Exposure Triangle Visualizer
See exactly how aperture, shutter speed and ISO interact, interactive and free
The exposure triangle is the interplay between aperture, shutter speed and ISO. Together they set how light or dark your photo is. Change one and you see straight away what the other two need to do to keep the exposure balanced.
Result of your aperture, shutter speed and ISO
What is EV?
EV (exposure value) is a logarithmic measure of light. Each step doubles the light: EV 0 is near-dark, EV 10 a normal living room by day, EV 15 bright sun. Every combination of aperture, shutter and ISO lands on one EV value - which is why you can halve shutter speed and open aperture by 1 stop without changing exposure.
Full stops at a glance
| Aperture | Shutter speed | ISO |
|---|---|---|
| f/1.4 | 1/1000 | 100 |
| f/2 | 1/500 | 200 |
| f/2.8 | 1/250 | 400 |
| f/4 | 1/125 | 800 |
| f/5.6 | 1/60 | 1600 |
| f/8 | 1/30 | 3200 |
| f/11 | 1/15 | 6400 |
| f/16 | 1/8 | 12800 |
Each column is a sequence of full stops. One step up or down halves or doubles the light. If you give one stop less light via the aperture, you regain it with one stop longer shutter speed or one stop higher ISO.
Exposure Triangle Visualizer: how it works
The Exposure Triangle Visualizer shows you exactly what happens when you change aperture, shutter speed or ISO. Adjust one value and you see immediately what needs to shift to keep the exposure balanced. Use it to get your head around manual settings, or to think through a specific creative choice before you shoot.
How the three exposure settings relate to each other
Aperture controls how much light enters through the lens and directly affects depth of field. Shooting at f/1.8 lets in a lot of light but gives you a shallow plane of focus. Stop down to f/11 and more of your scene is sharp, but you need to compensate with a slower shutter speed or higher ISO.
Shutter speed determines how long the sensor is exposed to light. A fast shutter freezes motion; a slow one lets movement blur across the frame. ISO amplifies the sensor's sensitivity, which is useful in low light but introduces noise. Getting a good exposure means balancing all three so you hit the look you want without unnecessary trade-offs.
Putting the visualizer to work on real shots
Say you're shooting indoors without flash. Light is tight, so you need a wide aperture and a higher ISO. The visualizer helps you figure out how slow you can push the shutter before camera shake or subject movement becomes a problem.
It's also useful when you're chasing a specific effect. Want to blur a waterfall or freeze a splash? Run through the settings here first. You'll walk onto the location knowing exactly where to start, which cuts down on trial and error when the light is changing fast.
Frequently asked questions
When should I raise ISO instead of opening up the aperture?
When your aperture is already as wide as it goes and your shutter speed is as slow as the shot allows, ISO is the only lever left. Yes, you get noise, but a slightly grainy photo beats a blurry one.
How do I know which shutter speed I need to avoid motion blur?
A reliable starting point is 1 divided by your focal length in millimetres. With a 50mm lens, that means 1/50s at the slowest. For moving subjects, you'll often need 1/500s or faster.
Does it matter whether I get an extra stop of light from aperture or from shutter speed?
For exposure, one stop is one stop regardless of where it comes from. The difference is in the side effect: aperture changes depth of field, shutter speed changes how motion looks in the frame.