I'm going to be a voice of dissent here - for a first snake, if you want to keep it in a tank, go with a king, corn, or milk snake. They are much more suited to tank living, more suited to being a display snake, and are more forgiving of new-owner mistakes. My first was a male high white California king. I still have him and he's one of my favorites just to pull out and let people handle, nothing fazes him, nothing throws him off food, he'll take both f/t or live prey as needed (he's part of my clean-up crew if a juvenile BP doesn't eat).
He's not quite three years old, about four feet, and much lighter-bodied than my ball pythons so he's very easy to handle.
Once you're comfortable with your first snake, get an adult ball python and a proper setup for it where you can maintain correct temps and humidity without fighting the laws of physics (hint: this is not a tank).
Here's a picture of my first, taken a few weeks after he arrived.
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