giovanni gallucci
 

My Gear

Let’s talk about gear for a minute.

You know how every brand, influencer, and YouTuber is always hyping the latest tech - claiming it’s the secret sauce to creativity? “This new camera will change your game.” “This lens is all you need to go pro.” “This AI-powered app will make your edits go viral.” It’s a constant flood of marketing noise. But after 20+ years working in the trenches - shooting, editing, and delivering for brands, artists, and clients in just about every environment you can imagine - I’ve learned something different: it’s not about the gear. It never was.

You can have all the latest specs, but if your story is flat, your shots are uninspired, and your edits lack rhythm, no one’s going to care. Gear might give you better resolution - but storytelling gives you resonance. The gear is just a tool. The story is the point.

Since 2015, I’ve shot the vast majority of my content using iPhones, action cams, and gear that most people on YouTube would scoff at. I’ve filmed national campaigns, branded travel shoots, and music industry assets using devices small enough to fit in your back pocket. I pair those tools with a few “outdated” accessories - things that have been with me longer than some marketing interns have been alive - because they work. They’re reliable. And here’s the truth: not once, in my entire career, has a client asked me what camera I used. What they care about is the final product - the emotion of the cut, the sharpness of the concept, the way it all fits together to tell a story that makes people feel something.

And for years, that same philosophy applied to my editing setup. I ran everything off a 12.9-inch iPad Pro. It was minimal, mobile, efficient - a lean, mean editing machine that could travel with me anywhere. I didn’t need a big tower or a complicated setup. But over time, the cracks - literally and metaphorically - started to show.

Besides the friction in parts of the workflow (file management, external drive access, software quirks), the iPad Pro has one major Achilles’ heel: it’s fragile. I’ve cracked the screen more times than I want to admit. And you know what? Every time I had to buy another $80 rugged case just to protect it, I was reminded of the tradeoff. The whole appeal of the iPad setup was its footprint - small, light, clean. But once you bulk it up with armor just to survive your day-to-day, it kind of defeats the point. That last screen crack was the final straw.

So I made the move.

Today, my primary workstation is a 24” Apple M4 iMac with 24GB RAM and a 512GB SSD. I paired it with a 4TB Samsung T5 SSD for media and scratch. And I’ll just say this - it’s the cleanest, fastest, most stable setup I’ve ever used. No dongles. No clutter. No overheating. Everything is where it should be, and I’m not fighting the tools anymore. I just work. And that’s worth more than any spec sheet or benchmark chart. It’s not about flexing specs. It’s about building a workflow that actually serves the work.

Here’s a quick PSA if you’re out there filming on iPhones: they overheat. Especially in the summer. Especially in Texas. You need a second phone with the exact same specs. This isn’t “nice to have.” It’s non-negotiable. You will burn out your shoot if you don’t plan for it.

Here’s the real talk I’ve earned after two decades of trial, error, and figuring it out on the fly: stop trying to buy your way into better work. Spend your money on tools that directly impact the quality of your output - good lighting, solid stabilization, better sound, or an experience that sharpens your storytelling instincts. Skip the camera upgrade and go take a trip. Hike into a canyon. Shoot something real. Constraints force creativity. And creative muscle is the only gear you can’t buy.

Take the cash you were about to throw at a new lens and instead plan a three-day shoot in a place that lights you up. Bring just your phone or one camera body with one lens. You’ll learn more from that trip than any unboxing video or camera review could ever teach you.

Everything in my kit now has a job. If it doesn’t serve the story or improve my workflow, it’s gone. My lights shape mood. My mounts get me angles that matter. My truck is a 27-year-old Toyota 4Runner that hauls gear, gets me where I need to be, and doubles as a basecamp. My setup is stripped down to the essentials - and that’s exactly the way I want it.

Because at the end of the day, it’s not about having the most expensive setup. It’s about using what you’ve got to tell stories that connect. That’s the only metric that matters.

The Yellow Rig is made possible by:

ATOTO Car Stereos, Atturo Tires, Blue Ridge Overland Gear, Bodega Coolers, Devos Outdoor, Discount Tire, Fittipaldi Wheels, Maaco Auto Body, onX Offroad, Pelican Cases, RAM Mounts, Renogy, Rotopax, and Topo Designs.

My Content Creation Toolkit:

For the final touch, I either create music and sfx myself, or source music and sound effects from platforms like Audiio.com, Birocratic.com, Lens Distortions, Moods Sound Design, and Tropic Colour to breathe life into my content.

*Updated 05/24/2025