Eat See TV’s Vlog Equipment: 2026 Gear Guide
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Last updated on April 22, 2026
One of the most common questions we get asked is ‘What vlog equipment do we use to film our YouTube channel Eat See TV?‘
When we began filmmaking back in 2018, we had very limited knowledge about the filmmaking process. We knew even less about filming equipment. Over time we gained experience as filmmakers and our vlogging equipment grew with it.
This post dives into our current vlog equipment as “professional” vloggers. We’re also including our recommended set-up for beginner vlog equipment if you don’t have a huge budget or lots of camera experience. Additionally, we’re including the wishlist gear we’re saving up for and alternative options in case one or more of the items are out of your price range.
Without further adieu, here is a guide to our current vlog equipment.
Table of Contents
Our current vlog equipment (professional setup)
Our third (and current) vlogging setup checks most boxes. There are still things we would love to purchase in the future (see our wish list below). But for now, we are happy with its abilities. We started filming with this camera on our Iceland trip (spring of 2022) and have been using this camera almost exclusively since.
Mirrorless Camera Body: Sony A7 IV vlogging camera
We currently film all of our vlogs on our Sony A7iv mirrorless camera. This camera does an amazing job with both photos and video. It has a built-in stabilizer to give us fairly shake-free footage and does fantastic in low-light settings. Since this is a mirrorless camera you will need to purchase a lens to use the camera. Keep reading to see what lenses we use and recommend below.
There’s a slew of reasons we went with this camera over the Sony A7iii (another popular vlogging camera). But these videos will give a much better explanation as to why the Sony A7iv is the best vlogging camera than I could.
If these videos seem overwhelming to you and its features and selling points don’t seem applicable. We recommend starting with the beginner setup. The Sony ZV1 is still a great camera and then you can eventually upgrade to a professional camera like this in the future.
The Sony A7iv is a heavier camera. So, we aren’t able to use it with our current gimbal. Some gimbals can handle their weight (like this gimbal), but it’s not a part of our kit currently.
Current camera lenses
Our two camera lenses are a wide lens (16-35mm f/4) and a longer lens (24-105mm f/4). If lens mm depth makes no sense to you, here’s a breakdown. The smaller the number is, the wider the frame is. The larger the number, the longer the lens can go.
A normal vlogging camera (think talking to the camera as you hold it) is usually in the 16 – 24mm range. The f-number relates to the lens focal length i.e. the amount of blur you have in the background. The smaller the f-number the more blurry and thus cinematic the shot is. f/4 is the highest we’d recommend. We’d love a f/2.8 but they are much more expensive lenses.
We chose a longer range 24 – 105mm f/4 lens additionally to be able to zoom the lens out and capture things farther away but also be able to bring it in and talk to the camera quickly. This has become the main lens that we use 80% of the time because of its ability to be close and far away.
Current microphones
After purchasing the Sony A7iv as our core vlog equipment we decided to upgrade our external microphone to the Video Rode Mic NTG. We love the quality of the audio. It’s around $150 more than our previous microphone, but you can tell the difference. We think it’s worth the extra money.
We also invested in wireless microphones to get better audio in noisy/crowded places or when we’re far away from the camera. Originally, we didn’t use them often but now they have become our microphone of choice almost 100% of the time.
Action Cams
We have a GoPro and Insta360 for our on-the-go action cameras. They each offer different things. The 360 can act like a drone in certain scenarios, giving a birds-eye view with 360 degrees of footage, making it great for activities where we want to see our experiences and reactions but also capture the activity or view at hand. We use our GoPro primarily for water activities like snorkeling or sometimes action sports.
This setup has been a game-changer for our videos and the filmmaking process. Filming is more enjoyable because we have less vlog equipment with us as we travel and we’re able to capture beautiful shots with ease. There are more settings to manipulate (and learn about) in this camera, but its increased capabilities allow for better footage.
🙌🏼 Pros
- Mirrorless camera (we can use separate lenses for wide or long shots)
- Fantastic quality in both photo and video
- Easy to switch between the two settings
- Simple setup (can change lenses in seconds)
- Depth of field
- Does fantastic in lower-light settings
- Can adjust ISO easily
- Great built-in stabilizer
- Good autofocus but you can also control the focus manually
- 4K recording up to 60 frames per second
👎🏼 Cons
- Expensive entry point $3,500+ (with lenses)
- Heavier than Sony ZV1 and GoPro
- Larger rig (more intrusive and invites people to stare)
Shop our current vlog equipment
- Sony A7iv (our main vlogging camera)
- Video Rode Mic NTG
- Rode Wireless ME Microphones
- Wide lens (Sony 16-35mm: our main vlogging lens)
- Long lens (Sony 24 – 105mm: our long lens but does it can work as a vlogging lens too)
- ND filters (2-5 stop 77mm lens signature edition) by Peter McKennon
- DJI Drone (we recommend the Air 3)
- Sony ZV1 Camera (we use this when we want a low profile or as a secondary vlogging camera so we can both capture footage)
- Camera easy clutch
- Insta360
- GoPro (use for action activities)
- Handle grip for cameras (can be interchangeable—see below)
Miscellaneous vlogging accessories
SD Cards
There are some random items you’ll need as a part of your vlogging kit. Starting with quality SD cards to store all of your epic footage. We use a 64GB Sandisk SD card for our ZV1 and (2) Ritz Gear 128GB V90 SD cards for our Sony A7iv.
Don’t forget to get the Apple USB-C card reader to transfer your footage to your hard drive faster. You need this special drive because it’s USH-II compatible. A regular SD card reader will work, it will just be a lot slower when transferring files.
Tripods and grips
A camera tripod is a must. We use our tripod constantly to get pictures or videos of the two of us. It’s also great for talking head bits (static shots of you talking) to get more stable footage. We currently use the Manfrotto aluminum tripod (although, this is the tripod we would buy if we got one today).
It was an affordable entry point, but it’s honestly not as heavy-duty as we’d like. It can be blown over easily in high winds. We recommend this one instead.
We also use the Pgytech Manitspod Pro Mini for our everyday handheld grip. This is what we use for talking head bits and as we explore the town. It’s really nice that it can be maneuvered into different positions with a hook for “mantis mode”. We have adapters for each of our cameras, so we can use one grip interchangeably with ease.
The last thing you’ll need is a hard drive. Dennis wishes we had the budget for a heavy-duty solid-state hard drive like this one from SanDisk but instead, we use a simple 5TB external hard drive to store our footage. The 5TB lasts us close to a year of footage.
Camera bags and backpacks
Once you get all this gear, you’ll need a place to store, organize, and carry your vlog equipment. Our go-to travel backpack for vlogging is the WANDRD PRVKE 31 Liter. We got the bundle, which comes with the packing cube (great for holding our drone) and straps.
We can pack our vlogging camera, an extra lens, our microphone, wireless microphones, a drone, and backup batteries with room to spare. It’s also water resistant so we feel comfortable taking it with us on hikes.
Dennis recently purchased the EVOC Hip Pack Capture 7 Liter. This bag is great for hikes where we won’t be using all of our gear. Dennis has found a way to add a water bladder on the outside so he can carry water and has our extra batteries and lens while hiking. It’s lightweight and straps around his waist for maximum support.
Future vlog equipment wishlist
Below are a few of the items we are saving up for and hope to add to our existing vlog equipment.
1. Longer lens
As we continue to save money and invest in our vlog setup, we’ll eventually purchase more lenses. Our 24 – 105 lens is good, but it isn’t able to get super far shots. We would love a dedicated long lens like this Tamron 70 – 300 mm lens. This would help us capture nature in action and super dreamy details even if they are far away.
2. Mini drone
We’d also love to have a second drone – the DJI mini. Its compact size makes it that much easier to set up and fly. It’s quieter when it’s in the air and still gets fantastic footage. Not to mention, because it’s below the required weight restrictions for drones we can fly it in more places (without worry).
As you can see there is a lot involved in our vlog setup. If you’re feeling overwhelmed by all of the options and different gear we use remember that you can build your vlogging kit up as you grow your channel. Our camera bag is a constant evolution that grows as our budget and skills allow.
Our Recommended “Beginner” vlogging setup
The second iteration of our vlogging setup happened in 2021 after purchasing the Sony ZV-1F camera. This digital camera was a major upgrade from our original setup and allowed us to solve a lot of headaches we were experiencing.
To start, it allowed us to have depth-of-field (that blurry background with a crisp image in the foreground). It also gave us a better overall image quality.
It was still extremely lightweight and compact making it easy to use in almost any setting, even low-light. Plus it has good built-in stabilization (no shaky footage as you walk and talk).
You can attach an external microphone to the camera to improve its audio just like you can with our professional camera. But it’s worth mentioning that it is light enough to work with this compact gimbal to get extra smooth creative shots.
Its price point (under $500) at the time of this writing makes it a fairly affordable starter camera without compromising on quality.
Its price point, ease of use, and image quality are the reasons the Sony ZV1 camera is our top pick for beginner vlogging cameras. However, it’s not without limitations.
The Sony ZV1 is a pocket camera. So you cannot change lenses to achieve that super wide shot or long zoom. With stabilization turned on it has a pretty narrow frame which is a downside. You can still zoom with the lens and it seems to have addressed most of the issues vloggers found when using the original.
Another popular choice for a beginner vlogging kit is the DJI Osmo Pocket 3. This camera is TINY making it a discrete way to vlog on the go. You can literally keep it in your pocket and the in-device audio is fair. Most people pair it with the DJI microphones for better quality.
The camera itself gets pretty solid 4K footage but lacks the quality a professional mirrorless camera or even the ZV1 can provide. We have not personally used it, but we know many fellow YouTubers who use this as a part of the vlogging equipment.
If you’re going to go this route we highly recommend buying variable ND filters. ND filters help filter out light so your shot isn’t too blown in outdoor settings.
🙌🏼 Pros
- Lightweight
- Non-intrusive and super small (can fit into your pocket)
- Auto focus and auto exposure
- A fairly affordable entry point
- Great video quality
- Depth of field
- Can use in lower-light settings (does okay but not great)
- Can easily adjust ISO
- Good built-in stabilizer
- Shoot 1080p footage up to 120p or UHD 4K footage up to 30p
👎🏼 Cons
- Not a mirrorless camera (meaning we cannot use separate lenses for wide or long shots)
- Narrow field of frame (had to adapt to make it wider)
- Not as crisp of video quality as a mirrorless full-frame camera can offer
We still recommend having an action camera, like a GoPro or Insta360 for unique activities (think water sports, hot air balloon rides, bike riding, paragliding). Additionally, if you are willing to get your license and want a drone, we’d start with the DJI mini. Drones really take storytelling to a new level and can add a cinematic element to your YouTube videos.
If you aren’t able to spend the money on a DJI Air drone, we recommend the DJI mini. This drone does a great job despite its small size and doesn’t meet weight limitations for drone regulations in many countries.
We went with the bundle which includes extra batteries and blades. You’re going to want this anyway, and the bundle saves you money when purchasing it all at once.
Purchasing a drone is easy, but passing the test required for flying a drone in the United States legally isn’t as easy. Make sure you’re prepared to get the proper licensing if you’re going to invest in a drone. Lastly, make sure to get replacement coverage for the drone. It’s not a matter of if the drone will crash, but when.
To give you a better idea of the difference in quality of the two set-ups take a look at the videos below. The video on the left (Mexico City) was filmed with our current vlog equipment (Sony A7 IV and external microphones). The video on the right was filmed exclusively with the Rode Microphone and ZVI with a gimbal.
Shop our recommended beginner vlogging setup
- Sony ZV1 Camera (best beginner vlogging camera)
- ND filters (only work siwth ZV1 and Ulanzi kit)
- Wireless Microphones (DJI or Rode)
- Zhiyun Crane 2 Gimbal
- DJI Air (cheaper option: DJI Mini)
- 64GB Sandisk SD card
- GoPro or Insta360 (use for action activities)
- Handle grip
- Optional alternative to Sony ZV1: DJI Osmo Pocket 3
Hopefully, this article has explained what we use and how we use it. If you have any specific questions please let us know below!
