The X-M5 can process its own RAW files into brand-new JPEGs, with any film simulation and a full set of adjustments — no computer, no subscription. For a beginner this is the best editing workflow there is, because it teaches you what each control does on your own photographs.
playback > RAW CONVERSION Q = shortcut and preview original never touched
How to do it
- Press playback and find a RAW photograph.
- Press MENU/OK, highlight RAW CONVERSION, press MENU/OK. With a RAW frame on screen, pressing Q jumps straight into the settings list.
- Start with REFLECT SHOOTING COND. so you begin from what the camera actually did.
- Highlight a setting with the focus stick, push right to open it, choose an option, press MENU/OK. Repeat for as many as you want.
- Press Q to preview the result.
- Press MENU/OK to save a new file, or DISP/BACK to cancel. The original RAF is never modified, so you can convert the same frame ten different ways.
What you can change
| Setting | What it does |
|---|---|
| REFLECT SHOOTING COND. | Loads the settings used at capture, as your starting point |
| PUSH/PULL PROCESSING | Exposure adjustment. The single most useful control here — rescue an underexposed frame from real RAW data |
| FILM SIMULATION | The headline feature: re-render as any simulation the camera offers |
| DYNAMIC RANGE / D RANGE PRIORITY | Highlight protection, applied after the fact |
| WHITE BALANCE and WB SHIFT | Change colour temperature entirely, with no quality penalty |
| TONE CURVE | Highlight and shadow tone — recover a bright sky or open dark areas |
| COLOR, SHARPNESS, HIGH ISO NR | Saturation, output sharpening, noise reduction |
| GRAIN EFFECT, COLOR CHROME EFFECT, COLOR CHROME FX BLUE | Grain, and colour depth in saturated areas and in skies |
| MONOCHROMATIC COLOR | Warm or cool tint for ACROS and MONOCHROME |
| FILE TYPE, IMAGE SIZE, IMAGE QUALITY | Output format, resolution and compression — use FINE |
Where a computer still earns its place
In-camera conversion is a global tool. There are no local adjustments, no dodging and burning, no spot removal, no perspective correction, and no cropping beyond the separate CROP menu item. When you need any of those, that is the moment to open software — and not before.
Assignment: one frame, four looks
Take one RAW photograph you like and convert it four times: as shot, then in CLASSIC CHROME, then in ACROS with a red filter, then with PUSH/PULL at +1 EV and the tone curve softened. Compare the four JPEGs. You have just done a full editing session with no computer, and you will have learned what Highlight Tone, Clarity and Push/Pull actually do — on your own photograph, which is the only place that lesson sticks.