When starting in photography, you’re going to encounter many terms you might not have heard before. One of those is the exposure triangle.

The exposure triangle will control how light or dark your image is, and whether it’s in or out of focus. Therefore, it’s one of the most important concepts you need to learn.

In this article, you’ll learn about the exposure triangle and each of its different components. You will also discover how you can control the triangle in your camera and get the best possible pictures.

What Is the Exposure Triangle?

The exposure triangle is a concept relating to the balance of light in each of your pictures. To maintain the triangle, you must balance three key areas:

  • ISO
  • Shutter Speed
  • Aperture

If one of the three areas is set too high or too low for the situation you’re photographing, you’ll need to make adjustments in the other two.

Below, is a breakdown of the three main exposure triangle components and how they affect your image’s outcome.

ISO

In its simplest form, ISO relates to your camera sensor’s light sensitivity. This feature determines how bright or dark your picture will be, and you’ll need to make adjustments depending on when and where you’re shooting.

When setting your ISO, you need to consider:

  • The time of day
  • Whether you’re shooting inside or outdoors
  • The amount of lighting around you, whether that’s natural or artificial

The higher your ISO is, the brighter your photo will be. Below, are some examples of when you can use certain ISO settings. Keep in mind that these are not set in stone rules and should serve purely as a guideline.

  • ISO 100: Harsh daylight or internal lighting
  • ISO 200 to 400: Overcast days
  • ISO 400: Golden hour
  • ISO 800: Nighttime photography and darker indoor settings

It’s important to remember that you’ll have more grain in your picture when setting your ISO at a higher number. To avoid a lot of grain, it’s a good idea to keep your ISO at or below 800 where possible.

With that being said, bumping your ISO to 1,000 and above is beneficial in some settings. Experiment with different settings and environments, and decide on the best settings for you.

Shutter Speed

If you’re a new photographer with little camera experience, shutter speed is the exposure triangle area you’re likely most familiar with. Your shutter speed determines how long your camera’s shutter is open for each time you take a photo.

Related: Key Photography Tips for Absolute Beginners

If you set your shutter speed for a longer time, more light will get into your camera. When you see photos of streaking lights from traffic, they have often been set for around five seconds upwards.

Shutter speeds are measured in fractions of seconds before going into full seconds. A fast shutter speed is considered anything upwards of 1/500.

Using a fast shutter speed is recommended when photographing in environments where your subjects are moving or if you’re shooting handheld. Examples include sporting events, street photography, and portraits.

Here is an example of a photo taken with a fast shutter speed:

Street photo taken with fast shutter speed

On the other hand, you should use a slower shutter speed when your camera is still, and when you’re shooting in low-light conditions. For example, you would use a slow shutter speed to photograph a landscape at night or take photos indoors on a rainy day.

Here is an example of a photo taken with a slow shutter speed:

A slow shutter speed photo

Below are some examples of when you might use different shutter speeds:

  • Five seconds: Blurring moving water and light
  • 1/250: Portrait photography
  • 1/400: Street photography in a busy area
  • 1/500: Bright-light situations, such as shooting on a sunny day at noon
  • 1/1000: Sporting events

Again, these should be considered a general guideline rather than something to follow religiously. If you want a street photo showing people’s movement, then a slower shutter speed is a better option.

Getting blurry images is a common frustration when choosing different shutter speeds. Depending on your shutter speed, you might encounter two different types of blur.

The first kind of blur is camera blur. This happens when the camera moves while you’re taking the picture. You can fix this by using a stable surface or tripod. You can also turn on your camera’s image stabilization features if your device has these.

The second kind of blur is motion blur. You’ll get motion blur when your subject moves while the picture is taken. If you don’t want motion blur, you’ll need to raise your shutter speed.

Aperture

Aperture determines the depth of focus in your image. In your camera, you can control this setting using the f-stop. Your aperture sensor will either expand or contract, depending on the camera’s setting.

Your aperture settings will depend on the type of picture you’re going for. If you want a photo where everything is in focus, such as a mountain landscape, you need to let less light into your camera.

This image was taken with a higher f-stop:

a photo taken with a higher f-stop

When trying to create a more dominant subject and blurry background, the opposite is true. Below, is a photo taken with a shallower depth of field:

photo with shallow depth of field

When your camera f-stop numbers are lower, less of your image will be in focus. On the flip side, a higher f-stop number will put more in focus. Some ideas for using different focal lengths are below:

  • f/2.8 to 4: Portrait photography
  • f/5.6 to 6.3: Some street photography settings
  • f/8 to 11: Landscape photography

When setting your aperture, you should remember that your image will start to lose sharpness beyond around f/11. You will rarely, if ever, need to use f/16 and above.

Why Is the Exposure Triangle Important?

Without light, you cannot take a photo. The exposure triangle offers a guideline on how much light should come into your camera without going to extremes either way.

If you undercompensate with the exposure triangle, your picture will be underexposed. You can try to rescue the photo in an editing software, but you'll often find a lot of unwanted grain when you do.

Related: Skill-Building Photography Exercises That Really Work

In contrast, overcompensating your image will result in an overexposed picture. Trying to bring the brightness down is even more difficult in post-production than the opposite.

Understanding the exposure triangle is also essential for achieving the exact results you want with your photography. If you’re going for a more moody, eerie look, you can lower your ISO.

And if you’re going for a more bright and airy picture, you can do the opposite, but manipulate the other settings to work in your favor.

How Photographers Can Control the Exposure Triangle

Whether you have a DSLR or mirrorless camera, there are plenty of ways you can control the exposure triangle. Let's go over some examples.

Shoot in Manual Mode

If you want full control over your camera’s settings, shooting in Manual Mode is your best bet. When you take pictures with manual settings, you can change your ISO, shutter speed, and aperture as you please.

Shooting in Manual Mode is difficult if you’re a beginner, but you’ll learn a lot more about how your camera works. In the long run, you’ll be able to take better pictures than if you stay in Auto Mode.

Related: The Best Online Photography Courses for Beginners

To find Manual Mode, you’ll need to look for the M in most cameras’ settings, or on the dial.

Use Exposure Compensation

Exposure composition allows you to change your photo’s brightness without changing the ISO, shutter speed, or aperture.

Exposure compensation is usually marked with a +/- button on your camera. You’ll often find this setting on the dial on top of your camera, or on a switch next to your viewfinder.

Top of Fujifilm Camera Buttons

If you want to increase the brightness of your photo, Scroll in the + direction. For darker images, scroll downwards.

Note, though, that exposure composition does not work in Manual Mode. When using Manual Mode, you'll need to adjust the shutter speed, ISO, or aperture to change the lighting.

Set Your White Balance Before Taking Pictures

When you first get your camera, you will typically be in auto white balance mode. But often, the color settings might be different from what you want.

To change your white balance, find the setting for this in your camera. Usually, you’ll need to go into the main menu and find the shooting settings tab. Take a picture of a white surface, like paper, in your current location.

In the white balance setting, set this picture as the basis for your white balance.

Get Better Photos and Control the Lighting in Your Camera

Photography is an exciting hobby or career choice with plenty to learn. While the exposure triangle might appear confusing to begin with, understanding the concept isn’t difficult once you get to grips.

When you’re out with your camera next, keep in mind how your ISO, shutter speed, and aperture settings will affect your picture. Experiment with different combinations to see which work best for your photography style and the camera you have.