Monochrome film recipe based on the work of Daido Moriyama

I’ve been exploring the work of some black and white photographers, looking for inspiration about film recipes. A well known artist from Japan is Daido Moriyama, who shoots a striking black and white style.

In a number of his images, I notice deep blacks, burned highlights and the mid tones crushed to a narrower dynamic range. He also tends to use heavy grain. This is the style I have looked to reproduce in this film recipe.

The main settings in this recipe are the -2 highlights, paired with +4 shadows and strong grain. This is combined with a strong positive clarity setting, which will slow down saving, but is a part of the overall effect. Leave this on if you can tolerate the delays in saving. There’s also a gentle toning, which is in keeping with many of his images.

Daido Moriyama Film Recipe Settings

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Daido Moriyama Film Recipe: Sample Photos

Community Photos

Photos taken with the Daido Moriyama film recipe by members of the Film Recipes community.

Photos by Sabrina Magnusson

Photos by David Forsdike

Photos by Bearded Drone Guy

Photos by Tirzo Flores

Photos by Darren Urda

Photos by Markovich Markovich

Photos by Henry Indo

Photos by David Simpson

Photos by Gunther Geeraerts

Using the Daido Moriyama Film Recipe

Each film simulation recipe has its own character and style. These features mean recipes are more suited to certain situations, or when seeking a particular look. Here are the categories that Daido Moriyama has been tagged with.