These are some of the tools and toys that I use. If you click on the links and purchase these products, I may receive a small commission.
Drone
I started Droning in 2020 with an entry-level drone. But I have upgraded to a new and more capable drone.
- DJI Air 2s – My newest drone. Half-hour flight time. One-inch camera sensor. This is an incredible drone.
- Mavic Mini – It is my first drone. It is small and lightweight. It may look and feel like a toy. But it is a more than capable drone.
- Extra Batteries – These drones don’t fly very long with just one battery. Get some extra batteries. Better yet, get the Fly More Package.
- D DACCKIT Travel Case – I started out using a cardboard box to carry my Mini. But my wife was kind enough to buy me a carrying case.
- DJI Refresh – This is a warranty/insurance program if you crash or break your drone. Beware, this does not cover lost drones.
- Charger for the field – Keep your batteries charged so you can fly as long as you want.
- Freewell Polarizer Filters – These are great filters that help to reduce glare on sunny days. They are especially helpful over water.
- LIPOWER 300W Portable Power Station – Make sure you have power if electricity is not available to charge your batteries.
- Skyreat Foldable Aluminum Metal 4-11″ Tablet Holder – Sometime you want to use a bigger screen. This holder allows you to attach up-to a 10in iPad.
- STARTRC Sun Hood Sunshade – It may be impossible to see your screen on a sunny day. This shade is not magic, but it will help.
- Handle for landing drone on boat – I found it difficult to land a drone on a boat, so I ordered this handle to see if it would be easier to hand catch.
- Landing pad – This has proven more helpful than I realized. Avoid taking off in high grass or in sand.
- Wagon for hauling gear – As I have accumulated more stuff, I needed a way to haul it around.
Other Photography Gear
The biggest reason to buy a drone is for photography and videography. But it is good to be able to record other perspectives.
- DJI Osmo Action – This camera is comparable to a GoPro. It is a great camera for action shots.
- Canon m50 – Great mirrorless camera that uses interchangeable lenses.
WordPress
- Divi – This site is designed with Divi. I am using it to help me learn design with this theme. It may be my tool of choice for the future.
- Studiopress.com – This has been my go-to for a long time. Almost every website that I have designed has been designed using Genesis Themes by Studiopress.
- SiteGround – Excellent WordPress hosting. I currently host all my websites on the GoGeek Plan. There is cheaper hosting out there. But I have always had problems with cheaper hosting plans.
- Namecheap – I have bought all my domains using Namecheap.
Video Editing & Media
- Final Cut – This is my go-to video editor. I have definitely upped my game during the Covid Pandemic as we have done a lot more with video.
- Pixelmator – Pixelmator is my choice for graphic design. It is not Photoshop, but does everything that I need.
- Motionarray.com – This is a site that I use to find video transitions and titles. It also has stock videos, music, and graphics all at an affordable monthly price.
- Unsplash.com – Free stock photos!
Hardware
- MacBook Pro (16 inch) – I have been using Macbook Pros since before there were iPhones. My current MacBook Pro is a 16 inch that I bought refurbished off the Apple Refurbished Store. It packs a 1 TB SSD and 16GB of Ram.
- iPad Pro (12.9 inch) – I also use a 2018 iPad. I got the 12 inch model because I wanted the bigger iPad. It helps these eyes that are approaching 50 years old. I do a lot of reading on my iPad. I enjoy having my reading app (Logos or Kindle) open split screen with Notability to take notes.
- Apple Pencil – This is the main reason that I even use an iPad in the first place. When I take notes reading, I prefer to write instead of type. It is great to be able to read and take notes on the same device at the same time.
- iPhone 11 — My first iPhone was the iPhone 3GS. Previous to that I had used a Blackberry. In the early days of iPhone I would upgrade every year. I would sell my 1 year old phone for more than the purchase price of the new phone. I remember fondly waiting in line on launch day for the new model. These days, I am content with what I have. I am not in a hurry to upgrade.
- Elgato Streamdeck – This is an amazing device. Think of it as a keyboard that can be programed to perform special functions on your computer. I use this for automation functions on my Mac and for our Sunday morning live-stream.
- Dell Monitors 4K Monitors – I value having screen real estate. On my desk, I use two 27 inch Dell monitors alongside my 16 inch MacBook Pro. It is definitely a luxury to have three screens that I take full advantage of.
- CalDigit TS3 Plus Thunderbolt 3 Dock – When I am in my office, I use my MacBook Pro like a desktop computer. With one usb-c cable I plug it into the dock that gives me quick access to ethernet, speakers, SD card readers, external monitors, external drives, and more.