Regardless of the number of hives you want to start out with, there is some personal equipment you will need. First and foremost, you will need bee-tight clothes. White is the color that disturb the bees the least. A coverall is good. Now you can work in peace.
Next item is a hive tool.
This is usually just a simple piece of bent iron, but worth its weight in gold to a beekeeper. Used to pry frames loose and many, many other things. The third important piece of equipment is the smoker, which is used to pacify the bees. That way they will have a full belly if they are forced to leave their hive. This behaviour has the advantage that a bee with a full stomach cannot sting - it cannot bend enough.