I used to be deeply involved with photography(havent been taking many pictures lately..) and theres many many factors that go into making for a good picture. Too many for me to type, but some tips would be
-stay FAR away from cell phone cameras
-if your camera has manual focus, USE IT!! (dont be lazy)
-shoot with film(no disposeable cameras) and print the pictures yourself. take a basic photography class at a local college, they will most likely have everything you will ever need.