Metering without a meter
The sunny 16 rule says that in bright sun, at f/16, the shutter speed is roughly one over the film speed. With ISO 400 film that is f/16 at 1/500. It is a good anchor, but northern light rarely looks like the light the rule was written for.
Adjustments I actually use
- Bright but hazy sun, soft shadows: open one stop
- Overcast with visible shape to the clouds: open two stops
- Heavy overcast or open shade: open three stops
- Low winter sun, subject side-lit: open one extra stop on top of the above
Why it works with negative film
Black-and-white negative film tolerates a couple of stops of overexposure with little harm, while underexposure loses shadow detail for good. When in doubt, I give it more light. The negatives come out a little dense, and the scans are still fine.