Will the same ISO, aperture, and shutter speed give the same exposure on digital and film cameras?

Asked 6/15/2018

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I want to preview a shot digitally before recreating it on film. If I use the same focal length, ISO, aperture, and shutter speed on both cameras, should the film shot be exposed the same as the digital one? Does crop vs full-frame sensor size affect exposure? If exposure may differ in practice, what’s the best way to get similar results without relying entirely on the film camera’s meter?

Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

Photography Stack Exchange contributor

8y ago

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Even in theory there are differences in the way digital sensors and films record light that makes ISO values only approximate. But these differences are usually fairly subtle and theoretically exposure should be more or less equal if you use the same ISO, aperture, and shutter time. For more about this, please see: Why are these film photos brighter than digital photos taken at the same time with the same settings?

In practice there are even greater differences that may affect each of these basic components of exposure.

ISO: Since digital sensors have a linear response to varying brightness levels of light and film has a more logarithmic response, comparing an ISO value for a particular digital sensor and an ISO value of a particular film is only approximate. This value is usually closest in the mid-tones but will vary more in the highlights and shadows.

Keep in mind that not all films with a specific ISO/ASA rating have the exact same response curves. Some may have deeper blacks and brighter highlights for higher contrast while others may have lighter shadows and more restrained highlights for less overall contrast. These curves can also be manipulated by modifying exposure times and then compensating by altering the developing time. That's basically what Ansel Adams' 'Zone System' was about.

Compound that with digital cameras that actually use different ISO values internally than they are labeled in the settings. They usually do this specifically to preserve highlight detail in the raw image data collected.

So digital cameras tend to have their actual ISO sensitivity for a particular setting rounded up. On the other hand, film manufacturers tend to round the sensitivity of their films down to the next nearest "standard" value.

With exposures for film longer than about 1 second the Schwarzschild effect, sometimes referred to as reciprocity failure, must be taken into account. The sensitivity of films at longer exposure times is not linear. This must usually be taken into account when exposing film for longer than one second. This can very significantly impact exposure times, and it varies by the specific film in question. The manufacturer of your film should be able to provide information regarding how much compensation is needed for longer exposures.

Aperture (Av): Different lenses labeled with the same aperture value may not be equally bright. This is partly due to differences in transmission loss through the various elements of each lens. But at maximum aperture it is also due to the values of each lens being rounded to the nearest or (usually) next wider standard f-number.

The differences due to transmission loss are carried across the entire range of aperture settings. The differences between stated and actual aperture when wide open tend to be reflected in successive apertures settings as well in order to preserve the differences in stops between the maximum aperture setting and the others. Sometimes the further one moves from the maximum aperture the more "honest" the actual f-number is with regard to the actual diameter of the entrance pupil relative to the lens' focal length. By the way, focal lengths are also approximated and rounded to the nearest "standard" number in the most favorable direction!

Here are the actual transmission measurements for three different Canon "L" lenses with an "f/4" maximum aperture. Even when using each of the respective lenses on the same camera, the exposure values would need to be adjusted slightly to give the same brightness of exposure.

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The EF 24-70mm f/4 is essentially an "honest" f/4 lens throughout its zoom range. The EF 17-40mm f/4 is one-third stop slower at about f/4.4 and the EF 24-105mm f/4 is two-thirds stops slower at around f/5.1.

Shutter Time (Tv): Like the other two basic components of exposure, shutter times are only approximate. Even the numbers we assign to them are rounded to easy to use values.

Of ISO, Av, and Tv, the latter is usually most consistent across digital and film platforms if the camera has an electrically controlled physical shutter or a purely electronic shutter. If the film camera has a mechanically controlled focal plane shutter or iris shutter, all bets are off as to which exposure components (ISO, Av, Tv) will be most and least accurate.

Originally by user15871. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

user15871

8y ago

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In theory, yes: the same ISO, aperture, and shutter speed should produce roughly the same exposure on any camera. Sensor or film size does not change exposure; crop vs full frame mainly affects framing, not brightness.

In practice, expect some variation. ISO ratings are only approximate, and real cameras, lenses, shutters, and meters are not perfectly identical. Film and digital also respond to light differently, so a match won’t always be exact even with the same settings.

The differences are usually small, though, so using your digital shot as a starting point is reasonable. To improve consistency:

  • Match ISO, aperture, and shutter speed as closely as possible.
  • Use the same focal length for similar framing.
  • Trust the film camera’s meter if it has one; it’s generally fine.
  • If you’re unsure, bracket exposures or use exposure compensation.
  • If lighting stays constant, you can often meter once and keep the same settings for multiple shots.

Film generally has more exposure latitude than digital, so slight metering errors are often recoverable.

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