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Hello, .

When I teach any of my group photography classes or private lessons I like to draw the distinction between exposure and tonality.

Exposure is an intent of composition that utilizes our camera and lens controls, specifically aperture and shutter speed.

Tonality describes the brightness of photographs.

According to those who use it, the Exposure Triangle's three sides comprise aperture, shutter speed, and ISO.

But here's the rub, ISO is not an element of exposure.

And since ISO is not an element of exposure, it can't be included as a side of an "Exposure Triangle."

Of course, these three photographic controls work together to control the brightness/tonality of our photographs.  

But since exposure only consists of two components, aperture and shutter speed, and we need three sides to make a triangle, the two components of exposure, aperture, and shutter speed alone ain't gonna cut it to make an "Exposure Triangle."

However, there is a Tonality Triangle.

Tonality describes the brightness and darkness of a photograph or specific areas of a picture.

We control tonality with three things.

Specifically, we control tonality with aperture, shutter speed, and ISO.

And each can make up a side of a "Tonality Triangle."

We can use them separately or together in various combinations to make our picture brighter or darker.

Understanding the difference between exposure (aperture and shutter speed) and light sensitivity (ISO) is essential.

Exposure controls how much light falls onto the light-sensitive material we use to create our photographs.

Light-sensitive material is anything we use, film, digital sensors, etc, to record the light that creates our photographs.

ISO describes the light sensitivity of light recording materials and can be viewed as a compositional element that controls tonality.   

In photography, ISO Sensitivity is a standard number the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) sets.

A higher ISO number indicates more sensitivity and requires less exposure.  

A lower ISO number indicates less sensitivity and requires more exposure.  

Light-sensitive material is a digital sensor, film, or other material that records light.

However, since aperture, shutter speed, and ISO all control tonality, we can consider them different sides of a "Tonality Triangle."

Whether we use a digital or film camera when we think of aperture, shutter speed, and ISO as controlling tonality instead of exposure, we demonstrate a firm understanding of the differences between the exposure controls and light sensitivity controls and how each, together and separately, controls the tonality brightness of our pictures.

I'll help you be a better photographer—study and practice photography with me. 

Currently scheduled classes are below.

Smaller classes mean better learning, so class sizes are limited to 5 participants plus me.

But smaller classes also mean spots fill up quicker, so sign up soon. 

And what if the timing doesn't work for you in any of my scheduled group classes? Private in-person or online lessons suited to your schedule are always an option. 

And remember, we learn and improve by doing, so practice making at least one picture daily.

That's all for now; thanks for reading! 

Sam