Photography is a fantastic and highly rewarding pastime and well worth the effort to learn and develop skills in. For a beginner I know it can be overwhelming and finding out how to learn digital photography can be baffling! Here are my top tips for a beginner to digital photography.

1) Choose the right camera for a beginner. Don't be talked into buying a camera with features you don't need and will rarely or never use. A digital point and shoot camera may be even be best for you. A digital SLR offers more creative control and if you want to learn digital photography I would recommend this as your best tool. Compare prices of cameras online to get the best deal when you have chosen a camera.

2) Get to know your camera. At first your digital SLR may seem highly technical and confusing but take it steady and it will soon become clear. You should be very familiar with your camera to get the best from it. When faced with a perfect sunset or a moment where the kids are all smiling and laughing you don't want to be flicking through menus and deciding which mode might be best!

3) Use your camera! This may seem obvious but to learn digital photography like any new skill you have to actually do it. Even if you don't plan photographic trips take your camera out with you on days out or walks in the park. This links to my point above - just using the camera will improve photographic skills at a real pace.

4) Look at pictures. We are surrounded by photographs and images and just opening your eyes to these will help you think about composition, lighting and other essential things to develop your photography. There are online galleries, photographs in adverts, even paintings to look at with the photographer's eye.

5) Study a course. There are some great online courses and these will prompt you to follow a structure. They will give you the technical skills you may need as a beginner to digital photography but also encourage you to use your camera for projects and actual assignments.

For anyone wanting to learn digital photography there is a lot of help and support out there and I urge you to follow a path to develop these skills.