Exposure Value - Tabulated Exposure Values

Tabulated Exposure Values

An exposure meter may not always be available, and using a meter to determine exposure for some scenes with unusual lighting distribution may be difficult. However, natural light, as well as many scenes with artificial lighting, is predictable, so that exposure often can be determined with reasonable accuracy from tabulated values.

Table 2. Exposure values (ISO 100 speed) for various lighting conditions

Lighting Condition	EV100
Daylight
Light sand or snow in full or slightly hazy sunlight (distinct shadows)a	16
Typical scene in full or slightly hazy sunlight (distinct shadows)a, b	15
Typical scene in hazy sunlight (soft shadows)	14
Typical scene, cloudy bright (no shadows)	13
Typical scene, heavy overcast	12
Areas in open shade, clear sunlight	12
Outdoor, Natural light
Rainbows
Clear sky background	15
Cloudy sky background	14
Sunsets and skylines
Just before sunset	12–14
At sunset	12
Just after sunset	9–11
The Moon,c altitude > 40°
Full	15
Gibbous	14
Quarter	13
Crescent	12
Moonlight, Moon altitude > 40°
Full	−3 to −2
Gibbous	−4
Quarter	−6
Aurora borealis and australis
Bright	−4 to −3
Medium	−6 to −5
Outdoor, Artificial Light
Neon and other bright signs	9–10
Night sports	9
Fires and burning buildings	9
Bright street scenes	8
Night street scenes and window displays	7–8
Night vehicle traffic	5
Fairs and amusement parks	7
Christmas tree lights	4–5
Floodlit buildings, monuments, and fountains	3–5
Distant views of lighted buildings	2
Indoor, Artificial Light
Galleries	8–11
Sports events, stage shows, and the like	8–9
Circuses, floodlit	8
Ice shows, floodlit	9
Offices and work areas	7–8
Home interiors	5–7
Christmas tree lights	4–5

1. Values for direct sunlight apply between approximately two hours after sunrise and two hours before sunset, and assume front lighting. As a rough general rule, decrease EV by 1 for side lighting, and decrease EV by 2 for back lighting
2. This is approximately the value given by the sunny 16 rule.
3. These values are appropriate for pictures of the Moon taken at night with a long lens or telescope, and will render the Moon as a medium tone. They will not, in general, be suitable for landscape pictures that include the Moon. In a landscape photograph, the Moon typically is near the horizon, where its luminance changes considerably with altitude. Moreover, a landscape photograph usually must take account of the sky and foreground as well as the Moon. Consequently, it is nearly impossible to give a single correct exposure value for such a situation.

Exposure values in Table 2 are reasonable general guidelines, but they should be used with caution. For simplicity, they are rounded to the nearest integer, and they omit numerous considerations described in the ANSI exposure guides from which they are derived. Moreover, they take no account of color shifts or reciprocity failure. Proper use of tabluated exposure values is explained in detail in the ANSI exposure guide, ANSI PH2.7-1986.

The exposure values in Table 2 are for ISO 100 speed (“EV₁₀₀”). For a different ISO speed, increase the exposure values (decrease the exposures) by the number of exposure steps by which that speed is greater than ISO 100, formally

For example, ISO 400 speed is two steps greater than ISO 100:

To photograph outdoor night sports with an ISO 400–speed imaging medium, search Table 2 for “Night sports” (which has an EV of 9), and add 2 to get EV₄₀₀ = 11.

For lower ISO speed, decrease the exposure values (increase the exposures) by the number of exposure steps by which the speed is less than ISO 100. For example, ISO 50 speed is one step less than ISO 100:

To photograph a rainbow against a cloudy sky with an ISO 50–speed imaging medium, search Table 2 for “Rainbows-Cloudy sky background” (which has an EV of 14), and subtract 1 to get EV₅₀ = 13.