Ralf Wieting - VP Application Development - bravely illustrating point 4.

Top 10 Tips – Photography For Beginners 

1. Choose the right digital camera for you – There are various factors that come to mind when purchasing a digital camera. You are going to invest hundreds or thousands of dollars for a camera, so, you need to make sure you don’t buy a model that doesn’t really suit your purpose or is much too advanced for your requirements – Picture Correct http://www.picturecorrect.com/tips/digital-camera-shopping-considerations/
2. Know your camera – Before actually learning digital photography techniques elsewhere, you have to get to know your camera by reading the instruction manuals with the gadget on hand. Try to take the same subjects with different modes and effects to find out how to use each button. The rest will follow once you have mastered handling your camera – Hobby Photography tips http://www.hobbyphotographytips.com/category/digital-camera-tips/
3. Know how to hold your camera - I’ll wager that if you bought your camera at a camera store, nobody took the time to explain how to properly hold it. This is one of those things that professionals do unconsciously, and beginners may never do until somebody points it out to them (or they learn the hard way) – Best Family Photograhpy Tips http://www.best-family-photography-tips.com/photography-tips.html
4. Fill the frame – Most often, if you’re having trouble with your photos, you’re not close enough. Get as close as you think you need to get, then take a step closer. Really observe your subject and see how it’s fitting in the frame. Allow your subject to fill the frame and cut out all surrounding details that are unneeded and distracting. – Geek Inspried http://www.geekinspired.com/photography/10-tips-to-get-started-in-photography/
5. Be aware of the background – Always think before taking the shot. Is there anything or anyone behind your subject that could be distracting? Does anything behind them create weird illusions? For example, a tree branch behind your subject that looks like it’s sticking out of their head. – Ezine Articles http://ezinearticles.com/?Background-Tips-For-Digital-Photography&id=3638928
6. Composition – Most images taken by amateur photographers are taken at eye level – this means most of these pictures are taken from the narrow range of 5 to 6 feet in height. Taking a picture from a lower vantage point (for example crouching or even lying on the ground) can add grandeur and significance to the subject, while getting more height (from climbing up a tree, fence or steps) will reduce the significance of the subject in your scene. – Digital photography tips – composition http://digitalphotography.tipcentral.net/composition.html
7. Take photos regularly – Try to photograph something every day. If you can’t do that, make sure you take time to practice regularly, so you don’t forget what you’ve learned. An excellent way to motivate yourself is by doing the weekly assignments in the DPS Forum. – Digital Photography School  http://digital-photography-school.com/11-tips-for-beginner-photographers
8. Practice photographing at night - Night photography can be a bit challenging because of the less amount of light that is available to us and therefore, one often faces the problem of the picture containing a lot of noise. With some effective settings and right equipment, one can get to do some amazing photography at night. Here are a few night photography techniques for you to experiment with -Buzzle http://www.buzzle.com/articles/night-photography-techniques.html
9. Look at the light - By this, I don’t mean look into the sun – no, that won’t do at all. But it is good to see what kind of light you are working with. Which way are the shadows falling? Unless you want a silhouette effect, where your subject is black against an interesting background, it’s generally best to shoot with the sun behind you – Better Photo http://www.betterphoto.com/exploring/tips/7.asp
10. Remove things that don’t add to the photo - Especially if they detract from the central message. Don’t only know what to include, but also what to exclude -Digital Photography Tutorial http://www.dptutorial.com/photography-tips-for-beginners