aperture
Aperture is found in the lens. The wider the aperture, the more light let into the lens. If the lens is open wide, the image will have a brighter focus and a blurrier background. If the lens is open less, the image may be darker and have detail in the background and foreground.
white balance
White balance is what the camera determines the "white" in each photo. hite balance is found in the menu, then you will find 6 different white balance settings. These are what change how the "white" looks. Sometimes the white looks blue sometimes it looks yellow.
shutter speed
Shutter speed is what determines how long the shutter will stay open. How long the shutter is open helps determine how much light is let into the lens and photo. Shutter speed is found in a fraction, the smallest fraction leaves the shutter open the least amount of time. the biggest fraction leaves the shutter open for a longer time, which means you will want to use a tri-pod so the photo is in focus.
iso
Iso is determined by the brightness of an image. Iso starts at 100, then doubles until 3200/6400. When the number is low you need more light to take the photo. As the number gets higher you don't need as much light to take the photo. When the Iso is higher the photo will also be more grainy or noisy.
ISO 100 ISO 200 ISO 400
ISO 800 ISO 1600 ISO 3200
high contrast
contrast is very important in photos. Your eye is drawn to the very dark elements and the very light elements in a photo. you want the in between also so that the dark and light elements stand out in the grey. Photos need these elements to make them interesting and make people want to look at them.