What could be wrong me or camera?

I have just started an online photography course I've been enjoying it but the teacher said for night photography or early morning use these settings ISO 100 f 22 or 32 if your camera has it for real slow shots I tried this but just getting black or very little image if any at all on these settings I have just brought a new Nikon D3100 with kit lens 18 55 the battery was a little flat as well but not too bad about half power left in the battery life is there something I could be missing doing something wrong could it be the lens is not good enough or maybe was it the battery Ill be trying again tonight with full battery power I was able to take some good night/early morning photos but that was using auto oh he also said put the dial to M I just don't get what is going wrong here some advice would be good thank you in advance also I've been using the viewfinder

Added (1). The answers here are how fast is the shutter speed I don't know remember I have only just started to learn how do I know what the shutter speed is this course I'm doing is tafe approved and the teacher is a big name in photography in Australia Yes I could ask him but thought if I could get some help here first so I can practice it would be better for me

Well, you're not saying how long you're leaving the shutter open for. I assume that your problem is that you're not exposing long enough to get an actual image. Try setting the shutter speed to around 5 seconds, and see how that looks. If it's too bright, or still too dark, adjust accordingly.

You can also try asking your instructor for advice, since he should be educating you.

Brandi is right. What was your shutter speed? If your shutter speed is longer than 1/30, then you are going to need to use a tripod.

Which online course is this?

Remember, not everyone is qualified to teach even though they do… The old saying is "those who can't do it, teach it".

Wow… Ok.

So to start, there are 3 things that control exposure (how bright your picture is going to be).

ISO, Aperture and Shutter Speed (and I guess we could add "Ambient Light" in there as well).

If you just give us 2 of those settings, it's like asking. "When will I get to point b, I'll be leaving from point a at noon" and not telling us how fast you will be going. The answer will vary depending on if you are walking, taking a car, a bicycle…

ISO determines how sensitive to light the sensor is.

Aperture (the f-something number) is how wide the lens is opened, the smaller the number the wider the opening. The wider the opening, the more light floods in.

Shutter speed, how long the sensor is exposed to light.

ISO 100 and F22 in low light conditions will require a VERY VERY long shutter speed. In other words, you will need to leave the sensor exposed to light for a long period for there to be enough light accumulated by the sensor of your camera.

F22 to f32 is a tiny little opening that allows very little light to the sensor and ISO 100 is not very sensitive to light at all.

Has your "Big name in photography" not explained the basics of exposure to you yet? It's the very foundation of photography. Everything (technical at least) in photography relates to the exposure triumvate of ISO, Aperture and Shutter Speed.

I hope you aren't paying him much.

You said you took some good shots in auto? Take a look at the setttings for ISO, Aperture and Shutter speed the camera chose for you for that shot and use that as a starting line for your manual shot.

If you are shooting weith a DSLR, check the images exif information top see what settings you used.