For everything there is a beginning, and each of our long journey starts with a step.
Photography is an art which can be soul mate for you as a passion or it can be a workforce if you take it as a profession.

Here are some photography tips for Absolute Beginners to help you get started.

Buying a Camera: Equipments is not a major criteria for you to become a good photographer (yes, we also do agree that equipments plays an important role if you know to use it technically and effectively). My advice to all beginners is not to invest too much on the equipment and expect that it will create wonders to your images. Sometimes, if you don't understand to use your equipment in a right way, it will just complicate things and confuse you even further.

A Bridge camera will be ideal for any beginner for couple of years to practise. And most of the bridge cameras comes for an affordable prize.

These cameras allow you enough flexibility to learn the technical aspects of photography. Buying a professional DSLR or Mirrorless Cameras will be something like buying a formula 1 car to learn driving. Entry level DSLRs or semi professional cameras will also be a good investment for a serious learner.

Whenever you decide to buy a camera, research first. It is really helpful and gives you a fair knowledge than the information given by the sales guys in the camera showroom. Once you find a camera model which suits your budget go to online forums like Flickr, Linkedin, where there will be lot of discussions on the particular model. And trust me, most of their opinions and feedback will be honest.

Experiment: Take lot of photographs. Mr. Henri Cartier-Bresson once said "Your first 10,000 photographs are your Worst Pictures"   The more you use your camera the better you get with the way you vision things. And one of the most important things you need to remember is "Never get satisfied with your picture, there is always a scope for much better images".

Camera Manual: I have met many people who keep their camera bill safely and throw away the camera manual. These manuals are given for a purpose. These days, in the market we have thousands of different camera models and 99% of them will have a different approach to change the settings. So these camera manuals act like your photography bible which guide you through that particular settings. Keep this manual safely and most importantly, make it a habit to read the manual till you get the hang of your camera settings completely.

Workshops and Online Materials: I have come across people investing thousands of rupees on their equipments but they will think thousand times to attend a workshop. Most of the times, they step back to attend the workshops because they have to sit between people and they don't want to show themselves that they are beginners. So what they do is, they will purchase an online material like end zone video or try to learn themselves through friends or through youtube etc.  

I am not saying learning from these materials are wrong but there is always a way, a method to learn. Especially in Photography, all fundamental are so inter-related that you will take months to practise even after learning. And these need to be learnt step by step.   What I recommend to any beginner is to attend workshops, seminars and also learn through online videos. Follow the guidelines given by your tutor and once you are confident go ahead and express yourself through your images.
Connecting with Professionals: This is one of the most important aspect - to be in touch with professional photographers. Each one of them will have their own style in approaching their subjects and creating images and you can always learn from them. Try and grab opportunities if that professional photographer needs an assistant or try to create an opportunity.

Stay connected with professionals around the world through online forums like 500px, linkedin etc.

Share and Take Feedback: Create a platform for yourself to showcase your images. Take feedback from friends, family, colleagues, professional photographers etc. The feedback given by them is the most invaluable, people might appreciate or criticize but that is what keeps you motivating.

You know what you need to do now - "Keep clicking and never get satisfied with your images".