to set the focus manually and lock it down before actually shooting your picture.
one way to exercise your creative muscles is to put limits on how you take pictures. for instance, you can base a whole set of pictures around a specific subject. then go and take 100 different photos in the same room or with the same point of view. by doing this, you train yourself to create unique photos under the circumstances you have created.
if you want to take great pictures, you have to take a lot of them; buying a big memory card will allow you to hold the many pictures you need to take. a 16 