The Incomprehensible Owner's Manual:
Learning a new word like "submarine" is, for most people, fairly simple. If you know what "sub" means and what "marine" means then "submarine" is nothing more than a variation on what you already know. But if you've never had any experience with something like computer programming languages then everything about it is new and difficult. This is what most new camera owners face when they try to learn photography the traditional way, that is from the technical side. Words like "aperture" have no analog in their vocabulary and so it takes many repetitions and explanations from different points of view before they can become familiar enough with the word, the concept, and the application to apply these fluently.
I've seen several times where a writer says "read your camera's manual." This comes across to the person new to digital photography as a) an insult to them and b) evidence that the person saying it is too much of a geek to realize that the manual is written in incomprehensible techno-babble. Most of these would-be photographers have opened their manuals, found them unintelligible, closed them, and gone to seek more useful (i.e. human) help. This is not to say that the manuals are incorrect, they're just not written for the first-time digital camera owner.
Turning a new digital camera owner into a photographer doesn't have to start out with a long, agonizing language-building exercise that's more likely to discourage than encourage. Almost everyone can understand things like "tilt your head a little" or "put your hand on your hip" without a lot of explanation. Simple techniques like this can dramatically improve the student's photos in a very short time giving them the encouragement to practice more and learn more.
With today's smart cameras the student who begins with a comprehensive study of techniques will learn to produce photos better, faster, and cheaper than the student who tries to absorb the technical aspects either first or at the same time.
Ernst Haas
"Best wide-angle lens? Two steps backward. Look for the 'ah-ha'."
"The best zoom lens is your legs."
In today's world there are a great many books, articles, videos, classes, and tutors on photography. Anyone who wants to learn photography can pick their media and choose from many different authors. The common theme in almost all of these is that they start with the technical aspects rather than the techniques. The techniques, when they are presented, are too often sandwiched in between the technical aspects.
Back in the days of single-lens-reflex (SLR) film cameras a solid understanding of the technical aspects of cameras was necessary because the cameras were purely mechanical devices. The photographer had a variety of tools such as light meters as aids but, in the end, the quality of the photograph was dependent mainly on the photographer's technical and technique skills.
Today's digital cameras have sophisticated software in them that nearly duplicates the combined skills of many expert photographers. This software does an excellent job of setting the focal length, aperture, ISO, white balance, and such letting the photographer concentrate on the composition and other techniques, if they know them. It may not be perfect for every situation but, for the average camera owner, good enough. This means that learning the technical aspects is no longer necessary for most people and most photography. With good techniques even some of the low-end digital cameras can produce satisfying, and even award-winning photos.