The Sunny 16 Rule

A classic method used in photography to estimate correct daylight exposures without a light meter. It relies on the exposure triangle: Aperture, Shutter Speed, and ISO.

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The Sunny 16 Rule

The Sunny 16 Rule is a classic photographic method to estimate correct exposure in daylight without relying on a camera's light meter. It serves as a reliable guideline for shooting manually or testing old mechanical film cameras.

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The Core Rule

On a bright, sunny day, set your aperture to f/16 and your shutter speed to the reciprocal of your ISO (or film speed).
• ISO 100 film/sensor: Shutter speed 1/100s (or 1/125s) at f/16.
• ISO 200 film/sensor: Shutter speed 1/200s (or 1/250s) at f/16.
• ISO 400 film/sensor: Shutter speed 1/400s (or 1/500s) at f/16.
According to the rule, this combination will yield a well-exposed image of a sunlit subject casting sharp shadows.

Adjusting for Different Weather Conditions

Because lighting conditions change, you can adapt the rule by keeping your shutter speed locked to your ISO and opening up your aperture as the light decreases:
• Bright / Direct Sunlight (Sharp Shadows): f/16.
• Hazy / Weak Sun (Soft Shadows): f/11.
• Cloudy Bright (No Shadows): f/8.
• Heavy Overcast: f/5.6.
• Open Shade / Sunset: f/4.

The Law of Reciprocity

The rule relies on the concept of **exposure stops**. As you change your lighting conditions and open your aperture to let in more light (e.g., moving from f/16 to f/11), you are letting in twice as much light. To maintain the same exposure, you would theoretically need to double your shutter speed (making it faster, e.g., moving from 1/125s to 1/250s.

Because changing conditions dictate opening the aperture wider while keeping shutter speed tied to ISO, the actual brightness scale compensates for the diminishing ambient light outdoors.

Features

• The Sunny 16 Rule For Manual Exposures In Photography - The Sunny 16 Rule, in photography, is a balanced, interdependent relationship between Aperture, Shutter Speed, and ISO, the basic guide for estimating daylight exposures without relying on a light meter.

Album Pages

• Sunny 16 Rule With A Nikon D80, An Album Page - The Sunny 16 Rule, a classic exposure guide for estimating correct exposure settings without a light meter in daylight photography, with a Nikon D80 and vintage Nikon Series E lenses.

Posts

• Sunny 16 Rule, Keeping It Within The Exposure Triangle - Images from a fully manual exposure session shot with a Fujifilm FinePix S2 Pro mounted with a legacy Nikon Series E 35mm f/2.5 lens.
• Nikon D80, Nikon Series E 50mm 1:1.8 - In the community garden, full manual exposures based on the exposure rule, on a 10MP Nikon D80 fitted with a Nikon Series E 50mm f/1.8.
• Nikon D80, Tamron Adaptall-2 SP 90mm 1:2.5 - Images with a Tamron SP Adaptall-2 90mm 1:2.5 Macro mounted on a 10MP CCD Nikon D80, shot fully manual with exposures based on the rule.
• Nikon D80, Nikon Series E 35mm 1:2.5 - The classic photography guide that helps you estimate the proper exposure setting of your camera without the use of a light meter.