VSCO Just Reopened the Film Vault for Lightroom

Before VSCO was a mobile editing app with 200 million downloads, it was something different — a company that made the most respected film emulation presets in professional photography. VSCO Film packs were the industry standard for photographers who wanted their digital RAW files to carry the tonal character of analog stock. Wedding photographers, portrait shooters, and editorial teams built entire visual identities around those presets.

Then in March 2019, VSCO pulled the plug. The Lightroom presets were discontinued, the company shifted entirely to its mobile app ecosystem, and a generation of photographers lost access to tools that had become integral to their workflow. Some hoarded installer files. Others moved on to alternatives. The Lightroom presets became something of a legend — widely referenced, frequently requested, no longer available.

On February 10, 2026, VSCO brought them back.

What's in the pack

The VSCO Film 02 pack is a curated collection of film stock emulations designed for RAW editing in Adobe Lightroom Classic, Lightroom, and Photoshop via Adobe Camera Raw. The pack includes both color and black-and-white presets built around specific analog stocks, several of which are no longer manufactured.

The film stocks represented include Fujifilm Neopan 1600 — a high-speed black-and-white film discontinued years ago — along with Fujifilm Superia in 100, 400, 800, and 1600 speed variants. Superia, once one of the most popular consumer color negative films in the world, is no longer in production. The pack also includes Ilford Delta 3200, a fast black-and-white stock still available but rarely used in digital emulation, and multiple variants of Kodak Portra 160 and 400 in the original NC (Natural Color), UC (Ultra Color), and VC (Vivid Color) formulations that Kodak has since consolidated into a single Portra line.

Each preset includes standard, plus (+), double-plus (++), and minus (–) variations that adjust contrast and tonal behavior — giving photographers granular control over how aggressively the emulation is applied.

What has changed since 2019

The presets are not simply the old files re-uploaded. Zach Hodges, the photographer and VSCO evangelist who created the original presets, updated Film 02 to support modern cameras. RAW processing profiles are camera-specific — a preset calibrated for a Canon 5D Mark III sensor will not render identically on a Sony A7 V sensor without adjustment. The updated pack accounts for cameras released in the seven years since the originals were discontinued.

VSCO worked with Hodges to produce a step-by-step installation tutorial covering Lightroom Classic, Lightroom, and Adobe Camera Raw, acknowledging that many photographers who might use these presets were not using Lightroom when the originals were available and may need guidance on the installation process.

The standard presets work with any camera supported by Lightroom, including RAW and JPEG files. Camera-specific profiles, where available, provide more precise color matching.

Access and limitations

VSCO has not announced whether this is a one-time release or the beginning of a broader return to desktop presets. The language around "limited time" suggests scarcity, though whether that means weeks or months is unclear. VSCO has also not announced plans to release other packs from the original Film series — Film 01, 03, 04, 05, 06, or 07 — though community demand for the full collection is intense.

Why this matters now

The timing is not accidental. Film aesthetics have never been more popular in digital photography. Fujifilm cannot keep the X100VI in stock partly because of its film simulation modes. Camera manufacturers across the board are adding film-inspired color science as a headline feature. Social media platforms are saturated with film-look content. The demand for authentic analog rendering in digital workflows is at an all-time high.

At the same time, actual film stock is becoming harder to obtain. Fujifilm has discontinued multiple stocks and raised prices on those that remain. Kodak has restarted some production but availability is inconsistent and prices have climbed substantially. For photographers who want the look of film without the cost, scarcity, and unpredictability of shooting physical stock, high-quality digital emulation is the practical alternative.

VSCO Film presets occupy a particular niche in this space. Unlike simple Instagram-style filters that apply a uniform color shift, VSCO's presets were engineered to replicate the specific characteristics of each film stock — its grain structure, highlight rolloff, shadow behavior, and color channel response. The presets do not just make an image look vintage. They attempt to reproduce how a specific emulsion would have responded to the same scene.

What photographers should consider

If you were a VSCO Film user before 2019, the return of Film 02 is worth your attention. If you are new to these presets, a few practical notes are worth keeping in mind.

Presets are a starting point, not a destination. The best results come from applying a preset to a well-exposed, well-composed RAW file and then fine-tuning. The VSCO presets are deliberately subtle — they do not transform a bad image into a good one. They add tonal character to images that already work.

The Pro subscription requirement means this is not a free download. VSCO Pro currently costs .99 per month or .99 per year, which includes access to the full mobile app feature set, Lightroom integration, and now the Film 02 pack. Whether that subscription is worth it depends on how much of the VSCO ecosystem you actually use.

The limited-time framing creates urgency, but do not let that pressure a decision. If the pack disappears and you did not grab it, alternatives exist. Mastin Labs, RNI Films, and several other companies make high-quality film emulation presets for Lightroom. VSCO's are respected for good reason, but they are not the only option in the category.

What makes this release notable is less about the presets themselves and more about what it signals: VSCO is re-engaging with professional desktop workflows after years of mobile-only focus. Whether that engagement deepens — more packs, regular updates, integration with emerging tools — remains to be seen. For now, the film vault is open. It may not stay open long.