Here are a few thoughts that will take your outdoor photography to a new level.  

REMOVE DISTRACTING ELEMENTS

Make sure any distracting people or branches are removed. This can be done when you are taking the picture or in post processing.  

Be mindful of the time of day

The golden hour is the hour of time when the sun first appears. Taking pictures during this time will give you more beautiful pictures. Especially when you are outdoors. The middle of the day will give you harsher shadows. You can’t get the same beautiful pics at this time of day, so you will want to be more creative, and take pictures that show the world from a bit of a different perspective. At the end of the day you can also get some good pictures, but it’s not quite as good as early morning. At night you can get some very interesting pictures, especially in the city when buildings are only being illuminated by the little they put off. You’ll have to use longer exposures for nighttime photography.  

Shoot things creatively

Don’t try to repeat shots you’ve seen others do. Be creative.  

Take your time.

This isn’t action photography, make sure you have all your camera settings the way you want them for a scene before you continue on your way. You should have the subject in crisp focus and there shouldn’t be any motion blur.  

walk around

Walk around and take pictures of a subject from many different angles   Further Reading tips for composing pictures A website devoted to shooting great outdoor pictures 25 tips for shooting great photography