Together, aperture, shutter speed and ISO make up what is called the exposure triangle. And your job, when you shoot manual, is to make those three settings work together to give you a properly exposed image with the desired affect.
Let’s review-
Aperture: A low F-stop is a large opening that allows alot of light but provides a shallow depth of field. A high f-stop is a small opening that limits the amount of light but provides a deep depth of field where more of your image is in focus.
Shutter speed: A slow shutter speed exposes your image to light for a long period of time but results in motion blur. A high shutter speed gives exposes your image to light for a very short period of time and freezes motion.
ISO: A low ISO means a low sensitivity to light and crisp, clean images. A high ISO means a higher sensitivity to light but a noisier, grainier image.
I created this cheat sheet to help me (and you!) remember how each of these settings affects an image.
This is just the tip of the iceberg but once I had a little bit of an understanding of the exposure triangle I had enough confidence to get out there and try to shoot in manual mode.
I’d love to hear if these last few weeks have inspired you to try to use your DSLR more or try shooting in manual!
And for all you mom’s out there who are interested in joining an awesome community of professional and hobbyist women photographers I highly recommend heading over and checking out Clickin Moms. Click on the logo below so they know I sent you 
I’ll be back next Friday with a new topic but in the mean time get out there and capture your life!
