Trying to find the right settings

I've been playing with my camera and took this at the beach last week of Butter. I had this mini photo session with her and it was lots of fun, but I also realized how hard it is to be a photographer. My friend Kacy takes amazing pics. She will be doing a session with us in November, I can't wait. I have a Canon S3 IS, I'm hoping I can upgrade to an SLR in the Spring.