It’s great to try and shoot on manual as much as you can! I think one of the things your missing here is ISO. I noticed this because in both images your ISO was set at 1600.
ISO is a fancy way of saying how sensitive your camera is. The higher the number the more sensitive your camera is. Of course that comes with more noise. So in your image of the dog up close you can’t even really see any depth of field because the noise of the image has kind of taken over.
Also be aware that your lens will have a minimum focusing distance. If you get too close to something your lens may be unable to focus on it. This may be the case here as the dog doesn’t appear to be in good focus.
Don’t worry about doing anything wrong, it just takes practice to keep it all in mind.
You had the right idea here with your fstop though. F 2.8 should lead to shallower depth of field all else equal.
http://photographyicon.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/IMG_0012.jpg
Date Time Original: 2015:09:28 03:44:26
Exposure Time: 1/15
F Number: f / 2.80
ISO Speed Ratings: 1600
Metering Mode: CenterWeightedAverage
Flash: Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode
Focal Length: 5mm
White Balance: Auto white balance
Make: Canon
Model: Canon PowerShot SX20 IS
Exif Version:
Flashpix Version:
Color Space: 1
Pixel X Dimension: 4000
Pixel Y Dimension: 3000
CompressedBitsPerPixel: 3
Maker Note: 734
User Comment: 3036
Date Time Digitized: 2015:09:28 03:44:26
Shutter Speed Value: 3.91
Aperture Value: 2.97
Max Aperture Value: 2.97
Focal Plane X Resolution: 16393.44
Focal Plane Y Resolution: 16393.44
Focal Plane Resolution Unit: 2
Sensing Method: One-chip color area sensor
File Source: DSC
Custom Rendered: Normal process
Exposure Mode: 1
Digital Zoom Ration: 1
Scene Capture Type: Standard
InteroperabilityIFDPointer: 3300
ExifIFDPointer: 240
Orientation: 1
YCbCr Positioning: 2
X Resolution: 180
Y Resolution: 180
Resolution Unit: 2
Date Time: 2015:09:28 03:44:26
Image Description:
In this (outside) picture the shutter speed is 1/1000th of a second. This is actually a relatively fast shutter speed. This is the opposite of what the assignment called for.
http://photographyicon.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/2015-09-28-16.48.23.jpg
Date Time Original: 2015:09:28 16:48:23
Exposure Time: 1/1000
F Number: f / 8
ISO Speed Ratings: 1600
Metering Mode: CenterWeightedAverage
Flash: Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode
Focal Length: 5mm
White Balance: Auto white balance
Make: Canon
Model: Canon PowerShot SX20 IS
Exif Version:
Flashpix Version:
Color Space: 1
Pixel X Dimension: 3840
Pixel Y Dimension: 2160
CompressedBitsPerPixel: 3
Maker Note: 734
User Comment: 3036
Date Time Digitized: 2015:09:28 16:48:23
Shutter Speed Value: 9.97
Aperture Value: 6
Max Aperture Value: 2.97
Focal Plane X Resolution: 15737.70
Focal Plane Y Resolution: 11803.28
Focal Plane Resolution Unit: 2
Sensing Method: One-chip color area sensor
File Source: DSC
Custom Rendered: Normal process
Exposure Mode: 1
Digital Zoom Ration: 1
Scene Capture Type: Standard
InteroperabilityIFDPointer: 3300
ExifIFDPointer: 240
Orientation: 1
YCbCr Positioning: 2
X Resolution: 180
Y Resolution: 180
Resolution Unit: 2
Date Time: 2015:09:28 16:48:23
Image Description:
I feel like you could use some more work here and you may want to try this assignment again. Don’t worry though, it will all make sense with more practice.
Take a look at this page on the exposure triangle. It might help you refresh some things in your mind.
You just have to work at it!
Keep practicing.