still learning

my latest photography lesson included a portion about depth of field. I have seen those pictures taken, mostly portrait type pictures, of a child or an object, or maybe a flower or something, and the subject is super clear while the background is a blur. I have coveted those photos. The subject just POPS. Well, I learned how!! I am super excited about it and didn't realize exactly what I had discovered until I had my camera out shooting some things for the assignment. I had jotted down where to set each setting, for aperture, shutter, etc. but I didn't really know what I was doing. Afterwards I discovered the application of all those settings and why I produced the shot I produced! My first day shooting in Manual! I have a long way to go, for sure, but I am pretty excited about learning all of this and discovering my camera's capabilities. I was so clueless and SO unworthy of this great camera!
Here's my favorite (I did have a pretty great subject :-) ) shot of my "shallow depth of field" assignment.