Recommended Supplies

These are the art supplies, tools, and studio essentials I personally use and recommend in my own creative practice. I’ve gathered them here to make it easier for other artists to find the materials that have worked well for me.

I’ll continue adding to this page as I discover new favorites and share more of my painting process.

(Some of the links are affiliate links. If you use my link, I get a small commission, which will go toward my art supplies and towards future creative projects.)

Paints, Mediums & Solvents

Brushes & Painting Tools

Drawing & Mixed Media

Canvas & Surfaces

Shop bundle packs if you can to save on costs, or check out a Michaels Craft Store near you for great canvas sales throughout the year.

  • Painting Paper / Large Sheets
    For works on paper, I use these large sheets because I can cut them down into smaller sizes as needed and create deckled edges fairly easily.

Studio Essentials

  • Multi-Function Studio Easel — My Recommended Upgrade
    I currently use two easels: a large custom easel Nathan built for me that can hold multiple pieces or very large work, and a standard studio easel. Knowing what I know now—and having the studio space for it—I would choose an easel like this one that can adjust from upright to flat. Being able to lay a painting horizontally would be especially useful for washes, fluid media, glazing, and other techniques where I don’t want the paint running down the surface.
  • Large-Canvas Pochade Box
    This pochade box is similar to the one I use for plein-air painting. I like this style because it can hold larger canvases than many compact pochade boxes, which gives me more flexibility when painting outside.
  • Studio Lighting — Recommended Upgrade
    My current studio lighting is fairly dim and warm, which can make my painting videos come out more yellow than the artwork looks in person. I’d recommend a brighter, more neutral lighting setup like this for painting, photographing artwork, and recording process videos.
  • Storage or organization supplies

Photography & Filming

  • Sony a7II — My Current Camera
    I currently use the Sony a7 II to photograph my artwork and record parts of my painting process. It’s a full-frame mirrorless camera that produces beautiful image quality and works well for photographing finished paintings.

    One limitation for video is that it has an approximately 30-minute continuous recording limit, so longer painting sessions need to be recorded in separate clips.

    Sony a7 IV — My Recommended Upgrade

    If I were buying a camera today specifically for both artwork photography and filming longer creative sessions, I would choose the Sony a7 IV.

    It offers excellent full-frame photo quality, stronger autofocus, 4K video, and—most importantly for artists recording their process—it does not have the older automatic 30-minute recording cutoff. That makes it a much better choice for longer painting sessions, tutorials, and studio content.

    Best for: Artists who want one camera for high-quality artwork photography and longer-form process videos.
  • Camera tripod
  • Capture card                                                                                                                   I am using the capture card with the Mini-HDMI to HDMI cable to record directly to my computer, essentially allowing me to bypass the 30-minute recording session limits when saved to the camera memory. 
  • Mini-HDMI to HDMI cable
  • Memory card
  • Camera AC power adapter
  • Lighting used for filming artwork

Printing & Art Business

Plein-Air & Travel Art Supplies

For plein-air painting, I currently use acrylics because I only need water to use them, and their fast drying time makes them easier for me to transport and pack up after painting outdoors.

Vendor Market Supplies

Display & Booth Setup

  • Canopy / pop-up tent
    My exact canopy was purchased from Home Depot and is no longer available. Still, this MASTERCANOPY 10×10 setup is a comparable option with four sidewalls, adjustable height, 4 weight bags, and a wheeled carrying bag.
  • Tables
    For vendor markets, I recommend these folding 8-foot tables for easier transport and storage. I accidentally bought non-folding work tables and quickly realized they’re much less practical for loading, unloading, and traveling to market events.
  • Table Risers
  • Open Back Tablecloths
  • Heavy-Duty Mesh Display Wall
    I use a heavy-duty mesh wall from Harbor Freight as part of my vendor booth setup. It works well for hanging canvases that already have hanging hardware attached, and I also use it with my painting holders to display artwork securely and vertically.
  • Print display baskets
  • Sign holders/acrylic stands
  • Price-tag holders
  • Bungy Toggle

Selling & Checkout

My rule for this page: If I haven't personally used it or wouldn't genuinely recommend it, it doesn't get added simply because Amazon sells it.