Gear I Use

Many of you have sent messages asking what equipment I use and recommend to create content. The following is a list of the products and services I use on a regular basis or have used in the past and find valuable. The following may be affiliate links. As a participant in affiliate networks, I earn from qualifying purchases. Contact me if you have issues with any of the links or have questions.

Video Editing and Additional Software

The app I primarily used for editing video is Final Cut Pro. It is available of the Apple App Store for macOS. Apple also makes an additional app called Motion which allows me to create custom titles, transitions, and other special effects. For stock footage to practice editing I use projects from EditStock.com. The list of additional apps and services is too long to list but a few are MotionVFX (templates and plug-ins), ScreenFlow (screen capture for tutorials), LATER (social media), Streamlabs (live streaming to YouTube), and QuickBooks (accounting).

Training

Of course I recommend watching the @FinalCutProHelp YouTube channel and following our blog for additional training. @FinalCutProHelp is also on other sites like Instagram and Facebook. During my early years editing with Final Cut Pro the Apple Pro Training series of books was one of the most useful and they cover Final Cut Pro X.

Cameras

I use a few different cameras to capture video and occasionally live stream. A few of the devices I use to capture video, in no particular order, are the iPhone, GoPro Session, insta360, Canon DSLR, and DJI Mavic.

Lighting

Lighting makes all the difference. One of the worst experiences is having an amazing performance from an actress but the shot is unusable because the lighting was neglected. For direct to camera I recommend trying a ring light and I do use this one from Westcott.

Computers

Final Cut Pro requires macOS. Macs have been my primary computer of choice and what I recommend everyone edit with. Your situation may require a portable computer and I recommend a MacBook Pro for this. My primary Mac at this time is an iMac that sits on a converted standing desk. To help accelerate task I use an eGPU Sonnet eGFX Breakaway Box with a Radeon RX Vega 56 and an external monitor. I also occasionally use an iPad Pro for an external monitor and input device. For fast external storage I use an SSD from G-Tech. Time Machine, software included with macOS, is what I use to create backups to various external drives include this one from Western Digital, and this one from Seagate. SD and Micro SD cards from SanDisk for camera storage have worked well for me. I have an older LaCie RAID that used to be my primary storage but is now an additional backup. I’m sure I left a few things out so please leave a comment with any questions.

Microphones

When recording a tutorial or live streaming I use this Blue Yeti USB Mic. To reduce explosive sounds a pop filter is attached to the mic stand.