Sony Classic Negative | It Gets Even Better

Showcasing Sony Classic Negative Film Simulation Recipe - Best Picture Profile Settings

If you read my Last Article on Sony Classic Negative, you know I've replicated the Fuji Classic Negative for Sony Camera only using the Picture Profile Menu.

Accuracy is good, but not as close as I'd like it to be on this profile, since we are limited by settings we can adjust inside the camera. I would say the overall accuracy is around 50-60%. It's decent, but not quite there yet, and I will try again to bring it closer if possible, but I believe we've hit the limits for the in-camera editing here.

To successfully copy this film simulation we need more complex tools like HSL (Hue Saturation Luma) to adjust each color individually, because the Classic Neg shifts and tweaks colors to the limits to render a quite unique kind of look, which can be copied only in higher end cinema cameras or in post processing software.

This is the first time I feel it's simply impossible to copy a certain look by at least 70-80% accuracy, and it brings up some frustration. That is because the Classic Negative is my absolute favorite film simulation from Fuji, and I wanted so badly to bring it to my Sony camera without any post process editing. But some things are not meant to be.

The Sony Classic Neg has an interesting Film Aesthetic, but it's different from Fuji's, unfortunately. :[

Check how nicely this profile renders skin tones, with de-saturated deep Greens and slight Blue shifting in the shadows. It's clear that this picture profile renders beautiful colors, but I would like to see if I can bring it even closer to the Fujifilm Classic Negative film simulation.

A couple indoor shots. Inside pictures might be too warm looking, so you might want to lower your Temperature by 700-1500 Kelvin to balance out the ambient light.

It's definitely a very crunchy Sony Film Simulation, but I see many users loving it after the first couple tries.

I believe there is a solution to any problem, if only I try. That's probably how I ended up creating Sony Film Simulations, because I couldn't make myself believe Sony colors suck. So I gave it a try, and after 1 year of testing I came with the Initial 8 Sony Film Simulations which ended being a success. Besides creating multiple Original Sony Film Simulations, I also replicated with high accuracy multiple Fuji Film Simulations only by using the Picture Profile Settings.

To be honest with you, with the Sony Classic Negative I might be a bit too optimistic. The Fuji Classic Negative is quite a complex film simulation, which needs HSL adjustments to fully replicate. So maybe it's not possible to replicate only with available tools in the picture profile menus, so why am I trying?

Maybe because it was similar when replicating the Kodachrome 64. It was 2 months of continuous hell trying to push Sony colors closer to the real Kodachrome 64, and finally, it came out very nicely, but it took a hell of a work.

So I would like to try again, and keep pushing those limits with Sony Picture Profiles, and see if it's possible to get even closer to the same look without color grading?

Even in its current form, Sony Classic Negative yields nice looking images, but it's just a different beast compared to Fujifilm. So I went out and took some shots, experimenting with settings on color and picture profile menu to see how can I get Sony as close as possible to Fuji. Even if I don't succeed, I will give this picture profile a little twist to make it look outstanding with unique colors, making it an original Sony Film Simulation. Something, we Sony users can be proud of.

Let's check the results of the new recipe.

This profile renders subtle but deep tones and colors, giving a feeling of nostalgia.

Some other Sony Film Simulations that have this bitter-sweet feeling are

Blue Velvet- Cinestill 50D, Kodachrome 64 V2, Ektar 100 & Kodak Ultra Max 400

It's definitely a very crunchy Sony Film Simulation, but I see many users loving it after the first couple tries.

Shot by the river using the High frame Rate of the RX100 VI with Classic Negative film recipe. 1000 frames per second, crazy how powerful this little camera is.

The RX100 VI has a 1 inch sensor, so it's going to be very noisy, but I don't mind it. Actually, I am enjoying it, as it gives a film like texture. Check it out.

It's not bad at all. Obviously would be nice to have the option to adjust in camera the grain size and texture.

Please Sony, add Grain effects to your new cameras, together with option adjustments for HSL, (Hue vs Hue & Hue vs Sat). That would enable us to create more complex Picture Profiles and take Sony colors to the next level.

All these were shot on the RX100 VI with Sony Classic Neg Film Simulation Recipe

The Sony RX100 VI is my new favorite camera. Bought it for around 450$, an absolute steal deal. No regrets. Very capable camera with a 1 inch sensor and pocket sized body.

So fun to use.

After playing a lot with the settings today, I came with a new version of the recipe that comes slightly closer to Fuji's Film Simulation, but still, there are clear differences.

The limits I found in rendering this profile is that the red are not close enough to orange, blues should be closer to Teal/Cyan and Yellow is too accurate to real life, while Fuji's are heavily shifted towards Orange. It's not possible to shift all these colors without post-processing. So congrats Fuji on creating such a unique film simulation!

It's definitely my favorite.

Color Checker comparison between

Fujifilm Classic Neg vs Sony Classic Negative Film Recipe

As you can see from the Color Checker comparison between Sony vs Fujifilm Color, the main differences are the Greens being heavily desaturated and shifted towards Teal, while Yellows and Reds shifted closely in the Orange area.

Although I cannot replicate the Classic Negative look close enough to call it a success, I still like the images coming out of this film simulation, and I will keep it as part of the Sony film simulation collection.

How do you feel about this New Sony Classic Negative?

Let us know in the comments what Film Simulation you'd like to see next.

:D

Sony Film Simulation Recipes -PDF

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