Im totally new to this as well as this is my first proper tank. I know this sounds a bit anal but I designed the layout on paper first, where i would put the plants and rocks etc. I wanted it to have a natural flowing design so not only would it provide the fish with plenty of nooks and crannies but so it would also be nice to look at.
I got a lot of ideas from the pics on this site, some of the tanks people have designed are just incredible. I just tried to emulate them. B)