The best photography cheat sheets
A cheat sheet lives in your bag and works with a dead phone. The catch: almost every one you'll find is generic — the same exposure triangle diagram, over and over — when what you actually need are numbers for your camera.
Last reviewed 2026-07. We include tools that beat ours — if a competitor is the right answer, we say so. ShootSm.art is made by Future Vision Concepts.
What to look for
- Generic or tuned to your camera? The same shutter advice isn't right for every body.
- Will it survive a bag? Printable beats an app when your battery's dead.
- Does it cover the scenes you actually shoot, or just the exposure triangle again?
At a glance
| Tool | Best for | Platforms | Pricing |
|---|---|---|---|
| ShootSm.artours | A cheat sheet that's actually about your camera | Web · installable (PWA) | Free tier · Pro subscription |
| Etsy / blog printable cheat sheets | A cheap, pretty card for the bag | PDF · print | Free to a few dollars |
| Camera-maker quick guides | Your camera's specific controls | Paper · PDF | Free |
| Cambridge in Colour | Understanding the concept, not just the number | Web | Free |
ShootSm.artours
Generates a printable cheat sheet tuned to your exact camera — your controls, your crop, your clean-ISO ceiling — plus scene settings and a checklist.
Strengths
- Free, and personalized to your body rather than generic
- Includes your brand's own terminology (Servo AF vs AF-C) and your crop reach
- Print it or save as PDF; there's a fuller Field Guide too
Limitations
- You need to pick your camera to get the tuned version
- Requires a browser to generate (then it's paper)
Etsy / blog printable cheat sheets
Downloadable PDF cards, usually the exposure triangle plus common scenes.
Strengths
- Often beautifully designed
- Huge variety — many are free
Limitations
- Entirely generic — no idea what camera you own
- Quality and accuracy vary wildly
Camera-maker quick guides
The manufacturer's own quick-start card or in-box guide.
Strengths
- Authoritative about your model's buttons and menus
Limitations
- Explains the camera, not photography — no scene settings
Cambridge in Colour
Free web calculators (DOF, diffraction, print size) alongside excellent tutorials.
Strengths
- The tutorials around the calculators are genuinely superb
- Free and ad-light
Limitations
- Not maintained as actively as it once was
- No personalization to your gear
Common questions
Is there a photography cheat sheet for my specific camera?
Yes — ShootSm.art generates one free: pick your camera and it builds a printable sheet with your brand's focus/metering terms, your crop factor and effective reach, your clean-ISO ceiling, plus scene settings and a pre-shoot checklist. Most cheat sheets you'll find elsewhere are generic.
What should a good photography cheat sheet include?
Scene-by-scene starting settings (shutter/aperture/ISO/focus), an exposure reference, focus modes, an ISO-by-light guide, and a short pre-shoot checklist. If it's only the exposure triangle diagram, it's decoration.
Are printed cheat sheets still useful?
Very — paper needs no battery, no signal, and no unlocking. That's exactly when you need it: cold hands, fading light, phone dead.