advice for a beginner? anything is appreciated!

[Overread]

If any kind of stabalization mechanism (eg VR/IS/OS) is used when the camera and lens are totally stable the anti shake tech will in fact start to make its own shake on the shots - which results in a softer overall end photo. Some more modern systems have detection codes in place to try and auto detect that the camera+lens is stable enough not to need the stabalization and will auto turn it off - however this can take time and also can fail to detect the stability.
Thus it is always easier to keep the VR/IS/OS off when on a stable tripod/setup (excluding the panning stabalization mode if you are panning a shot)