Blurred Picture

If the subject is blurred but the bacground or other part of the photo is clear the the focus is out. This is very common in autofocus cameras where the camera will focus on the center of the picture. If you were taking a picture of two friends then you could well have focused between them.

To avoid this you should focus on the object (or one the same distance away) fix the focus (even autofocus cameras let you do this normaly by half pressing the shutter release button) then with the button still depressed half way, recompose the picture and finish pressing the button.

If the whole picture is blurred then you are suffering from camera shake. Try using a faster shutter speed or put the camera on a tripod