Nifty Fifty wrote:
I wonder how a preset can possibly achieve the look of a particular film, given that film has a defined and consistent white balance under all conditions, whereas digital white balance is not standardized, neither during the photographic capture (from the sensor) nor during processing (from the editing software). In my opinion, these "scientifically created" film simulations mislead the unsuspecting buyer. However, I'm happy to be proven wrong if someone is capable of doing so.
Or is an integrated white balance fixed and binding in the preset?
I think that it is maybe better to think of these presets as being “flavors” of interpretation that might be “inspired by” those original film stocks than to think of them as actually being digital equivalents of them.
I also sometimes wonder why the great interest — other than perhaps nostalgia on the part of folks who liked the past — in emulating the way photography looked decades ago, especially when we now have the power in our cameras and software to produce whatever sort of look we want without reference to old antecedents.
YMMV.
BTW, the image above of the people with the snowball comes closest to what I remember Kodachrome images looking like when I used it.
Nifty Fifty wrote:
I wonder how a preset can possibly achieve the look of a particular film, given that film has a defined and consistent white balance under all conditions, whereas digital white balance is not standardized, neither during the photographic capture (from the sensor) nor during processing (from the editing software). In my opinion, these "scientifically created" film simulations mislead the unsuspecting buyer. However, I'm happy to be proven wrong if someone is capable of doing so.
Or is an integrated white balance fixed and binding in the preset?
I think that it is maybe better to think of these presets as being “flavors” of interpretation that might be “inspired by” those original film stocks than to think of them as actually being digital equivalents of them.
I also sometimes wonder why the great interest — other than perhaps nostalgia on the part of folks who liked the past — in emulating the way photography looked decades ago, especially when we now have the power in our cameras and software to produce whatever sort of look we want without reference to old antecedents.
YMMV.
Mar 06, 2026 at 03:19 PM
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