Home > Gear > Page updated February 8, 2010
Sweet Sixteen
Perfect exposure for many is like that feeling of nirvana one experiences upon reaching their sixteenth birthday.  So it's essential when using rather unforgiving slide film to have a time tested method for successfully hitting that mark time after time.

By employing the venerable Sunny 16 rule you too can reach that state.

Simply put Sunny 16 is a photographer's rule of thumb which states one should set the camera's shutter speed equal to the value of the (ISO) film speed and the lens aperture to f/16 when photographing a subject fully lit by the sun on a normal, bright sunny day.

Since all photo opportunities certainly don't occur with just these conditions,  you might find useful the table presented below which expands on this rule and provides guidance for achieving perfect exposure when creating images of subjects in any light and weather.

 
 
Table Of Contents
  • Sunny 16 Rule
  • Caveats
Image
 
Condition Notes
Front Light Side Light Back Light
Near/Far		 Front Light w/ Polarizer  
Light Sand or Snow -1 250 125 underexpose & use polarizer filter
Airplane (4k+ ft) -1  
Rainbows -1
-1/2		 underexpose to deepen colors
Airplane (2-4k ft) -1/2
Bright or Hazy Sun 125 60 30/60 distinct shadows
Weak or Hazy Sun +1 60 weak shadows
Cloudy Bright +2 30 no shadows (sun is behind clouds, but position is known)
Heavy Overcast or Open Shade +3 15 thick clouds (sun position is unknown)
subject in shade but lit by large area of unobstructed sky
Skyline (immediately after sunset) 8
Skyline (10 minutes after sunset) 2 also ... neon & other lighted signs, brightly lit stage shows, spot lit circus or ice show
c 1"
d 2"
Home Interior @ Night (bright lighting)
Home Interior @ Night (average lighting)
g
Fireworks (32" f/16)
8" f/8		 expose for 8 seconds (use Bulb and cover lens between bursts)
Lightning (64" f/16)
8" f/5.6		 expose for 8 seconds (use Bulb and cover lens between streaks)
 
Niagara Falls
(bright colored lights)
Niagara Falls
(dark colored lights)