Camera dilemma solved!

During the boxing week sale, I decided to check out the DSLR cameras again to see if there were any good deals. I didn't actually think I would buy one, although I had pretty much settled on getting the Canon Rebel T1i. The price turned out to be a good deal, better than paying full price at least, and somehow I found myself walking out of the store with a brand new T1i.

 Image from Canon

Now, I had been told to not get the lens that came with it and just to invest in a better one, but I really wanted to start practicing, and I knew there would be a huge learning curve, so I went with the kit that included the body and the 18-55mm lens.

Boy was I right, huge learning curve for me since I have to learn how to use the camera and I have to learn photography!! I had gotten a few pointers a few years ago when I was using an SLR and developing my own film, but all that knowledge is gone. So back at step 1 for me. I have started reading the manual, and right now, I have Full Auto and Creative Auto down. Creative Auto allows you to change a few things while taking the photos, so I thought that would be a better mini-step.

People keep saying I should take a course for photography, but I don't think I should until I get a better understanding of my camera and the basics. Now I just need to find online tutorials or helpful guides. Most of the ones I found are reviews of ones you pay for, but I found a few.
Here are the couple of links that I am going to be checking out over the next few weeks:
http://www.learnslr.com/slr-beginner-guide
http://basedigitalphotography.com/category/tips-and-tutorial/

I will try to leave a review on the blog of whether were helpful, and if yes, how much.

** EDITED TO ADD **

I just read a great and helpful blog post by Centsational Girl and contributors. It gives a basic overview of indoor photography and a few helpful links at the bottom that I will also be checking out.

Pioneer Woman Photography, a lot of good articles with helpful hints from what I can see.

Digital Photography School, looks like a very comprehensive site.

I can't wait to get to reading all this when I know more about my camera!