There are a lot of different rules and guidelines in photography to help make the photographer’s job easier. The Sunny 16 Rule is one such suggestion, intended to make reaching perfect exposure in bright conditions easier.
If you do a lot of outdoor photography, you’ll often find that shooting at high sun times (like noon, for example) is particularly difficult and harsh- but Sunny 16 is here to help!
What is the
Sunny 16 Rule?
What is Sunny 16 Rule? The Sunny 16 Rule states that when you are using an aperture (or f-stop) of f/16 on a clear sunny day, you are encouraged to use a shutter speed that is the same as your ISO value. For example, if your ISO is set to 100, you use a shutter speed of 1/100. If your ISO is 400, you use a shutter speed of 1/400, and so forth.
That being said, keep in mind that not all worthwhile, such as an ISO of 3200 shot with a shutter speed of 1/3200 (you’d never need such a high ISO on a bright sunny day).
The Sunny 16 Rule is intended to be a quick photographer’s guide to some simple settings for a good exposure.
Exposure is the amount of light that reaches your sensor.
Too much exposure (overexposure) causes your photograph to be too bright while not enough exposure (underexposure) causes your image to be too dark. This rule aims to help you find the perfect middle.
Expanding on
the Sunny 16 Rule
The Sunny 16 Rule is not an end-all-be-all. There are ways to expand upon this rule. You can use Sunny 16 to calculate the relationship between other aperture values and the shutter speed and ISO values.
Remember about the relationship between aperture, shutter speed, and ISO, also known as Exposure Triangle.
If you increase or decrease any one of these variables, the others must increase or decrease in order to keep the exposure the same. A quick guide to remember how these variables affect exposure is as follow:
- Wide aperture (smaller number) = Lighter image.
- Narrow aperture (larger number) = Darker image.
- Fast shutter speed (larger number) = Darker image.
- Slow shutter speed (smaller number) = Lighter image.
- High ISO (larger number) = Lighter image.
- Low ISO (smaller number) = Darker image.
If one factor goes up by one stop, another factor should go down by one stop. The most common examples are as such:
- f/16 – 1/100s – ISO100 – Basic Sunny 16 Rule
- f/11 – 1/200s – ISO100 – Modified Sunny 16 Rule (aperture +1 stop, shutter speed -1 stop)
On Fujifilm cameras, the basic ISO is 200 and I need to adjust my Sunny 16 Rule to reflect it.
- f/8 – 1/800s – ISO200 – (aperture +2 stops, shutter speed -3 stop, ISO +1 stop)
Variations of
the Sunny 16 Rule
There are variations to
the Sunny 16 Rule that can be applied to different weather conditions. As you
can imagine, you won’t always have a perfectly clear sunny day (even in
Southern California!). These variations come in the form of different
apertures:
- Snowy or sandy conditions: f/22
- Clear and sunny conditions: f/16
- Slightly overcast: f/11
- Overcast: f/8
- Heavy overcast: f/5.6
- Open shade or sunset: f/4
It does not mean that I have to use f/22 when photographing snowy scenes. I more likely to adjust the Sunny 16 Rule to the following numbers: f/11 – 1/800s – ISO200 (aperture +2 stops, shutter speed – 3 stops, ISO +1 stop, Fujifilm remember?)
Once again, the Sunny 16 Rule is a guideline only.
Do We Need
the Sunny 16 Rule with Modern Cameras?
The Sunny 16 Rule originated in film days when cameras did not have internal light meters. In modern times, some consider this rule a relic, but it can still hold true today.
Related: How to Master Histogram in Photography
The Sunny 16 Rule is based on the brightness of light only and not how that light is being reflected by the objects. This light is called incident light (instead of reflective light). This means that the Sunny 16 Rule, not like light meter inside of the camera, cannot be fooled by an object being too bright or too dark on a contrasting background that can fool the system.
You can use the Sunny 16 Rule even with modern cameras to make sure that your light meter inside of the camera is not getting thrown off. This is just some extra insurance on your exposure just in case your meter is wrong.
The Sunny 16
Rule and Lenses
There is a catch to the Sunny 16 Rule with regards to the notion of “sweet spot.”
The sweet spot of a lens is the aperture value (f-stop number) that is considered to produce optimally sharp photos with the least amount of distortion and fringing and the best sharpness. It varies from one lens model to another.
For some lenses, narrowing the aperture to f/16, doesn’t allow the lens to reach its optimal performance because the lens is best used at f/8, for example. Just keep this in mind that it is a good idea to adjust the Sunny 16 Rule to match your lens “sweet spot.”
Alongside this, the Sunny 16 Rule doesn’t follow the aesthetic of shallow depth of field (DoF). Shallow depth of field is when a subject is in clear focus and the background melts away in a blur.
Related: How to Know What Aperture to Use
Shallow depths of field is achieved when the aperture of a lens is at its widest point or lowest f/number. The aperture of F/16 produces a much larger depth of field that means more will be in focus, so it is impossible to achieve a shallow depth of field here.
Sunny 16 Rule: FAQ
What Is the Purpose of the Sunny 16 Rule?
The Sunny 16 rule is designed to give photographers a quick and easy way to determine camera settings – without having to rely on a meter.
So the Sunny 16 rule allows you to walk outside on a sunny day, dial in your exposure, and start shooting beautiful images.
This is especially useful if you don’t have an in-camera light meter, or if your camera’s light meter is getting confused by light or dark objects. The Sunny 16 rule will give you the right exposure, fast, assuming you understand it well and have practiced juggling the different camera settings in your head.
What ISO Is Best for Sunny Days?
That depends! The higher your ISO, the more noise that will be present in your photos, so it’s a good idea to keep the ISO at its base level whenever possible (this is generally ISO 100 or ISO 200).
However, there are times when you need to raise your ISO in order to get a narrower aperture or a higher shutter speed.
So while you’ll generally do well with ISO 100 (or ISO 200) on sunny days, make sure to think about any trade offs, and don’t be afraid to raise the ISO if it gives you the shutter speed or aperture settings you need.
Does ISO Affect Sharpness?
ISO doesn’t affect sharpness directly – instead, it affects sharpness indirectly in two main ways.
First, the higher the ISO, the more noise that’s present in your image. And as noise becomes more obvious, you lose apparent sharpness.
Second, if your ISO is low, you can’t get away with using a fast shutter speed (which will result in a blurry photo). The faster your shutter speed, the more likely it is that you’ll get a tack-sharp image. So make sure you pay attention to the ISO, even when thinking about image sharpness!
Is the Sunny 16 Rule Valid for Digital Photography?
Yes, absolutely! The Sunny 16 rule is valid for all cameras that use standard settings, both film and digital.
While digital in-camera meters are pretty powerful these days, it’s still nice to have simple settings you can fall back on! Plus, the Sunny 16 rule relies on light from the sun rather than light reflected off the surrounding objects, and this keeps your exposures spot-on even when you’re faced with tricky lighting scenarios.
How Does the Sunny 16 Rule Affect the Depth of Field?
The Sunny 16 rule doesn’t directly affect depth of field.
Instead, it states that the aperture should be f/16 on a sunny day – but that you can adjust the aperture, as long as you adjust the other camera settings to compensate.
Now, if you were to use an f/16 aperture all the time, your photos would have a very deep depth of field.
But you’re free to widen your aperture to f/8, f/5.6, f/4, and even f/2.8, which would decrease the depth of field for a more artistic effect.
Note that you would need to decrease the ISO or increase the shutter speed to compensate for a wider aperture.
Final Thoughts
on the Sunny 16 Rule
In conclusion, the Sunny
16 Rule is more of a baseline that you can build upon or detract from depending
on the equipment that you use or the shooting conditions you are in. This is
meant to be a guideline to ease your work as a photographer, but it is not
mandatory!
