Free Tool
Exposure Triangle Calculator
Pick your lighting, frame rate, and aperture. The calculator finds the correct ISO — and tells you when you need an ND filter.
1 — Scene Lighting
2 — Frame Rate
3 — Aperture
How the Exposure Triangle Works
ISO — Sensor Sensitivity
Amplifies the signal. Low ISO (100–400) produces a clean image. High ISO (3200+) introduces grain and noise. Raise it only when aperture and shutter are already at their limits.
Aperture — Lens Opening
Controls depth of field and light intake. Wide apertures (f/1.4–f/2.8) blur the background and let in lots of light. Narrow apertures (f/8–f/16) keep everything sharp but admit less light.
Shutter Speed — The 180° Rule
For video, shutter speed is locked to 2× your frame rate. This creates natural motion blur. Changing shutter speed to fix exposure breaks the look of your footage — use ISO or aperture instead.
ND Filters — The Override
Neutral density filters reduce light without affecting colour or depth of field. Essential for shooting wide apertures outdoors. Variable NDs cover 2–8 stops; fixed NDs (ND4, ND8, ND64) are more consistent.