Gadgets

The gear.

Everything on this page is real and in use — the machines the work ships from, the camera bag behind the Travel page, and the lights and mics behind the videos. Updated whenever something earns a permanent spot.

The desktop rig

custom build · air-cooled · RGB kept tasteful

Custom build Lian Li LANCOOL II Mesh RGB case — the desktop build

The tower for heavy lifting — parallel builds, VMs and the occasional game. Assembled by hand in 2020 and refreshed since with more memory and storage; it has outlived two laptops and still keeps up.

CPU: Intel Core i9-10850K10 cores / 20 threads · up to 5.2 GHz
Graphics: Gigabyte RTX 3070 Gaming OC8 GB GDDR6
Memory: 32 GB G.Skill Trident Z RGBDDR4-3200 · 16 + 8 + 8 GB
Storage: Samsung 970 EVO Plus 2 TB + 500 GBNVMe · plus Toshiba P300 4 TB HDD
Motherboard: ASUS ROG Strix Z490-G GamingWi-Fi · Intel Z490
Power: Antec HCG 850850 W · 80+ Gold
Case: Lian Li LANCOOL II Mesh RGBblack · mesh front
Drives it: 34″ Gigabyte + 24″ ASUSthe two displays below

Workstation & desk

11 items

Daily driver MacBook Pro 14" (M1 Pro)

MacBook Pro 14" (M1 Pro)

M1 Pro · 16 GB · 512 GB · Liquid Retina XDR

The whole freelance business runs on this one machine — Docker, three browsers and a video timeline at once, on battery.

Main display Gigabyte G34WQC A 34"

Gigabyte G34WQC A 34"

3440 × 1440 VA · 144 Hz · curved

Code on the left half, running app on the right — the ultrawide that replaced a two-monitor setup.

ASUS VA24DQLB 24"

1920 × 1080 IPS · 75 Hz · height-adjustable

The second screen, reserved for logs, docs and Slack.

Edifier WH950NB

ANC over-ear · LDAC · ~55 h battery

Deep-work headphones: ANC on, notifications off.

Royal Kludge RK H81

75% · tri-mode · hot-swap · Sky Cyan switches

The Star Night board that lives in front of the Mac.

Redragon K618 Horus

tri-mode RGB · blue switches

The clicky one, wired to the desktop rig.

Also hereDell i3 laptop · 16 GB — Ubuntu 22.04 test boxVention aluminium laptop standUgreen dual-to-quad USB hubXtreme Phantom 2.1 speakersBelkin 6-way power strip

Camera & lenses

11 items

Main camera Sony A7C II

Sony A7C II

33 MP full-frame · 4K 60 10-bit · IBIS

Compact full-frame body that shoots most of the Travel page.

Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN Art

E-mount · portrait prime

The portrait lens — wide open, it makes everyone look good.

Sony FE 35mm f/1.8

walk-around prime · 55 mm VND on top

Stays on the body by default.

Viltrox AF 20mm f/2.8

ultra-wide · 157 g

Pocket ultra-wide for landscapes and tight interiors.

Vlogging

DJI Osmo Pocket 3

1″ sensor · 4K 120 · 3-axis gimbal

Run-and-gun video camera; the Creator Combo added a spare DJI Mic 2 transmitter.

Feelworld F6 Plus

5.5″ touch field monitor · 3D LUT

Focus and framing on the A7C II when it matters.

Also hereK&F Concept K234A0 tripodUlanzi octopus tripod2 × SanDisk Extreme PRO 256 GB (SD + microSD)Spare + dummy Sony FZ100 batteries55 mm variable-ND filter

Audio & lighting

12 items

Voice

DJI Mic 2

2 TX + 1 RX · 32-bit float backup

Wireless lavs on every talking-head video; each transmitter keeps a 32-bit float safety track.

Key light

Godox SL100Bi

100 W COB · 2800–6500 K

The key light, fired through an 85 cm Phottix octa softbox.

Phottix Raja 85 cm

quick-folding octa softbox

Umbrella-style — up in thirty seconds, soft as a window.

Yongnuo YN300 III

LED panel · 3200–5500 K

The fill — an old workhorse that refuses to die.

Also hereBoya BY-M1 lavalierGodox 110 cm diffusion panelAndoer W140 RGB (background)Ulanzi VL49 (hair light)Meross smart RGB bulbs3 × light stands2 × NP-F750 batteries + chargerAcoustic foam on the walls