The Pause. Before pressing the button stop to look through the view finder to make sure you cannot improve on the shot. Check to make sure everything is in the shot you want and there is not too much clutter.

Remove Clutter. When shooting a person make sure that no objects are behind or around the subject's head. For example look for anything like a lamp that is behind the subject's head, which will distract from the person.

Point of View. Shooting from different angles not just straight on can create a unique point of view. Stand on a chair, or even lie on your back. Turn the camera 90 degrees and take a vertical shot. This technique works great with any subject.

Steady the Camera. Time lag is necessary between pressing the shutter release and the exposure, because the camera needs a to adjust for pre-shot calibration and balance colors. Use a tripod.

Manual Focus. If you're going to take a lot of action shots or be shooting through glass override the auto focus. Even if your camera has a buffer, the auto focus may not react fast enough to give you sharp pictures if you shoot too quickly or the light is too low.

White Balance. The default white balance setting for digital cameras is auto, which is fine for most snapshots, but tends to be a bit on the "cool" side.

Outdoor portraits and sunny landscapes require that you change the white balance setting from auto to cloudy. That's right, cloudy. Why? This adjustment is like putting a mild warming filter on your camera. It increases the reds and yellows resulting in richer, warmer pictures.