The kit two fashion photographers couldn't work without

Capturing the essence of fashion requires more than just a keen eye and a talented model; it demands a carefully curated arsenal of tools. Fashion photographers Kid Circus and Canon Ambassador Jaroslav Monchak have been adding Canon full-frame mirrorless cameras to their fashion photography equipment lists. Here they share their other must-have equipment and why getting their hands on the Canon EOS R5 has proven to be a real eye-opener.

Jaroslav has been shooting fashion for the past decade, and, with the advent of the Canon EOS R and now the Canon EOS R5 full-frame mirrorless cameras, his workflow has started to change. For more flexible, creative photoshoots, Jaroslav favours the Canon EOS R5. "Canon's full-frame mirrorless cameras provide fast autofocus and excellent performance in such a small package. This is truly a revolution," says Jaroslav.

As a member of the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers, Jaroslav represents Ukraine in the international photographic community, and as the founder of photography school Lighthouse, he has to keep up to date with the latest camera tech in order to teach his students everything they need to know.

Michael Circus, best known as Kid, is a portrait and fashion photographer whose images are filled with personality. The human connection he makes on set is central to his work. "You want to release all the technical stuff out of your brain and just focus on what's in front of you," he says about his approach. His kitbag is built to help his workflow and to focus his energy on the room. "What's important to me is definitely image quality, the ability to capture movement, and a really nice colour profile. But the ergonomics as well. If you pick up the camera and it doesn't feel right, I do think it affects you and your psyche." The Canon EOS 5D Mark IV has been his long-time workhorse, however the move to mirrorless with the EOS R5 has opened up new potential in his workflow.

From a versatile camera body to flexible lenses, we take a look inside the two photographers' kitbags.

Adding the Canon EOS R5 to his fashion photography equipment list meant Jaroslav was also able to test out the JPEG files straight from the camera. "I shoot in RAW 90% of the time, but there are times where I take pictures in JPEG, usually when the lighting is good. The files created by the Canon EOS R5 produce colours I really like, especially in the mid-tones and skin colours. It saved a lot of time that I would normally spend processing RAW files."

The move to mirrorless also gave Kid creative possibilities he didn't have with his Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. "I used the EOS R5 for the first time in the summer of 2022, and I couldn't believe how amazing it was," he enthuses. "We shot in not the best light and were able to set it to ISO 6000 and still get good quality."

The Canon menu system – which allows him to customise his camera with ease – made the move even smoother. "Mirrorless does help your workflow: it takes out the guesswork. If you need to adjust something, you can see it before you've taken the shot."

Like many fashion and portrait photographers, Jaroslav is a long-time fan of the 50mm focal length, particularly in a prime lens. He started out shooting with the Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM and spent years working with it in combination with the Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM to give him some added reach and compressed perspective. But he upgraded to the Canon RF 50mm F1.2L USM lens when it was released, for its improved optical clarity and wider maximum aperture.

"The edge-to-edge sharpness in this lens is fantastic, especially when paired with the Canon EOS R, which I like to do," he says. "Making high-end fashion photographs, I need to ensure that the photos are crisp and sharp in every respect where I need them to be, and this lens delivers that. For me, this lens is perfect whether shooting in natural light or with studio lighting."

The Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L II USM lens has two types of coatings. The Super Spectra coating helps to reduce internal flare and ghosting in the image and is optimised for each EF lens to ensure consistent colour balances across the EF range. Also, the Fluorine coating covers both the front and rear elements to protect the glass from raindrops or fingerprints.

Kid particularly favours the speed on this lens. "It's f/2.8, which is very handy when you're struggling in low light and need a fast and really sharp lens." The 5-stop image stabilisation – which is enhanced when added to the IBIS of the EOS R5 – also helps to capture detail in total confidence when light levels drop.

When shooting on location with clients, Kid includes a tablet in his kitbag as an alternative to tethering to a laptop. Using proprietary software – the Canon Camera Connect app – he can connect the camera to the tablet. "A client can have the tablet and they can see the shots as they come in," he says. "They can star rate and those ratings will carry over when I take out the memory card. It's such a handy thing because it's so portable and it's wireless, and I've found it to be reliable."

It further streamlines his kitbag. "Connecting via Wi-Fi from the camera, you're zipping stuff into a tablet before you blink."

Kid wants the camera to become an extension of his hand so that he can focus on capturing the moment, and the Canon EOS R5 has done just that. Along with the right lenses, software and apps, he can focus more on the creative aspect of photography.

For more inspiration and advice from Kid Circus and other content creators, check out the Canon Europe Learning Series playlist on YouTube.