Where the lens ends

Photography was never meant to be intimidating. It was meant to work as a way to generate ideas whenever time slipped away and people needed a reminder of why they walk instead of drive; why they decide to take the back road as opposed to the highway; and why they are intrigued to roll out of bed in the morning when it's so easy to roll over and hit the snooze button just one more time.
Photos are a lot about making sure you have a sense of reference.
When taking a subject matter for instance, thinking in the rule of thirds is key. Three dimensions, three horizontal and three vertical.
Imagine your subject is in a box. Take a look at that box from all sides; top and bottom and both sides. As you draw cross sections through your imagination, make sure you are trying as best as you can to bring all levels into play - whether that means you are placing your subject in the top right, lower third or direct center - you want to balance your photos accordingly.
Photos will sometimes look unusual at first until it's placed against something. Take that tree in the background that a lot of times looks like it's not part of the photo, but it plays a vital role in making sure the scene is balanced, well lit or just plain designed correctly.
Getting down to a level where people's eyes are not trained to look is another easy, but key, factor in taking good photos. Simply kneeling down, getting up on a chair or leaning your shoulders in a way that gives a fresh perspective, can make all the difference.