Tools & Resources

Great equipment and great software do not guarantee great work by any means... but it does open up a whole lot of creative options.

In this page, you will find a curated list of all the resources, tools and services I use daily. Every single item listed here is essential for my work and for all the ideas that I'm still developing.

Before digging into the lists, an important disclosure: some of the links below are affiliate links, which means that if you choose to make a purchase, I will earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. All the products and services I recommend are things I use every day and I endorse them because they are so helpful and useful. I urge you not to spend money on any of these products unless you feel like it would directly benefit you and your goals.

To keep this roughly organized, I divided everything up in the following sections:

Filming gear
Video Editing PC build
Software and Services
Books

Filming gear

These are all the products I've managed to acquire ever since I purchased my first camera for video. Everything from the camera, to the lens, to the microphone and all the accessories that compose my updated rig that's based on the wonderful workhorse that is the GH5.

Material

Picture by Lucas Santiago

Probably the most dedicated video camera in 2018. Feature packed mirrorless with tons of customizability.

Not only does it protect the GH5, but it also offers a better grip and better mounting options for my microphone and led.

The 18-35 1.8 turns into a aprox. 25-50 f1.3 FF equivalent. I chose the ultra 0.71 to avoid vignetting.

Super-fast, super sharp zoom lens! All I need.

Hinged lens filter adapter, it is a step-up ring designed to engage & disengage my VND in a fraction of a second.Chose the RFS+ to avoid vignetting.

Offers me better light control, to keep a fast aperture and still have great depth of field.

Screen protectors avoid scratches on the camera monitor and that gives me some peace of mind.

2 sd's allow me to film an entire project with backup recording. These are the ones I use the whole day when I am doing weddings.

I rely on these for more extreme situations. Also, if I fill up the Angelbirds on a wedding, I proceed to swap them with these tough guys.

Excellent price to performance, especially with its size! Comes with a cable, rycote shockmount and deadcat. Gets power from the camera.

4 original Panasonic batteries, for safety.

Allows me to charge 2 batteries and a USB accessory simultaneously. It also comes with a quick-release plate to charge AA batteries.

Ultra-compact, incredibly convenient digital recorder/lavalier microphone combo. The included lavalier is attached via a screw-down lock connector, for added security.

32GB Micro SD for my Tascam DR-10L. Enough for hours and hours of recording.

It is the brightest, strongest, tiniest led video light. 5-step adjustable color temperature ranging from 2800-6500K.

The Nikon D7000 paired with the 17-55 2.8 allowed me to grow and develop my current video business. I'm going to keep using it and it is now my first backup camera.

Nikon 17-55 f2.8 is an excellent zoom for DX sensors. Super versatile and very tough.

Clean and minimal design. Love the fact that it's black, love its organization and the quick access to the camera.

Quick and easy storage for accessories like the filter and batteries when they're not being used.

Love its size. Easily adjustable and super practical with their anchor quick release system.

For an added peace of mind. When not in use, Cuff stores as a bracelet for quick accessibility.

Super useful charger with individual battery status indicators. I carry these AA's with me just in case.

The AAA's I use to power the DR-10L and some other accessories I use around the house.

Hearing protection to reduce party volume to a safe level. That irritating ring after a wedding is a thing of the past.

Video Editing PC build

When I decided to start creating video professionally, my pre-built computer had a first generation i7, the i7-870. It didn't take long until I realized how it lacked the power for the kind of work I needed to do. So, I made the decision to upgrade my system.

I bought a used computer with an i5-6600K to which I added some new, more capable components. Still, as soon as I tried to export a video, the computer became unusable for the simplest of tasks, like even checking email.

And that is how, in 2018, and for the first time in my life, I built a new computer. The i7-8700K was a major, major boost in terms of productivity for my video editing work. I believe it is really important to work with gear that doesn't bring you frustration, so here is the updated parts list of my current workstation:

The 8700K with 6 cores and 12 threads seemed like one of the best options with regards to price and performance.

Not only does it really cool the CPU, but it does it in a really cool way!

Really edgy design, but without a doubt, the angles and the dark look really helped with choosing this motherboard.

1070ti, with 2432 CUDA Cores, seemed like the best choice for me and for Premiere Pro.

(4x 16GB) 64GB 2666MHz DDR4.

The Z370-F doesn't have wi-fi, so I got this black PCIe card from TP-Link.

250GB SSD | OS, Programs - Enough for the operating system and all the other software I have installed.

250GB SSD | Cache, Scratch Files - To keep Premiere Pro optimized an running efficiently.

1TB SSD | Personal - For my personal files, like personal images and videos, games, etc.

1TB NVMe M.2 | Desktop, Current Projects - For my sometimes messy desktop and to keep the projects I'm currently editing.

4TB HDD | Completed Projects, Local Backups - To house my completed projects and local backups of the other disks.

5 SATA 3 ModFlex. cables from CableMod.

750W 80+ Gold, the standard for good power supply units.

It might not seem like it, but is has a lot of space! It made it really easy for me to assemble this computer.

24" FHD. I thought about the 25" 4K one, but ended up purchasing two 24", one for me and another for my wife.

The best mouse for video editing. With some configurable macros and a horizontal scroll wheel, perfect to scroll through Premiere's timeline.

I bought the KM636 wireless kit, but I only use the keyboard. Later I got its respective wrist rest 580-ADLR.

Software and Services

Here are all the programs and services I use daily for all the different strands of my work: the creative part, sales, management, and organization. These resources feel like they have been tailor-made for my personal taste and I really depend on them. I've put all my trust into these companies and their products, and I've done that in a pinch! But it took a long time to master them. So, in the future, there might be a slight chance that I will be teaching other people how to use these solutions the same way I use them every day.

It is the best suite of apps for all kinds of creatives. I mostly use Premiere Pro, After Effects, Lightroom and Audition. I pay monthly for the Adobe Creative Cloud.

Notion was the best discovery of 2018. It is where I manage all my client work and where I also write and organize my ideas and projects. I'm using the monthly personal plan.

This is the tool I've been using to present my services online. Like Notion.so, it is one of the best monthly investments I'm making right now.

Online Backup for my workstation. Unlimited backup for all the disks and files in my computer.

This is where I upload completed work and it's where my clients see and download their videos. I use the Vimeo Pro Annual Plan.

Where I buy and manage my domains.

Books

They are an amazing source of inspiration and offer some great practical advice on how to make it on your own, doing your own thing. The entrepreneur in me requires a lot of inspiration to keep going in this competitive enterprise world. Below are the must-read books that I own and absolutely loved reading. I hope someday you'll be able to read and I hope they inspire you as well.