The best on-line resource for learning about manual settings I've found is this one:
http://www.goingmanual.com/photo/
Pea-n-me: I'm not sure how to get a decent moon photo with anything else in the scene ... to actually get the moon in focus you need to manually run the focus to infinity, which means anything in the foreground is going to look really out of focus. My own attempts, when there were branches in the way, looked pretty bad....
denise5374: low-light AND sports are a tough mix ... probably the hardest subject matter for a camera like the S3. It just doesn't have the noise-free high ISO (1600+) that you need for this type of photo ... it's what DSLRs are for!
The best you can do with the S3 is switch to manual mode; wide apertures (small numbers), ISO as high as you can stand the noise (400 is still pretty good but 800 is almost useless without noise-reduction PP software).
Pea-n-me: I have a question for anyone who can answer: when in Tv, Av or M mode, how do you change the ISO and such from there? I also don't "get" how you use manual on this camera. I have more reading and practicing to do.
1st question: in all of the "creative" modes (P, Av, Tv, M, C), adjust the ISO with the ISO button (second down along-side the LCD). Each click takes it one stop and cycles through all available settings before going back to Auto.
Getting Manual: set the aperture with the up-down on the omni-selector. set the shutter speed with the left-right on the omni-selector.
Controlling the exposure is the "heart" of photography ... ensuring that the "right" amount of light reaches the sensor (or film). Aperture, Shutter Speed and ISO are how you control the amount of light getting into your camera.
Aperture
Small aperture numbers means a "bigger hole" which means more light. The smaller the aperture value, the shallower the DOF, too; which gets you the nice background blur you see in good portraits. The larger the aperture, value the deeper the DOF; allowing objects to be in focus in front and behind your subject.
Shutter Speed
Shutter speed is what controls how long the shutter is open. The longer it's open, the more light you get. It's why you need to set shutter speeds in the 1 sec. to 15 sec. range to get a nice picture at night while in full daylight you need to see it to 1/1000sec.
ISO
ISO is sort of a "measure" of the sensitivity of the sensor (or film). Each stop lets in (generally speaking) twice as much light as the previous 100, 200, 400, 800 (doubling the amount of light, each time).
By manipulating the settings, you get the correct exposure. Need more light? Slow down the shutter or increase the aperture (smaller number) or up the ISO. Need less light? Speed up the shutter, decrease the aperture (bigger number) or lower the ISO.
The S3 (in Manual mode) will tell you what it "thinks" your exposure settings by displaying a little number in the corner of the EVF. 0 means "standard" or what the camera would think of as a good exposure. +2 is very overexposed (too much light) -2 is very underexposed (too little light). If they turn red, they're even worse than +2/-2. Smaller values let you know how close to "optimal" you are....
Does this help?
Got sick of me asking didn't you?
Just kiddin' - thanks!
Like I (or someone else) hits the back button accidentally and the ISO is too high and pictures are grainy. Or heads are cut off. Or macro pictures are blurry. I just don't know what I'm doing wrong each and every time. 
I'm not exactly dumb when it comes to technology. But somehow this is escaping me. I printed up all the website instructions linked in posts 118 tho I must admit I haven't gotten to read them yet (just started home renovations) and I have to send for the book and CD linked in post 120 - maybe seeing it in action will help. I really wish I took a photography class in high school so this would be more second nature. 
