Thanks for the compliment! I really appreciate it. Everything I learned was self taught and I've only been working with my DSLR for just about 2 years now.
My advice would be to take a lot of pictures, especially when you first start out. Half of the time my captures turned out to be lucky timing. Also, don't be afraid to experiment with both the camera settings and the post processing that's how I've learned everything I know (and of course reading short articles on what all those numbers and letters mean never hurts). Lastly, photograph things you have a passion for. Most of my photos are of nature because I love just walking/hiking trying figuring out what exactly makes a particular view beautiful.
Hope that helps and happy photographing!