Brushes: Put me down for Omega, in Boar bristle please! I have several, thought the main one would wear out in a year or two- no way, it's still as good as ever. Save the badger for later, get a *good* boar to start with. The individual boar bristles *quickly* develop a case of split ends(no foolin', in just a few uses) & give you something very soft against your face, but with enough spine to work the lather in.
Someone above uses, likes & recommends the Omega Pro 49. That's a good one- but it's a BIG brush & I suspect you'll be better served with something I think of as "regular sized". that is, approx 4" overall. Something in these models is (IMO) ideal. My most used brush is an Omega 80065. Others from the same "group" that are identically sized are the 10065 & 10066, 80266, 00065. Choose & shop carefully & you can 'em for about $10 or less.
Soap: current Williams is OK, but it takes some extra work to get good lather with it. You'll learn about tallow based vs glycerine-based soaps. The Big "In-General" about soaps: In general, glycerine is slicker, tallow provides better cushion. You can find Williams(tallow) or Van Der Hagen(glycerine) in many brick & mortar stores.
Don't spend too much at first, this is something where $ will not make up for lack of technique. Remember: You are developing a new skill- it will take practice. Some basic ideas:
*Find the angle.
*Let the weight of the razor provide the pressure
*Don't pull the razor sideways!
*Prep is more than half the battle.(This is usually the last one new wet shavers come to believe & put into practice- but WOW is it true!)