S.R.
Hi, and welcome to the wonderful world of photography! I strongly suggest reading the manual and playing with your camera so you can get a good feel for all of its functions. Second, turn it on and shoot. Take photo's of every thing you see. Then look at them. Look up online the rule of thirds and focus on composition. Don't always center your object, look around the frame and see what other items may clutter your photo. After you practice with your camera on the AUTO mode, get out of it. Shoot in program and learn your camera. and lastly, cheack out "fredmiranda.com" and http://photography-on-the.net/forum although that one is a canon site. But you will see some incredible photos on fred miranda,(well both sites have great images) and they provide forums for all types of photography (macro, people, landscape, etc). One more thing... lighting, very important. Don't shoot in mid day. Makes your photo's look flat. Try early mornings or late day. Happy shooting!