Suggestions for first time dying hair?

I was wanting to see if anyone had any suggestions for changing my hair, I would really like to dye it since I haven’t ever put any color on it before. I was tempted at the thought of blonde but everyone kept telling me that I would be washed out and that it wouldn’t suit me.

I got laid off a few weeks ago and would really like to go kind of crazy with it now that I don’t have to adhere to office policies (I also thought it would make me feel a little better about myself).

Some friends have told me that all of the fun colors fade really quickly and, again, have told me that I should stick to died tips (like the last two photos) instead of changing my whole head because darker hair suits me more according to all the people in my personal life that I’ve asked, so now I’m a bit discouraged with the more fun looks or changing it all overall.