifilm Custom JPEG Recipes
 Highlight & Shadow Tone
 How Dynamic Range Works
 Dynamic Range vs Dynamic Range Priority
 Film Simulation Comparisons
 Reasons for Using Manual White Balance
 The New Color Chrome Effect in the X-T3 & X-T30

AF/MF Setting

If some options are grayed out you need to switch between MF and AF.
AF-C CUSTOM SETTING
1. This is the best general Fujifilm setting for travel photographers, dictating how your continuous
autofocus tracking behaves.
STORE AF MODE BY ORIENTATION
Focus Area Only. This is one of my favorite focus/display settings that I never knew about. It’ll speed up
your shooting when using autofocus since you can store where your autofocus area is in both horizontal
and vertical orientation.
AF POINT DISPLAY
OFF. Having your active autofocus points displayed on the screen is an unnecessary distraction. You’ll still
have the “box” showing where your AF area is.
NUMBER OF FOCUS POINTS
The smaller number. That’ll help you move your autofocus area quicker, and there’s still plenty of AF
points with that smaller number. The higher number might work if you’re clamped down on a tripod and
don’t want to move the camera, but that’s not what travel photographers do.

91 points (left) vs 325 points

(right) on the X-T2. I’d rather be able to move my focus point quicker than have this kind of focus
resolution when I can just move the camera.
PRE-AF
OFF. Turning this on is a colossal waste of battery. Your camera will try to focus all the time, not just when
you tell it to.
AF ILLUMINATOR
OFF. This helps your autofocus in low light. However, it only has an effective range of a few feet, and it
can be incredibly annoying to strangers when you’re taking environmental portraits. The camera will
instead temporarily boost the ISO to focus, and this works just fine.
MF ASSIST
As desired. These are some really cool manual focus tools and you can read more about them here.
FOCUS CHECK
OFF. Turning this on will magnify your focus area automatically when you touch the manual focus ring.
While the magnification is super-helpful, the automatic nature of it can be distracting. I’ve instead
programmed my rear command dial to Focus Check.
INTERLOCK SPOT AE & FOCUS AREA
OFF. This is another cool feature, but as far as Fujifilm settings for travel, it’s best to leave this off so that
you have more consistent exposures (if using Spot metering).
DEPTH OF FIELD SCALE
Pixel Basis. Most of you will have photos destined for digital display, and this will give you the most
accurate distance scale for manual focus. If you’re just going to be printing, you can select Film Format.
RELEASE/FOCUS PRIORITY
Release. Sometimes you’ll need to be able to press the shutter all the way for the photo when a focus
lock isn’t achieved. You’ll need Release selected to be able to do this.

Shooting Setting
FLICKER REDUCTION
OFF. Only turn this on if you’re shooting under fluorescent lighting.
IS MODE
2 (Shooting Only). This will help you save your battery. It only activates your lens’ image stabilization when
actively shooting.
AUTO ISO
My Fujifilm travel settings for AUTO ISO are best explained in this post all about AUTO ISO. Watch the
video, see what AUTO ISO does, and how to use it.
Flash Setting
RED EYE REMOVAL
OFF. There are ways to fix this in post-processing, even on smartphones. I’d rather have more control over
it than leaving it to the camera.
TTL LOCK MODE
Lock with Metering Flash. That’ll give you better results in situations where lighting is changing, as often
happens in travel photography.
User Setting
FORMAT
Be sure to format your memory card every time you use a new one, and periodically after that! It’ll “clean
out the digital cobwebs” in your memory card and prepare it for shooting, decreasing the chances of
corruption. Just make sure you’ve downloaded all of the existing photos first since it will erase the card!
DATE/TIME
Set your home date and time.
TIME DIFFERENCE
Highlight Local and set the local time whenever you’re traveling. This’ll preserve your home time zone but
let you adjust your traveling time zone.

MY MENU
Create your own menu of your most commonly-used items in this menu. Considering Fujifilm settings
for travel photography, I’d include Face/Eye Detection, AF Mode, Focus Area, Interlock Spot AE & Focus
Area, Interval Timer Shooting, Flash Function Setting, and Drive Setting. You get 16 items.
SENSOR CLEANING
When Switched On. I prefer to do this when switched ON so it’ll get rid of any dust right before I’m
shooting, especially after changing a lens. But it does slow down the startup time slightly. If you’d rather
have a faster startup (see what the difference is on your own), switch it to When Switched Off.
Sound Setting
Turn off all sounds. They draw attention to you and, in my opinion, can be pretty annoying. You can be a
travel photographer without them.
Screen Setting
EVF BRIGHTNESS
AUTO. The camera does a great job of adjusting the brightness automatically, dimming it when able to
save the battery.
LCD BRIGHTNESS
0. As a default, leave it here. Only turn it up when absolutely necessary, which will help save the battery.
IMAGE DISP.
OFF. This is what turns on the automatic image review after you take each photo. Turning this ON will
drain your battery faster. But more importantly, it’s a distraction, and if you’re tempted to review every
photo, you’re going to miss the moment happening right in front of you. Review them only when you
need to using the Playback button.
PREVIEW PIC EFFECT
ON. Some Fujifilm cameras have this setting, allowing you to see how all of your image and exposure
settings will affect your final JPEG photo. It’s why mirrorless cameras are great. Leaving it ON will let you
see what your picture will look like before pressing the shutter. If you only care about what your RAW file
will look like you can turn it OFF.
NATURAL LIVE VIEW
OFF. Cameras that don’t have Preview Pic Effect have this setting, which does the same thing, but when
OFF. If you only care about what your RAW file will look like you can turn it ON.
FRAMING GUIDELINE
Grid 9. There are so many reasons why a simple grid can help your compositions, other than just following
that old “rule of thirds.” Grid 9 is the least distracting and most helpful. Be sure to enable Framing
Guideline in Disp Custom Settings.
DISP. CUSTOM SETTING
I like to enable (check) Framing Guideline, Electronic Level, Histogram, and Live View Highlight Alert.
They’re all off by default.
 The Framing Guideline, as mentioned above, is a very useful compositional tool.
 The Electronic Level is very helpful for landscapes and cityscapes, though it can be distracting and
unnecessary when you’ve switched to street photography and environmental portraits.
 The Histogram is an essential exposure tool.
 The Live View Highlight Alert isn’t available in all Fujifilm cameras. Some people don’t like it, but
I prefer having the warning when my exposure settings will make highlight areas appear pure
white. Those overexposed areas will flash black & white.
 The display with the Framing Guideline,
Electronic Level (green line), and Histogram. If you need to quickly get these out of the way for
composition, you can press the DISP button for a clean display.

Button/Dial Setting
FOCUS LEVER SETTING
ON. Enable that focus joystick for cameras that have it.
FUNCTION (FN)/AE-L/AF-L SETTING
I’m not going to assume to know how you want all of your buttons programmed. But I do have some
recommendations for Fujifilm travel settings you should have quick access to. These are listed in order of
what I’d give priority to. Program them how you wish.
 White Balance: Being able to quickly adjust your White Balance is important in travel
photography, when you’re in and out of different lighting, especially when recording JPEG. Not so
critical if you’re only recording RAW.
 AF Mode: Quickly switch between Point/Wide/Zone/Tracking.
 Focus Area: Set the focus area and size.
 Shutter Type: Quickly enable Electronic Shutter when you want to be silent & discreet. Otherwise,
you should be using Mechanical Shutter since there are some disadvantages to Silent Shutter.
 Focus Check: Magnify your focus area to check your manual focus.
 Self Timer: Set 2 seconds to stabilize the camera before shutter release, or 10 seconds to get in
the photo.
 Wireless Communication: Transfer photos to your smartphone for quick sharing.
How I have my Fujifilm X-T2 button settings for travel. Additionally, I have the Rear Dial set to Focus Check.
SELECTOR BUTTON SETTING
Fn Button. For cameras that have the selector button pad, this gives you more options to program custom
buttons.
ISO DIAL SETTING (A)
COMMAND. Allows quick control for changing AUTO ISO programs by pressing & turning the Command
Dial.
SHUTTER AF
As desired. Turning any of these ON will enable autofocus when you press the shutter halfway. If you’d
rather use the AF-L/AF-ON button on the back of the camera to command autofocus instead of the shutter
(back-button focus), turn these OFF. This gives you better control over focus.
SHUTTER AE
ON. For travel photography, it’s best to lock the exposure when the shutter is pressed halfway. Other
types of photographers are better off not locking the exposure, but this is good for travel photography.
SHOOT WITHOUT CARD
OFF. A good, “hey dummy, you don’t have a memory card installed” reminder.
AF-LOCK MODE
AE/AF Lock. To lock both the focus and exposure.
APERTURE SETTING
AUTO+MANUAL. To give you full control of lenses without aperture rings on the lens barrel.

Power Management
AUTO POWER OFF
1, 2, or 5 Min. I prefer the camera shuts off after 2 minutes of inactivity. I can always wake it back up with
the shutter button. But turning this OFF is a good way to waste your battery!
PERFORMANCE
Standard/Normal. The High/Boost settings are great for sports & action photographers, but for travel
photography, Standard/Normal is perfectly fine. And it’ll make your battery last longer.

Save Data Settings

FRAME NO.
CONT. You’re probably going to be taking a lot of photos and changing memory cards at some point during
your travels. Setting this to Continuous will keep a sequential file numbering system even after you change
memory cards. This helps with organization, rather than having the file number reset to 0000 after
changing a memory card.
CARD SLOT SETTING
As desired. If you have a camera with multiple card slots, you have the option of duplicating everything
to two cards (BACKUP), RAW on one card and JPEG on another (RAW/JPEG), or just recording everything
sequentially from one card to another when the first one is full (SEQUENTIAL). I’ll do SEQUENTIAL unless
I’m doing commissioned work, in which case I’ll use BACKUP.
COPYRIGHT INFO
Author/Copyright Set. Make sure your name is recorded in the file’s metadata! It’s helpful to be able to
prove ownership when your photos are poached.

Connection Setting
BLUETOOTH SETTINGS
Bluetooth ON. This is a very low-power draw connection. You won’t use it all the time, but it’s fine to
leave it on.
AUTO IMAGE TRANSFER
OFF. You don’t want every picture you take to be automatically transferred to your phone. Not only will
it waste your battery, but it will quickly fill up your phone!
SMARTPHONE SYNC SETTING
TIME. It’s useful to have an accurate time stamp. I disagree that all photos should also have location
automatically tagged for many reasons (protecting vulnerable populations & places). Location tagging can
be done manually later on with these methods.
INSTAX PRINTER CONNECTION SETTING
If you have a portable Instax printer like the SP-2, enter its pin number here. Are you not traveling with
an Instax? You should! It’s a great way to make friends and build international relations!
RESIZE FOR SMARTPHONE
ON. Photos will be downsized to 3MP for transferring to your smartphone. This won’t affect the original
file. But it will speed up transfers, saving the battery, and the photos are perfectly sized for social media
posting.
GEOTAGGING
OFF. See my above reasons for keeping geotagging off. I think travel photographers have a responsibility
to respect the places they travel to and the people they meet, and geotagging has made things out of
control. You can do it manually later on.

The Quick Menu

These Fujifilm settings for travel photography are recommendations only
In talking to a number of Fujifilm shooters I’ve come to the realization that not many photographers take
advantage of that Q button on the back of the camera. They don’t know that it’s there, they don’t know
what it’s for, and they don’t know how to use the Q button. Did you know you can program it to customize
what’s in that menu? Did you know you can drastically change the look of the photo you’re about to take
in a matter of seconds?
Here’s how to use that Q button in shooting mode, something that you should definitely consider if you
haven’t already tried it.

What the Q Button Does

Fujifilm’s Q button instantly puts important Image Quality, Shooting, Focus, Flash, and Set Up functions at
your fingertips. No need to go into the main menu. If you need it done now and don’t have a dedicated
dial or button for it, just press Q to get those big boxes right in your face.
The Q menu is customizable with 16 programmable slots. It may seem like it’s only useful for
photographers who take advantage of Fujifilm’s amazing JPEG rendering, but photographers who strictly
shoot in RAW format will find the Q menu useful also.
The Q button is functional in Shooting, Movie, and Playback modes. The same menu is shown in Shooting
and Movie modes, though some functions may be disabled in Movie mode. In Playback mode, the in-
camera RAW converter comes up. This post will only focus on the Shooting mode; you can learn how to
use Fujifilm’s in-camera RAW converter here.

How to Customize the Q Button

You can customize the Q menu by pressing and holding the Q button. Use the joystick or selector pad to
navigate to a slot you want to change, press OK, then go through the list to pick a new function.
The Q menu defaults are largely aimed at photographers who want to customize the style of their photos.
But RAW-only photographers can reprogram this entire menu to take out styling options. JPEG
photographers can also reprogram the styling options to suit their flow.

Press and hold the Q button to program the menu

Not every function is available, but many functions are that photographers commonly change while
shooting.
THE Q BUTTON FOR RAW-ONLY PHOTOGRAPHERS
Could you care less about going into the Q menu to adjust Film Simulation and Color? Did you know you
can program other things that you might care about instead?
Here are some ideas for programming the Q menu if don’t want to mess with any image styling in the
camera. Please keep in mind that these may vary slightly from camera to camera.

You can put all of your focus options on the top line to be able to quickly change things like your
Continuous Focus tracking mode and MF Assist mode, and toggle Face/Eye Detection.
Quickly go into Electronic Shutter and adjust White Balance for a more accurate rendering of your RAW
preview. Keep things like Highlight & Shadow Tone and Dynamic Range in the menu to see what you can
get out of your RAW file, or remind you in a RAW preview how much contrast you wanted the image to
have. By keeping the Film Simulation in this menu, you can quickly switch to Black & White if you plan on
processing it in monochrome, or for situations when removing all color can aid in your composition &
exposure choices.
And of course, you always have the option of choosing “None” for any of these slots, which will help you
remove distractions if you could care less about Dynamic Range, for example.
Assigning some of these functions to the Q menu will free up custom buttons for more frequently used
items.
PROGRAMMING THE Q BUTTON FOR WORKING YOUR JPEGS
If you love your Fujifilm for those awesome JPEGs, you’re going to want a different setup in your Q menu.
I have mine set up in a manner and order that aligns with my workflow when I’m photographing a scene
(which I’ll go through in the next section). But basically I first identify one of my Custom Settings (if
applicable), and then refine that setting based on the character of what’s in front of me. Using the order
of things in my Q menu, this only takes a couple of seconds.
You can see how it’s set up here on my X-T2. Pretty much in the order I do things, with a few miscellaneous
things at the end. If I ever felt the need to upgrade I’d probably add Color Chrome Effect in place of Image
Size.

Using the Q Button for Those Awesome Fuji JPEGs

Here’s where the Q button shines in my opinion. It’s one thing to be able to come up with your own
Custom Settings that align with your photographic style. But to be able to quickly refine those settings in
the moment is what counts.
Here’s what I did on a recent trip to Death Valley. I didn’t really care to process any RAW files on this trip.
I just wanted a good JPEG. Proper use of the Q button made it happen.
1. Identify my custom setting. I had a landscape in front of me, where I’d usually use Velvia, but this
landscape was mostly browns and yellows. I’m not a fan of how Velvia renders these colors (but I love it
for purples, blues, and oranges). So I went to my Travel custom setting that uses Astia as a base film stock,
and this is what I saw through my viewfinder.
2. Set my White Balance. Proper color (how you want it to be, not how the camera sees it) is crucial to
getting a good JPEG. One of the most important – if not the most important – things in my opinion. The
yellow hills threw off my Auto White Balance, cooling down the color too much. So I went to Kelvin White
Balance with a temperature of 5600K, a pretty good temperature for a warm golden hour. I think I added
one point of Magenta in the White Balance Shift too. I switched eyes between my EVF and the scene in
front of me, and the colors were really close.

3. Adjust my saturation. The colors in front of me were really vivid. My Travel custom setting has a Color
value of 0, so I went back to the Q menu and quickly set a Color of +2. Now those warm colors stood out
without being too strong.

4. Check the contrast in the shadows and highlights. This photo was still too flat. I really wanted to make
the layering of the hills stand out. My Travel custom setting has a Highlight Tone of -1 and a Shadow Tone
of +1. I wanted to increase contrast in both of these zones, so I went to the Q menu and set both to +2.
Now I had the contrast that really gave depth to the photo.
What I now saw in the EVF made me happy, what I wanted my photo to look like. Going through the above
steps really only took me a couple of seconds.
Could I just have taken the photo as-is and messed around with it later? Absolutely (and in full disclosure,
I used the Q playback menu to be able to illustrate this post, despite going through the above steps in the
moment).
But taking a few seconds to get it right before making several photos meant that I didn’t have to do it
afterward when I might forget about it or just have too many photos to go through and adjust.
Investing a few seconds before will save you minutes & hours later – all thanks to the Q button!

In short, Fujifilm’s Dynamic Range optimization processes a photo in-camera to decrease the amount of
contrast in the photo.
It reduces the exposure in the bright areas and spits out a JPG with preserved highlights – to a point.

The process can be equated to decreasing the Exposure slider and increasing the Shadow slider in
Photoshop, Lightroom, Capture One, and many other photo processing programs.
It’s not, however, as powerful as those sliders. It’s an immediate solution to dealing with a high-contrast
scene, and it does work well in many situations.
Every camera manufacturer has one – it’s known as DRO in Sony cameras, ALO (Auto Lighting Optimizer)
in Canon cameras, Active D-Lighting in Nikon, and simply Dynamic Range (D-Rng) in Fujifilm cameras.
The Dynamic Range setting is not the same as Dynamic Range Priority found in the X-H1 and X-T3/30. Read
this post for the differences between Dynamic Range and Dynamic Range Priority.

How is D-Rng different from HDR?

HDR – High Dynamic Range – blends multiple photos of different exposures. It is a much more complex
process to merge dark, bright, and middle exposures to come up with one final photo with low contrast
and increased tonal range.
Fujifilm Dynamic Range uses only one single photo and is a much simpler process.
At this time, Fujifilm cameras do not do in-camera HDR processing.

How does Fuji’s Dynamic Range work?

It’s important to have a basic, simple understanding of how D-Rng works in order to use it properly.
D-Rng adjusts the exposure in an attempt to protect the highlights. Meaning, if parts of the scene are
super-bright and washed out, it will underexpose the scene to keep the bright areas from appearing pure
white. This is a good way to get some blue back in an otherwise bright sky, for example.
But how?
1. D-Rng underexposes by reducing the sensor output during the exposure. The sensitivity of the
sensor isn’t dialed down, just the exposure of the RAW capture, using ISO. The image is dark.
2. The camera processor then “pushes” the exposure back up to where it should have been, but
minimizes the push in the highlights area. These adjustments are burned into the JPEG file.
Because the ISO output is lowered, you’ll need a higher ISO when using Fujifilm’s Dynamic Range.

 DR100% is the same as OFF; there are no adjustments to dynamic range.

 DR200% reduces the sensor output by one stop of sensitivity. You need a minimum of ISO320 for
the X-T3/X-T30 and ISO400 for older cameras. You shoot at ISO400 and it captures the photo at
an output of ISO200 (underexposed).
 DR400% reduces the sensor output by two stops. You’ll need to set ISO640 (X-T3 & X-T30) or
ISO800 in order for DR400% to be enabled. Press the shutter with ISO800 and the capture will
happen at an ISO of 200 (really underexposed).
 AUTO D-Rng will assess the situation and use either DR100% (OFF) or DR200%. You must have an
ISO of 400 or greater set to use AUTO D-Rng (or 320 on the X-T3/X-T30). You can still set AUTO
with an ISO of 200 but only DR100% will be utilized.
It’s easiest to see how Fujifilm Dynamic Range works by looking at photos. The differences are subtle, so
I’ve included the histograms.
Please note that these photos use Lightroom to simulate DR400 processing, to illustrate the steps that the
camera processor takes.
DYNAMIC RANGE PROCESSING EXAMPLE
This is the image that reaches the sensor, with the aperture, shutter, and ISO settings that are set on the
camera.

This exposure favors the shadows; the highlights are stacked on the far right while the shadows are slightly
expanded on the left.
1. The RAW file is underexposed by either one (DR200%) or two (DR400%) stops. Highlights are darkened,
shadows are darkened even more.

This is what the photo would have looked like if I favored the highlights and underexposed. The shadows
are stacked on the left and the highlights are spread out.
3. The camera processor recovers the exposure by pushing most of it up one (DR200%) or two (DR400%)
stops, while mostly preserving the highlights.

The exposure is pushed back up, with the bulk of the push happening in the shadows and minimal pushing
in the highlights.
DR400 can look a little flat for me at times, so experiment with it to see if it matches your taste.
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I’m perfectly happy using DR AUTO, letting the camera decide between Off and DR200.
In an extremely high-contrast scene like this, I would prefer to process it in a RAW converter.
But if you don’t mess around with RAW files, or if you need a photo straight out of camera now, D-Rng is
great for high-contrast scenes.
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You can use the Highlight and Shadow tones options for further curve adjustments.
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DYNAMIC RANGE BRACKET
You can also bracket the D-Rng settings. If you go into the main menu and select “BKT/Adv. SETTING”,
then “BKT SELECT”, choose “DYNAMIC RANGE BKT”. Switch the drive mode into BKT and hold down the
shutter.
As long as you have an ISO of 800 or higher set, the camera will make three exposures at all D-Rng levels.

Does D-Rng affect the RAW file?

Yes and no.
For over a year I’ve said “no.” I recently changed that to “yes” after a reader pointed out something
else. My answer now is “both,” and it all depends on the RAW converter you use.
The RAW file is the RAW file, as read out by the sensor before processing. However, the DR settings are
written to the metadata and some RAW converters apply this setting automatically.
I’ve used numerous RAW converters that present the RAW file differently based on the in-camera D-Rng
setting.
FUJI DYNAMIC RANGE IN LIGHTROOM AND CAPTURE ONE
Beware how you have your Import settings in these programs. If you’ve set these programs to apply any
“Auto Adjustments” during import, they will apply the Dynamic Range settings. But there is no slider or
adjustment to let you know that this happened.
In Capture One, any Curve other than “Auto” will not apply the Dynamic Range settings. You can’t apply
the camera’s D-Rng setting manually.
It’s the same story in Lightroom CC and Lightroom Classic. You can only get your camera’s D-Rng setting
applied if you hit “Auto” for the tonal adjustments.
But if you’re processing a RAW file, you’re probably better off doing all of this using other tools like
Highlight and Shadow.

How to use Fujifilm Dynamic Range

Do you expose for the highlights or expose for the shadows?
In most cases, you should expose for the shadows (“to the right”) when using D-Rng. And this is why
I love mirrorless cameras with a histogram in the viewfinder.
The first step in optimizing D-Rng is knowing which setting you should use. Start with DR100%, which
turns the dynamic range optimizations off.
Then adjust your exposure until the bulk of the shadows are in the left 1/3 to 1/4 of the
histogram, not stacked up on the left wall. The highlights will probably be stacked up to the right. This
histogram has some dark shadows but still contains plenty of data.

Now adjust your exposure until the highlights come off of the right wall. Count the clicks – no matter
which method you’re using to adjust exposure (shutter, ISO, aperture, or EV dial), each click is 1/3 stop
with standard Fujifilm settings. So, three clicks is one stop.

One stop (three clicks) – use DR200%. Two stops (six clicks) – use DR400%.
Finally, go back to your original exposure (do the clicky thing in the opposite direction), and then set
DR200% or DR400%.
If you’re counting nine clicks – which is three stops – the scene has too much contrast to properly expose
both highlights and shadows. Just choose which one is more important to you (shadows or highlights)
and expose for that.

DR200 maintains a very natural appearance. Astia film simulation with -2 color, no changes to the shadow
and highlight tones.
PROCESSING RAW PHOTOS WITH THE Q BUTTON
You can kind of change the D-Rng setting using the Q button in playback mode.
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If DR200 appeared too flat for you (unlikely), you can pull it down to DR100 in the Q menu. Unfortunately,
you cannot bump the dynamic range up, only down.
D-Rng isn’t intended to fix all contrast scenes, but you should be familiar with this great tool when
shooting Fujifilm X cameras!

What’s the difference between Fuji’s Dynamic Range Priority and Dynamic
Range?
There’s been some confusion about the differences between Dynamic Range Priority vs Dynamic Range
in Fujifilm X cameras. They have similar names – which is where the confusion is coming from – but they’re
not the same thing.
They’re settings that alter how a Fujifilm JPEG is processed in-camera. And they also show RAW-only
photographers how they might be able to recover dynamic range in post-processing.

What is Fuji’s Dynamic Range?

Fujifilm has a Dynamic Range setting, like many other digital cameras, that help preserve details in bright
highlight areas.
Digital cameras can’t see the wide range of tones, from dark to bright, that our eyes can, and so these
settings are an attempt to get it closer to how we see.
Really bright areas, where your eyes may see details, may come out pure white in the photo. The Dynamic
Range setting “underexposes” only these bright areas so that instead of pure white, you can see some of
those details that would otherwise be lost. Darker shadow areas are unaffected by this underexposure.
HOW DOES DYNAMIC RANGE WORK?
Well, that’s an entire post in itself, and you can read how the Dynamic Range setting works here if you
want to get further into the details.
In one sentence, Dynamic Range uses ISO to “underexpose” the photo and then increases the exposure
of only the shadow areas.
The four Dynamic Range settings:
 DR100: Dynamic Range adjustment is off.
 DR200: Dynamic Range reduces the highlight exposure one stop.
 DR400: Dynamic Range reduces the highlight exposure two stops.
 AUTO: The camera assesses the scene and selects either DR100 or DR200 (no 400).

No Dynamic Range settings applied

Dynamic Range 400 applied to recover the sky

What is Fuji’s Dynamic Range Priority?
Think of Dynamic Range Priority as a “package” setting. Its goal is the same as Dynamic Range, but it
combines both the Dynamic Range setting and the Highlight/Shadow Tone setting to do it.
So Dynamic Range is one setting that does one thing. Highlight & Shadow Tone is another setting that
does another thing. Dynamic Range Priority doesn’t do anything new; it just combines the functions of
Dynamic Range and Highlight/Shadow Tone to further reduce contrast.
There’s no indication of the specific curves used in Dynamic Range Priority – it all happens behind the
scenes.
The four Dynamic Range Priority settings:
 Off: No Dynamic Range or Highlight/Shadow adjustments are made.
 Weak: Moderate compensation. Requires minimum ISO of 320 (400 in X-H1).
 Strong: Extra compensation. Requires minimum ISO of 640 (800 in X-H1).
 Auto: The camera will choose between Off, Weak, or Strong, based on the scene.
When Dynamic Range Priority is in Weak, Strong, or Auto, the Dynamic Range and Highlight/Shadow
Tone settings are disabled since Dynamic Range Priority controls both of those.
The first image is a high-contrast scene with no Dynamic Range or Priority settings applied. See the
captions for settings in subsequent images.

Provia film simulation, no Dynamic Range Priority applied.

Dynamic Range Priority Weak, Provia simulation.

Dynamic Range Priority Strong, Provia simulation
THE MAIN DIFFERENCES BETWEEN DYNAMIC RANGE PRIORITY AND DYNAMIC RANGE
The big takeaway for understanding the difference between Dynamic Range Priority and Dynamic Range
is the “package” concept.
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“Dynamic Range Priority” includes “Dynamic Range.” The regular “Dynamic Range” setting sometimes
isn’t enough for really high-contrast scenes; “Dynamic Range Priority” can further increase dynamic range
by outputting a much flatter image.
Think of Dynamic Range Priority as a boosted Dynamic Range setting.
Which cameras have Dynamic Range Priority?
Dynamic Range Priority was first introduced in the X-H1. It was then included as new features in the X-T3
and X-T30.
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So while all Fujifilm X cameras have Dynamic Range, if you want to get a “Dynamic Range Priority” look in
other cameras, you’ll have to manually control Highlight & Shadow Tones.
When should you use Dynamic Range Priority and Dynamic Range?
DYNAMIC RANGE AND DYNAMIC RANGE PRIORITY WITH RAW & JPEG
First off, as I mentioned in the beginning, these settings permanently alter the JPEG file. But the reduction
in contrast in the JPEG file will give you a little more latitude when processing the JPEG (which should still
only be done cautiously since those files can’t take a lot).
The settings are written to the RAW metadata and some RAW converters may apply these settings to
the file on import, based on your RAW converter settings. But they don’t permanently alter the data
captured in the RAW image. But the image preview – even if you’re only recording RAW – will still reflect
the Dynamic Range/Priority settings.
DYNAMIC RANGE PRIORITY VS DYNAMIC RANGE SITUATIONALLY
Like everything, it’s a matter of personal taste.
Some photographers like really flat, low-contrast photos. And some photographers prefer that look to be
able to add contrast back to a JPEG file. In that case, Dynamic Range Priority may be something you prefer.
If you don’t like flat, low-contrast photos, you may want to avoid Dynamic Range Priority altogether and
only use Dynamic Range at times.
But there are times when both types of photographers encounter really high-contrast scenes, with really
bright brights and really dark darks. Dynamic Range Priority might be a good solution for everyone.
Film simulations & custom settings
Dynamic Range Priority Weak, Provia

Dynamic Range Priority Weak, Pro Neg Hi

Fujifilm’s film simulations will also alter how Dynamic Range Priority is rendered. Some simulations, like
Pro Neg Hi, already have a high-contrast curve. Provia has a curve with a lower contrast. So when Dynamic
Range Priority is applied, the images will look different from both simulations. Experiment with these to
see which looks you prefer the most.
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If you’re in a custom setting where you’ve programmed a Dynamic Range setting and Highlight/Shadow
Tone settings, enabling Dynamic Range Priority will disable these.

Using Kelvin White Balance In-Camera for Better Colors

One of my biggest headaches when transitioning to digital photography back in the early days of digital
was getting the correct white balance.
Shooting on AUTO white balance played a major role in my frustration. Cameras are stupid. Auto doesn’t
always make our lives better or easier. It got it right sometimes and then other times I couldn’t even
recognize the photo.
And worse yet, the precise fine-tuning that became available instantaneously on our computers meant
that I became obsessed with chasing color correction.
And in my recent mindset of not doing any post-processing unless it’s for clients, it became even more
important to me to get the perfect white balance in camera.
I resurrected experimenting with white balance cards, ExpoDiscs, and BaLens lens caps (which will get
their own post soon). Then I came to the conclusion that the easiest way to get correct white balance in-
camera is by setting Kelvin temperatures manually.
I’ve started thinking in analog again and it’s made a huge difference…
Decades ago I’d purchase daylight-balanced film designed for color temperatures of around 5500 Kelvin.
Outdoor photos shot underneath sunlight looked fine. They were consistent. If I were shooting under thick
clouds or in the shade, I’d add a warming filter to compensate.
Simple steps. Consistency every time. It wasn’t rocket science, and it shouldn’t be now.
Kelvin what?
There are a million pages on the Internet dedicated to defining white balance and Kelvin temperatures.
So I’ll paraphrase.
Just think of fire as your light source. Hot fire emits blue light and cool fire emits yellow light, right?
The camera needs to know the temperature of the light hitting your scene so that it can correct for it.
Unless you correct for this, your pictures will have that distracting blue or yellow color cast.
So if our light source is a “cool” 2000K (yellow), we add blue to balance it to neutral white.
Our brain does this automatically and instantaneously so that white things look white. The camera does
this…not as well.
WHY IS WHITE BALANCE IMPORTANT?
White balance affects all of the colors in your photo. Color is a major component of a photographic image,
so getting it right is important.
Color can convey an emotion or it can sell products. With that said you can see why it’s a decision that
might be better off left up to you, not the camera.
THE PROBLEMS WITH AUTO WHITE BALANCE
Your camera has complex algorithms to examine the scene and guess what the correct white balance
correction should be. But it doesn’t know what the lighting source is. Some things can throw it off.
Scenes with strong colors
Whenever there’s a scene with a lot of either cool or warm color themes, the camera can unnecessarily
add warmth or coolness to counteract what it perceives to be a cold or warm light source.
This fall photo has a lot of yellow colors. It was taken with AUTO WB. I’m sure most of you would argue
that this is too blue, a product of the camera thinking all those orange leaves was a cool light source.
This is processed with a custom white balance of 5000K. It was early in the morning, so the normal
temperature would be around 4000K, but the sun was coming through a cloud layer and needed to be
warmed up more. Much closer than AUTO.
The same can happen to tint as well as temperature. Taking photos under tree canopies is one example.
All that green tricks the camera into thinking there’s an unnatural green cast, so it will add a load of
magenta. The resulting photo could have a strong purple cast.
Mixed lighting
The camera doesn’t know what to do in scenes that have a mix of tungsten light, daylight, fluorescent
light, candles, etc. In truth, most photographers don’t either.
But that’s your decision, not the camera’s. Manually adjusting the Kelvin white balance gives you complete
control over how it’s balanced, and it only takes a second.
This scene has a lot of mixed lighting…dusk, shadows, and mixed artificial lighting. The camera can try
to balance it, but probably not to your taste.

White balance of 4000

After increasing white balance to 5000
Inconsistency
Cameras will often set different white balance values between shots taken in the same lighting, just
minutes apart. This requires attention (time) in post-processing, and if you’re shooting in JPEG, photos
that look different from one to the other.
Wouldn’t you rather have them all look the same, even if you later realize it’s just slightly off?
ANOTHER REASON FOR USING KELVIN WHITE BALANCE
I’ve kinda alluded to this a couple of times already.
Unless you’re doing commercial work where accurate colors are essential, or editorial work where it’s
almost as important, the color temperature should be a photographer’s creative decision.
Are you literally chilled to the bone in that snowy mountain scene? Maybe drop the temperature to 4000K
to add blue tones, helping the viewer feel the coldness.
Or maybe the sun just started to peak over the horizon, filling you with warmth. Although the “correct”
color temperature may be 3500K, bumping it up to 6000K will make the viewer feel that sun’s warmth as
well.
Cold can also be used to convey depression and despair, while warmth conveys hope and optimism.
This is “correct” white balance and is actually what the camera did, at around 3500K. But it feels cold.
I was cold until the sun came up and then felt incredible warmth.

After increasing white balance to 6000K, which I commonly do at sunrise instead of the “correct” 3500ish.
SETTING KELVIN WHITE BALANCE IN YOUR CAMERA
Customize a white balance button
Most cameras have programmable buttons. White balance – even if you don’t want to mess with Kelvin
temperatures – is still something that’s important enough it should be accessible without going into
menus.
The first Sony A7 had a dedicated White Balance button. Subsequent models replaced this with a button
labeled ISO, but I reprogrammed it to WB because that’s what I was used to. After switching to Fujifilm, I
programmed this same right pad button to access white balance.

The original Sony A7 had a dedicated WB button. I became so used to it that I programmed every camera
I’ve owned since then to emulate this.
Using Kelvin white balance is easy!
All I have to do is hit the right button and I’m taken to my last white balance setting (usually Kelvin). I scroll
through to the estimated temperature based on the light source, look through the viewfinder, and fine-
tune it. You can usually adjust the magenta/green tint here as well, which may be necessary with some
lighting sources like fluorescent tubes.
This is one of the many advantages of mirrorless cameras – you can see the changes in the viewfinder.
DSLRs can still preview these changes using Live View mode.
It doesn’t take long at all – two or three seconds – and you’re set for the rest of the time as long as your
lighting doesn’t change.
Think analog. Have a starting point for lighting situations you’re commonly in. Add a “warming filter” by
bumping it up 2000K if you need to.

A Kelvin White Balance Cheat Sheet

I sized this White Balance Cheat Sheet to fit on most smartphone screens, so save it and keep it with you.
You’ll probably have a different daylight setting for where you live. It all depends on your latitude, altitude,
time of day, and air quality. Go experiment with it and become familiar with what works for where you
live.
Don’t forget that these aren’t hard-and-fast rules, either. Sunrise and sunset, for example, gives the
temperature of the sun. You may find you want to increase the temperature to 6000K or so for mood.
Wait, don’t all cameras have preset white balances for different situations like sunlight, shade, and
tungsten?
Yes, they do. These values are set by the manufacturer. Most cameras allow you to refine yellow, blue,
magenta, and green shifts since the manufacturer preset probably won’t match real life. But you’re stuck
in whatever Kelvin temperature is preset by them. I’ve just found it more efficient to get in the habit of
rolling to the correct Kelvin temperature every time I power on the camera or enter different lighting.
Give Kelvin white balance a shot and see how you like it. You may find that you personally prefer AUTO,
or that your job requires a white balance card.
Setting a Kelvin temperature is just one way to get the perfect white balance in-camera.
I don’t think it’s given as much of a chance as it deserves, and you may find that you become a big fan of
it. I have.
When you get a hang of it, your RAW photos will require little color correction in post (which we all spend
too much time on) and your JPEGs will look great. It’s a huge timesaver.

“Proper” early morning white balance.

Manually increased white balance to 6500K.

“One of the key advantages of mirrorless cameras over DSLRs is their small size and quiet operation.
They’re already much quieter than traditional DSLRs, and when you use their silent shutter they’re 100%
inaudible. But there are some electronic shutter disadvantages that every photographer should be aware
of before making it their default setting.
I will be using the term “electronic shutter” to refer to the pure electronic shutter for the purposes of silent
shooting, not electronic front curtain or any combinations thereof.
Mechanical shutters vs Electronic shutters
First we need to understand how mechanical and electronic shutters work.
MECHANICAL SHUTTERS
Mechanical shutters protect film in traditional film cameras – a curtain, if you will. One curtain opens to
reveal the film and another curtain quickly follows to cover it. Shutter speed is the time the film is exposed
to light.
Standard shutters in digital cameras operate the same way but have a digital sensor behind them in place
of the film.
And like film, the natural state of the sensor is always “on”.

The faster the shutter speed the smaller the slit between first and second curtains in a mechanical shutter.
Due to mechanical limitations, mechanical shutter speeds can only go so fast. On the Fujifilm X-T3, for
example, the maximum mechanical shutter speed is 1/8000 sec. Still pretty damn fast!
ELECTRONIC SHUTTERS
But technology allows us to manipulate the sensor digitally, something we couldn’t do with film in-camera.
This allows us to get shutter speeds of 1/32000 sec. on that same camera!
Here’s how an electronic shutter works:
1. The mechanical curtain is out of the way and the sensor is on, but not recording.
2. You press the shutter button.
3. Each individual pixel sensor is turned “off,” one row at a time.
4. Those pixels are then turned back “on” for the preset time (shutter speed).
5. The pixel is then turned back “off,” and the light read during that brief “on” time is recorded.
6. Those pixels are then turned back “on” to their natural state, but not recording, when the
exposure is complete.
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That’s the most simplified way of describing the digital circus happening at the time. Again, this process
happens row-by-row in a cascading manner.
Electronic shutters turn each pixel row off – on – off – on, one row at a time, exposing each row for the
shutter speed time.
But hold on…
HOW MUCH TIME DOES IT REALLY TAKE?
With a mechanical shutter, the sensor stays on and is only exposed to light for the time the curtains are
open (your shutter speed). When your shutter speed is 1/500 sec., this entire process happens pretty
close to 1/500 sec., only adding the time it takes for those curtains to fly over the shutter.
When an electronic shutter is used, each pixel row is exposed to light for that same 1/500 sec. But
because each pixel row is turned off & on one row at a time, the entire process can take as much as 1/10
sec. from the beginning of the exposure to the end, dependent on the camera’s processing power.
Now imagine that you’re in a fast-moving train. You’re using the electronic shutter so you don’t advertise
all the photos you’re taking. A train passes on parallel tracks going the opposite direction and you take a
photo at 1/500 sec.
A mechanical shutter would show some slight motion blur, kinda like what your eyes register, because
the entire image is made in 1/500 sec.
But there’s some serious electronic shutter distortion because the entire process is taking 1/10 sec., not
1/500 sec., when that electronic shutter is used.
This is exactly what happened to me, as you can see in this photo. It’s a perfect illustration of how the
light is recorded one row at a time as this train is moving past at a combined speed of 150+ mph. Lines
that should be near vertical are actually very diagonal.

Notice the exaggerated diagonals in elements that should be vertical.

Disadvantages with Electronic Shutter silent shooting
Hopefully, the above photo helps you understand what’s happening when the electronic shutter is used.
Now here’s what those disadvantages are.
ELECTRONIC SHUTTER DISTORTION
This is the most obvious disadvantage of electronic shutters, as seen in the above photo. Moving objects
– cars, propellers, and even people – can look wobbly when using an electronic shutter.
Because, remember, an electronic shutter speed of 1/2000, for example, can actually take up to 1/10
seconds for the entire exposure.
The effect is less noticeable the slower those objects are moving, but speed things up and it’s really
obvious.
This is also called “rolling” effect.
Another train example of “bent” lines that should be vertical, due to electronic shutter use. The homes
beyond have a slower relative movement and are thus more vertical.
ELECTRONIC SHUTTER FLASH LIMITATIONS
Forget it – you can’t use flash with an electronic shutter, in most cameras, for now.
Your flash options will most likely be disabled in your camera when the electronic shutter is enabled (as
with Fujifilm and Sony mirrorless cameras, for example).
Speedlights only have one “brightness”; the power/exposure of a flash is actually dictated by its burst
time, which is typically around 1/400 sec. at the most powerful setting. Imagine leaving that light on for
1/10 sec. – you’d burn it out in no time and whitewash everything!
FLUORESCENT LIGHTING
Some funny things happen when using an electronic shutter under fluorescent lighting.
Fluorescent lights are not continuously “on.” They actually cycle at either 50 or 60 cycles per second,
depending on your country’s power grid.
This can produce some obvious bands across your photo. One row of pixels is recorded when the
fluorescent light is on while the next is recorded as the light cycles off.

Notice the horizontal bands as the light cycles

CAMERA-DEPENDENT FEATURES DISABLED
There may be some other features on your camera that aren’t available when the electronic shutter silent
shooting mode is enabled.
It would be too exhaustive to list every model here; do some research so you’re not surprised to find
something unavailable when it matters.
When to use Electronic Shutter
Some may see it as a marketing gimmick – and to some extent, it is because the disadvantages of
electronic shutters are not readily disclosed. Manufacturers only tout the amazing “silent shooting mode.”
But when you do need silence, such as during speeches, wildlife photography, or when you don’t want to
draw attention to yourself, completely silent electronic shutters are a great tool.
Just remember the following when using an electronic shutter for silent shooting:
 Ensure minimal movement
 Flash won’t be available
 Fluorescent lighting may produce banding
 Silence other features such as focus-lock beeps; your lens autofocus motor is also a limitation
 Know your camera!
Use this feature sparingly, only when you need to. I’ve programmed a custom button on all my Fujifilm
cameras to enable/disable this mode so I can toggle it on-the-fly. When the conditions are right it’s an
amazing feature!
Technological advances may soon introduce us to the “global electronic shutter”, which means that the
entire sensor is read out at the same time. When that day comes these limitations will largely disappear.”