A one-page cheat sheet for the settings and rules of thumb that come up every time you pick up a camera. Start with the exposure triangle, then use the scenario table when you are out shooting.
At a Glance
Exposure triangle
Aperture, shutter speed, ISO
Default mode
Aperture priority (A or Av) with Auto ISO
Safe handheld shutter
1 divided by your focal length, or faster
Best light
Golden hour and open shade
The Exposure Triangle
Setting
Controls
Lower number or slower
Higher number or faster
Aperture (f-stop)
Depth of field and light
Wide open (f/1.8): blurry background, more light
Stopped down (f/11): more in focus, less light
Shutter speed
Motion and light
1/30s: blur, more light
1/1000s: frozen action, less light
ISO
Sensor sensitivity
ISO 100: clean, needs light
ISO 6400: noisy, works in the dark
Each full stop doubles or halves the light. Trade one setting for another to keep the same exposure: open the aperture one stop and you can speed up the shutter one stop.
Starting Settings by Scenario
Scenario
Mode
Aperture
Shutter
ISO
Portrait
Aperture priority
f/1.8 to f/2.8
1/200s or faster
100 to 400
Landscape
Aperture priority, tripod
f/8 to f/11
Whatever it needs
100
Street
Aperture priority
f/5.6 to f/8
1/250s or faster
Auto
Sports and wildlife
Shutter priority or manual
Widest available
1/1000s or faster
Auto
Low light handheld
Aperture priority
Widest available
1/60s or faster
1600 to 6400
Night sky
Manual, tripod
Widest available
15 to 20s
1600 to 3200
Macro
Aperture priority
f/8 to f/16
1/125s or faster
200 to 400
Moving water (silky)
Shutter priority, tripod
f/11 or higher
0.5 to 2s
100
Composition Rules of Thumb
Rule of thirds: place the subject or horizon on a gridline or intersection instead of dead center.
Leading lines: roads, fences, and rivers pull the eye toward the subject.
Framing: use doorways, branches, or windows to wrap the subject.
Negative space: leave room around the subject so it can breathe.
Eye level and eyes in focus: for people and animals, focus on the nearest eye.
Simplify the background: move a few steps and a pole stops growing out of someone’s head.
Light
Light
When
Character
Golden hour
First and last hour of sun
Warm, soft, long shadows
Blue hour
Just before sunrise or after sunset
Cool, even, moody
Open shade
Any sunny day
Soft and flattering for portraits
Overcast
Cloudy days
Even light, good for color and detail
Midday sun
Around noon
Harsh, so look for shade or shoot backlit
Focus and Metering
Single point AF (AF-S): still subjects.
Continuous AF (AF-C): anything that moves.
Back button focus: separates focusing from the shutter so you can lock focus and recompose.
Evaluative or matrix metering: a good default.
Spot metering: backlit subjects and high contrast scenes.
Exposure compensation: dial +1 for snow and bright beaches, minus 1 for dark scenes the camera is over-brightening.
File and Workflow Basics
Shoot RAW when you plan to edit, since it holds far more highlight and shadow detail than JPEG.
Expose to protect the highlights. Shadows can be lifted in editing, blown highlights cannot be recovered.
Check the histogram instead of trusting the screen brightness.
Keep white balance on Auto for RAW, or set it to match the light for JPEG.
Notes
Handheld shutter speed rule: 1 divided by focal length. A 50mm lens wants 1/50s or faster, a 200mm lens wants 1/200s or faster. Image stabilization buys you a few extra stops, moving subjects do not care about it.
Modern cameras handle high ISO well. A sharp, noisy photo beats a clean, blurry one every time.
On a crop sensor, multiply the focal length by about 1.5 for the equivalent field of view.
Wide apertures on close subjects have razor thin focus. If eyes look soft, stop down a notch.
Clean the front of the lens before you shoot. Most mystery haze is a fingerprint.