We follow lots of people on Twitter who take amazing photographs. We managed to swallow our jealousy long enough to ask them for some tips. Here's what they said:
Having something in the foreground of a landscape improves the pic (eg, a boat moving across a lake in front of mountains). chocophilenyc
Play around with angles to add depth and don't put people in the center of the photograph (ie. in front of a monument). WanderLoz
Go slow, be easy on yourself and take the time to get one photo right, instead of shooting hundreds. Butterflydiary
For close-ups that require flash, avoid whiting out the subject by zooming in on the subject. The flash will be diffused. chocophilenyc
Learn and apply the "rule of thirds". It's a technique that I believe makes the biggest difference to your composition. MelbPhotoGuy
Also, ask #togchat tweeps! WanderLoz
Regarding what kind of camera to buy, The Career Break Site's official photographer suggested a bridge camera - cheaper than a DSLR but better than a point-and-shoot. It has manual settings (we're so old we can remember these!) but it also has an automatic function.
If you've got any photography tips, please leave them in the comments below. Thanks!