Exposure

Exposure – The most basic element of photography
When photographers talk about “exposure,” we simply mean the brightness or darkness of a photo. It seems simple enough to take a photo that is correctly exposed (has the proper brightness or darkness), but in reality it can be quite the trick.
If you’re reading this Photo Basics series, it probably means that you currently shoot on the “Green mode” of your camera–or the automatic setting. That means the camera entirely controls the exposure of the picture. When you shoot on automatic mode, your camera selects an aperture setting, an ISO setting, a shutter speed, and a host of other settings for you.
Automatic can be handy, but it also seriously limits your creative ability to make a beautiful picture.
Want proof that automatic isn’t the best way to shoot? Check out the picture below. On the left, the picture was taken entirely in automatic mode on a Canon Rebel DSLR. That might look okay to you… until you see the picture on the right. Same sunset. Same camera. The pictures were taken only seconds apart. The difference? The picture on the right was taken using manual exposure.