Ten Tips for taking better photos

1. Look your subject in the eye - Direct eye contact can be as engaging in a picture as it is in real life.
2. Use a plain background - A plain background shows off the subject you are photographing.
3. Use flash outdoors - Bright sun can create unattractive deep facial shadows. Eliminate the shadows by using your flash to lighten the face.
4. Move in close - If your subject is smaller than a car, take a step or two closer before taking the picture and zoom in on your subject. Your goal is to fill the picture area with the subject you are photographing.
5. Move it from the middle - Center-stage is a great place for a performer to be. However, the middle of your picture is not the best place for your subject. Bring your picture to life by simply moving your subject away from the middle of your picture.
6. Lock the focus - If your subject is not in the center of the picture, you need to lock the focus to create a sharp picture. Most auto-focus cameras focus on whatever is in the center of the picture. Usually you can lock the focus in three steps. First, center the subject and press and hold the shutter button halfway down. Second, reposition your camera (while still holding the shutter button) so the subject is away from the center. And third, finish by pressing the shutter button all the way down to take the picture.
7. Know your flash's range - What is your camera's flash range? Look it up in your camera manual. Can't find it? Then don't take a chance. Position yourself so subjects are no farther than ten feet away.
8. Watch the light - Next to the subject, the most important part of every picture is the light. It affects the appearance of everything you photograph. On a great-grandmother, bright sunlight from the side can enhance wrinkles. But the soft light of a cloudy day can subdue those same wrinkles. So pay attention to how the light is acting on your subject.
   
9. Take some vertical pictures - Is your camera vertically challenged? It is if you never turn it sideways to take a vertical picture. All sorts of things look better in a vertical picture.
10. Be a picture director - Take control of your picture-taking and watch your pictures dramatically improve. Become a picture director, not just a passive picture-taker. A picture director takes charge.

And remember, practice, practice, practice! The more photos you take, the more you learn what you like and what works for you! Have fun!!