It's that time of the year again and all the pretty Christmas lights are on.. every year i take my niece and nephew and every year i take photos.. well try to and every year they never turn out...
I am asking you wonderful photographers what settings would you suggest i use, and any other helpful tips and advice would be greatly appreciated..

Use a tripod for low light conditions .
Meter on the lights for good light shots with dark backgroud and surrounding , meter on the background fro detail in the background and people in the shot ( your lights will be overexposed ).
Try working in M mode and check you shot , if not good take it again .
Practice !

Thanks.. i will do that.. i always try and use a tripod.. =)

You could also try using the timer or a remote (if you've got one) to avoid camera shake when pressing the button while the camera's on the tripod.

Thanks I will try all suggestions

oh,and one more thing..white balance...set it to one of the light bulb (fluorescent or incandecent) settings, as opposed to sunny or shady...

ok.. thanks for all your help