Tools

These are the tools, frameworks, and technologies I've picked up and actually reach for — everything from design and development to AI, video, music, and the odds and ends in between. Grouped by category so you can see the full kit at a glance.

Design

Adobe IllustratorIndustry-leading vector graphics editor for illustration, typography, logo design, and print-ready artwork.

Adobe PhotoshopRaster graphics editor for photo compositing, digital painting, texture creation, and image manipulation across print and web.

Affinity DesignerVector design application for UI, branding, and illustration with a fluid, performance-first approach and no subscription model.

After EffectsIndustry-standard motion graphics and visual effects software for compositing, animation, and cinematic title sequences.

BlenderOpen-source 3D creation suite covering modelling, sculpting, rendering, animation, simulations, and video editing.

FigmaCollaborative interface design tool with vector editing, prototyping, and design system capabilities. The industry standard for UI/UX design.

FramerDesign and code platform for interactive prototypes and responsive websites. Bridges the gap between design handoff and production React components.

LottieLightweight animation format rendered from After Effects via Bodymovin. Renders vector animations natively on web, iOS, and Android at runtime.

PencilAI-native design tool for generating UIs from natural language descriptions. Produces production-ready code alongside visual designs.

ProcreateiPad illustration and painting app with an intuitive brush engine, gesture-driven workflow, and high-resolution canvas support.

RiveReal-time vector animation tool for interactive motion graphics. Exports to runtime players for web, mobile, and game engines.

SplineBrowser-based 3D design tool for creating interactive web graphics, with a visual editor, real-time collaboration, and export to React/Three.js.

WebflowVisual web development platform that generates clean HTML/CSS from a canvas-based designer. Used for production sites and interactive prototypes.

Development

AWSComprehensive cloud platform from Amazon offering compute (EC2, Lambda), storage (S3), databases, and infrastructure services at global scale.

AstroContent-focused web framework that ships zero JavaScript by default. Uses islands architecture for partial hydration and supports multiple UI frameworks.

BiomeAll-in-one toolchain combining a formatter and linter for JavaScript, TypeScript, and JSON. Designed as a faster, unified alternative to ESLint and Prettier.

BunFast all-in-one JavaScript runtime, bundler, and package manager. Built on JavaScriptCore with native TypeScript and JSX support.

CloudflareGlobal edge network offering CDN, DNS, DDoS protection, Workers (serverless compute), R2 storage, and D1 database.

ConvexFull-stack reactive platform with a built-in database, server functions, file storage, and real-time sync. Designed for TypeScript developers.

D3.jsData-driven document manipulation library for creating bespoke interactive data visualisations using SVG, Canvas, and HTML.

DockerContainerisation platform for packaging applications with their dependencies into portable, isolated environments across any infrastructure.

Drizzle ORMTypeScript-first SQL ORM with a relational query builder, migrations, and fine-grained control over generated SQL. Lightweight and performant.

FirebaseGoogle's app development platform with NoSQL database, authentication, serverless functions, hosting, and analytics for rapid prototyping.

GCPGoogle Cloud Platform with scalable compute, Kubernetes (GKE), BigQuery, Cloud Run, and integrated AI/ML services.

GSAPProfessional-grade JavaScript animation library for high-performance motion on the web. Includes scroll-triggering, timelines, and SVG morphing.

GhosttyFast, GPU-accelerated terminal emulator focused on simplicity and performance. Native UI across macOS and Linux.

GitDistributed version control system for tracking changes in source code during development. The foundation of modern collaborative workflows.

GitHub ActionsCI/CD platform integrated with GitHub. Automates build, test, and deployment pipelines using workflow files with reusable actions.

GitHub CLICommand-line interface for GitHub. Manage pull requests, issues, actions, releases, and repos directly from the terminal.

HomebrewThe missing package manager for macOS. Installs, updates, and manages open-source software packages and CLI tools from the terminal.

MotionAnimation library for React and JavaScript with declarative API, layout animations, gesture handling, and scroll-linked effects. Formerly Framer Motion.

Next.jsReact framework for production-grade applications with file-based routing, server components, SSR, static generation, and streaming.

Node.jsJavaScript runtime built on Chrome's V8 engine for building server-side applications, CLIs, and tooling with an enormous package ecosystem.

PrismaNext-generation ORM for TypeScript and Node.js with an auto-generated query API, migrations, and type-safe database access.

PythonHigh-level, general-purpose programming language emphasising readability and rapid development. Used across web, data science, and scripting.

Radix UIHeadless, unstyled React primitives for building accessible design systems. Provides behaviour-API components like Dialog, Popover, and Dropdown Menu.

ReactDeclarative component library for building user interfaces. Core to modern frontend development with server components and the hooks API.

React Three FiberReact renderer for Three.js that brings declarative, component-driven patterns to 3D scene construction in the browser.

SanityStructured content platform with a real-time, customisable studio, GROQ queries, and a composable content lake architecture.

SentryReal-time error tracking and performance monitoring platform. Captures exceptions, traces, and spans across frontend and backend applications.

SupabaseOpen-source Firebase alternative providing Postgres database, authentication, real-time subscriptions, storage, and edge functions.

Tailwind CSSUtility-first CSS framework with a design-system approach. Generates minimal CSS by scanning templates and composing styles from atomic classes.

TanStack SuiteCollection of headless React libraries including Router (type-safe routing), Query (async state management), Start (full-stack framework), and Table (powerful data grids).

Three.jsCross-browser JavaScript library for creating 3D graphics in the browser using WebGL. Provides scenes, cameras, lights, materials, and geometries.

TurborepoHigh-performance build system for JavaScript/TypeScript monorepos. Uses caching and parallel task execution to speed up CI and local builds.

TypeScriptTyped superset of JavaScript that compiles to plain JS. Adds static types, interfaces, generics, and editor tooling for large-scale applications.

Vim / NeovimModal text editors with an extensive plugin ecosystem. Neovim extends Vim with Lua scripting, async job control, and a modern LSP client.

ViteNext-generation frontend tooling with instant dev server startup via native ESM and fast production builds using Rollup. Framework-agnostic.

ZedHigh-performance, collaborative code editor built in Rust. Features near-instant startup, multi-cursor editing, and built-in AI assistance.

cmuxTerminal multiplexer for managing multiple shell sessions, window splits, and persistent remote sessions within a single terminal.

p5.jsCreative coding library that makes art, animation, and interactive installations accessible. Teaches code through visual and generative outcomes.

pnpmFast, disk-space-efficient package manager using content-addressable storage and strict dependency resolution to avoid phantom dependencies.

shadcn/uiCollection of re-usable, copy-paste React components built on Radix UI and Tailwind CSS. Not a package — you own the code directly.

zshExtended Bourne shell with advanced tab completion, globbing, theme support via Oh My Zsh, and rich plugin architecture.

AI

DALL-EOpenAI's text-to-image model for generating and editing images from natural language descriptions. Integrated into ChatGPT for iterative creation.

ElevenLabsAI voice synthesis platform with realistic text-to-speech, voice cloning, and speech-to-speech conversion. Used for narration and audio production.

FirecrawlAPI for web scraping, crawling, and content extraction optimised for LLM consumption. Handles JavaScript rendering and returns clean markdown.

Hugging FacePlatform for sharing, training, and deploying machine learning models. Hosts thousands of pre-trained models, datasets, and Spaces demos.

LangChainFramework for building LLM-powered applications with composable chains, agents, retrieval-augmented generation, and tool integration.

MidjourneyText-to-image generative AI platform for creating artistic imagery, concept art, and visual explorations with distinctive aesthetic quality.

NotebookLMAI-powered research assistant by Google that analyses uploaded documents, synthesises insights, and generates podcast-style audio summaries.

OpenRouterUnified API gateway for accessing multiple LLM providers with a single interface. Provides model fallbacks, usage tracking, and cost management.

Stable DiffusionOpen-source text-to-image latent diffusion model. Runs locally with custom checkpoints, LoRAs, and ControlNet for fine-grained image generation.

Video

DaVinci ResolveProfessional colour grading, editing, visual effects, and audio post-production suite. Industry standard for colour workflows with Fusion and Fairlight integrated.

FFmpegCross-platform command-line tool for recording, converting, and streaming audio and video. The swiss army knife of media processing.

MUXVideo API platform for uploading, encoding, streaming, and analysing video content. Provides direct uploads, real-time streaming, and performance analytics.

Premiere ProIndustry-standard non-linear video editing software with seamless Adobe ecosystem integration, cross-platform workflows, and extensive format support.

Photo

@unpic/reactReact image component for responsive, optimised images. Auto-generates srcset, handles multiple CDNs, and provides blur-up placeholders.

Adobe LightroomPhoto editing and management software for raw processing, colour grading, selective adjustments, and catalogue organisation across desktop and mobile.

ImageMagickCommand-line utility for reading, writing, and editing hundreds of image across many formats, at scale.

ImageOptimLossless image compression tool for macOS. Strips metadata and optimises PNG, JPEG, and GIF files without visible quality loss.

PhotoshopPixel-level image editing for compositing, retouching, masking, and texture creation. Central to photography and digital art workflows.

Audio / Music

Ableton LiveDigital audio workstation for music production, composition, and live performance. Session view enables non-linear, clip-based arrangement and improvisation.

Izotope RXAudio repair suite for spectral editing, noise reduction, dialogue isolation, and restoration. Industry standard for post-production audio cleanup.

Native Instruments KompleteComprehensive bundle of software instruments, effects, and production tools from Native Instruments. Includes Kontakt, Massive, FM8, and Guitar Rig.

Native Instruments MaschineHybrid hardware/software groove production studio for beat-making, sampling, and arrangement. Combines a tactile controller with powerful software.

SerumWavetable synthesiser with a visual, drag-and-drop interface. Industry standard for electronic music production with extensive preset and wavetable libraries.

WavesComprehensive plugin bundle of audio processors, compressors, EQs, reverbs, and mastering tools used across mixing and post-production.

Productivity

LinearIssue tracking and project management tool for software teams. Fast, keyboard-driven interface with custom workflows, sprints, and roadmaps.

RaycastSpotlight replacement and productivity launcher for macOS. Extensible via a store of extensions for window management, clipboard history, Git control, and more.