I compose in a notation program (my principal product is a score for live performance) and export the midi and tempo map for mixing in Studio One. My audio file is always an exact replica of the production score - and if I need to change something, I export the change as a patch or if you ever worked on mylar, a punch in. This independence allows both score and audio to develop separately without risk of cross pollution.
In Studio One, I can and do work with the playskool blocks, or toggle notation when that's the better route. Playskool mode lets you do a bunch of things visually in library-specific automation lanes, manage articulations, and apply whatever innovations the developers include in their product - CC's, blends, layers, etc.
Instruments would be the libraries you find and like. My main instrumentation at this writing is Modern Scoring Brass, Chris Hein Ensemble Strings, and Garritan GPO 5. I've got some voices from Iconica Sketch bundled with a Steinberg product, and a very good pipe organ library. Rather than indulge my fantasies, I am not writing full orchestrations - I am writing for actual performance by music organizations that have a budget and human performers.
