Free Exposure Equivalence Calculator

One exposure, many settings. Enter what your meter says, then find every aperture/shutter/ISO combination that captures the identical amount of light — the exposure triangle, without the guesswork.

Your current exposure

Aperture (f/)

Shutter speed

ISO

What to change (equivalence)

New value

Result

Exposure value (EV100)

—

same light, any combo

EV at your ISO

—

scene brightness

Equivalent setting

—

identical exposure

💡 Reading: your exposure is . To keep the same exposure after your change, use . The camera will show the same brightness — only depth of field, motion blur, or noise change.

Equivalent exposure pairs (same EV, full frame reference)

Aperture	Shutter (at ISO 100)	EV100
f/1.4	1/1000 s	10
f/2.0	1/500 s	10
f/2.8	1/250 s	10
f/4.0	1/125 s	10
f/5.6	1/60 s	10
f/8.0	1/30 s	10
f/11	1/15 s	10
f/16	1/8 s	10

Each row captures the same amount of light (EV 10): closing the aperture one stop halves the light, so the shutter must double in length. This is the exposure triangle in its purest form. For the full explanation see the exposure triangle guide.

Exposure value FAQ

What is exposure value (EV)?

EV = log₂(N²/t) — a single number describing how much light reaches the sensor for a given aperture N and shutter time t. EV100 is the EV at ISO 100. Higher EV = brighter scene or more light collected.

Do equivalent exposures look identical?

Brightness: yes. But each parameter changes the image: aperture changes depth of field, shutter changes motion blur, ISO changes noise. Equivalence lets you trade one for another while keeping brightness constant.

How does ISO fit into EV?

ISO doesn't change the light — it changes amplification. The scene-brightness value is EV100 − log₂(ISO/100): at ISO 400 (2 stops), the same scene reads as 2 EVs lower, which is why you can shoot at 1/4 the shutter speed or 2 stops narrower aperture.