This interactive reference shows the full exposure value (EV) grid at ISO 100: every common aperture across the top, every common shutter speed down the side, and the resulting EV in each cell. Below the grid, a second table tells you what real-world lighting each EV corresponds to, turning the chart into a complete metering card.
How it works
Exposure value is defined entirely by the aperture and shutter speed:
EV = log2(N² / t)
where N is the f-number and t is the shutter time in seconds. Doubling the light (opening one stop or doubling the shutter time) lowers the EV by 1; halving it raises the EV by 1.
Because the relationship is logarithmic, a one-stop change in aperture is exactly cancelled by a one-stop change in shutter speed. That is why diagonals across the grid hold a constant EV — for example f/16 at 1/125 s, f/11 at 1/250 s, and f/8 at 1/500 s all sit at EV 15 and expose identically. They differ only in depth of field and motion rendering.
At ISO 100 the EV number also maps directly to scene brightness, which is why the same chart doubles as a lighting guide.
Lighting conditions
The reference table pairs each EV with the lighting it represents, drawn from the standard exposure-value lighting guide:
- EV 15 is bright sunlight with hard shadows — the Sunny 16 anchor point.
- EV 12 is heavy overcast with no shadows.
- EV 6 is a typical well-lit interior.
- EV -2 is a full-moon landscape.
To use the chart at a different ISO, subtract log2(ISO / 100) stops: ISO 400 gives two extra stops of sensitivity, so a daylight scene that meters at EV 15 can be captured with the EV 13 column of settings.
Tips
Type your scene’s EV into the highlight box and the grid outlines every aperture/shutter pair that produces it — pick whichever pair gives the depth of field or shutter speed you want. Print the page for a pocket metering card that needs no battery. Every value is computed live in your browser from the EV formula.