Four: Things I Learned Outside of School

For the next few Tuesdays I am linking up with Lauren at Life. Love. Lauren and Tiffany at The Austin Family Diary for their Tuesday Topics. This week's topic is "Four: Things I learned outside of school."

One: There is good in everyone and you have something to learn from everyone. I fully believe this- everyone from birth to death has some good inside of them and there is something I can learn from them.
Two: The value of family, friends, and a golden retriever. I can't imagine life without my family and friends, they seriously mean the world to me. Life with a golden retriever is fabulous - yes, she drives me nuts sometimes however - she lights up my world. Family, friends, and my sweet puppy make my world, I am thankful for the ways in which I have been blessed by their presence in my life.
Three: The joy of being outside: camping, running, biking, relaxing in a hammock, paddling, skiing, snowshoeing, etc. I can't imagine life without my opportunities to be outside, the chance to step back and away from the chaos of the world and to just be.
Four: The importance of saying "no." The world is full of amazing opportunities and experiences and over and over again in school I was reminded how important it was to do EVERYTHING or so it felt like. Over the years I have learned the importance of saying "no" yes, I am sure I have missed out on some great experiences, but I also have gotten some outstanding opportunities because I wasn't booked from the moment I woke up until the moment I went to bed. I have learned what it means to sit in silence and watch the sunset over the lake as the loons fish and my puppy snuggles in next to me.

Nikon D60

Photography. It seems to be all the craze these days, or really with the development of digital cameras we are no longer tied to the days of expensive film and developing it. We all have cameras, our phones, point and shoot, and varying degrees of more complicated cameras. I have one on my iphone, I have a point and shoot (a waterpoof Nikon that I love), and a Nikon D60. Some of my friends are REALLY good at photography and always seem to come up with really good shots.

I love pictures, I love the process of taking pictures, creating photobooks, and looking through photobooks. I need to learn how to take better pictures. I need to learn what the different shutter speeds do and how to adjust it appropriately on my camera. I need to learn what the different settings are for. I need to learn about aperture and how to adjust mine to the right setting. I need to learn about the different formats and how to get to them on my camera. I need to take photos in a million different settings so I don't get dark and blurry photos. I want to learn how to shoot amazing photos without having to do a ton and a half of editing. 

I am slowly but surely attempting to learn. Trying to gain not only a better eye for pictures but also really learn the ins and outs of my camera, learn the diverse settings. Here's to lots of online reading and challenging myself to take photos, thousands of photos, to learning how to capture what my eyes see.

Anyone have any tips on how to master the settings on their camera?

Anyone have any tips on helping me know what settings my camera should be at when shooting in different settings?