◐ Aperture
A smaller f-number means a wider opening: more light and a thinner zone of sharpness. The lens and focus distance also shape that zone.
f/2.8 → f/4 ≈ one stop less lightExposure playground.
Shape the light. Freeze a moment. Find your photograph.
+0.1 EV · BalancedExposure meter · relative to middle tone
Subject
Full-frame · 50 mm
Fixed camera · Focus 6 m
Fixed camera · Focus 6 m
Your camera
Manual exposuref/1.4 · widef/22 · narrow
1/4000 · fast1 s · slow
100 · low12800 · high
Light collected ∝ shutter time ÷ f-number²ISO controls digital gain.
The scene keeps running. Your shot stays below.
What do you want to capture?
Pick a starting point.
Choose a goal, then experiment. Aperture changes depth of field, shutter changes motion, and ISO brightens the digital result without collecting more light.
Your contact sheet No photos yet
One scene. More than one way to see it.
Capture two photos to compare them with the A/B wipe.
Drag across the photograph to compare A and B. Arrow keys work too.
| Setting | Shot A | Shot B |
|---|
◷ Shutter speed
A short exposure freezes motion. A long one records a trail. The subject’s pace stays the same while the camera records time differently.
1/250 → 1/125 = one stop more light✦ ISO
Digital gain brightens the signal and its noise. It does not gather light. A wider aperture or slower shutter can collect more light and improve image quality.
ISO 400 → 800 = one stop brighterWhat this simulator shows (and what it simplifies)
This is an illustrated, fixed-camera simulation with a full-frame sensor, a choice of 24, 35, 50, 85 or 135 mm lenses and focus locked at 6 m. These are idealized lenses sharing an f/1.4–f/22 range, not specific lens products. A longer lens narrows the field of view and enlarges subjects and motion trails; it can crop the flowers or moving subject out of the frame. Changing the lens keeps the camera position and perspective fixed. At the same f-number, shutter and ISO, changing focal length does not change the exposure in this model. Depth of field uses a 0.03 mm circle of confusion. The flowers are at 3 m and the trees at 25 m. The path is simplified to the subject’s focus plane. Choose a slow walker (1.4 km/h), a leisurely cyclist (2.9 km/h), or a slowly driven car (8.6 km/h) on the park access road. These illustrative speeds remain constant when you change camera settings. Selecting another subject starts its pass at the center of the frame. Small-aperture diffraction, camera shake and lens aberrations are not modeled.
Daylight is EV 15, overcast EV 12, golden hour EV 11, and dusk EV 8 at ISO 100. The meter compares rendered brightness with a nominal middle tone; zero is a starting point, not a creative rule. Very bright exposures clip highlights.
Noise is illustrative, not a prediction of any particular camera. Aperture, shutter time and scene light determine how much light reaches the sensor. ISO changes digital gain, amplifying the signal and its noise. Less collected light gives a poorer signal-to-noise ratio, even when raising ISO restores brightness.
Capture keeps a simulated exposure of the preceding shutter interval, without stopping the scene. Pausing holds the subject’s position for comparison; shutter blur still represents their motion. The contact sheet keeps the latest 12 photos in this tab until removed or reloaded; download the PNG to keep a copy with its settings. Capture two photos to open the A/B wipe, then use Set A and Set B to choose what to compare. The comparison slider supports touch and arrow keys. The camera model is digital; film may come later.
Explore further: Nikon on aperture and Cambridge in Colour on depth of field.