Manual mode lets you choose aperture and shutter time. Check whether Auto ISO is enabled: if it is, the camera can still adjust ISO. With fixed ISO, all three controls stay where you set them until you change them.
Start with your priority
Choose a shutter time for the movement, then an aperture for the depth of field you need. Set ISO for useful image brightness while watching important highlights. The meter is a starting point, not a command that every scene should reach zero.
Try it
Begin with a still subject in steady light. Adjust one setting at a time and predict the effect before taking a photograph. Then try a moving subject. Manual mode is a tool for control, while aperture priority or shutter priority can also be useful.
By Joseph Hubbard, photographer and artist at Hubbard.ART.
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