Once you have your digital camera, get a good-sized memory card (prices are very reasonable now). Taking photos costs nothing, so get out and shoot as much as you can. This is the best way to become a better photographer. Try different exposure settings and compositions, compare them in the LCD, and shoot plenty of photos so that you have a choice among them.
You can use any camera to quickly adjust exposure without using any
dials. Point your camera at something dark, lock exposure (usually by
pressing the shutter halfway), and then move the camera back to
the composition in order to add exposure. Do the same with something
bright to darken exposure. You do need to be careful of distances here
because locking exposure on many cameras also locks focus. The
“something,” bright or dark, can be at a different distance from the
camera than the subject, which would cause sharpness problems.
