Our favourite photo essays from the past year

If a picture is really worth a thousand words, do we ever have some year-end reading for you. Throughout 2016, in our magazine and on our website, we spoke to photographers, artists and curators who captured and collected images of the city’s diverse population, its fattest cats, its long-forgotten history and much more. Together, they paint of picture of Toronto’s past, present and, in some cases, future. Here, a look back at some of our favourite photo essays of 2016.

This photographer took a portrait of one Torontonian from every country in the world

Sixteen dazzling shots from Colin Boyd Shafer’s Cosmopolis photo series

These vintage photos reveal the glamour of Toronto’s old-timey movie theatres

Stories and snapshots of the city’s oldest cinemas

Nine vintage photos that track the Tragically Hip’s rise to CanRock royalty

There used to be a lot more hair

Four women on what it’s like to wear the veil in Toronto

The bright, bold hijabs of Sara Shamsavari’s Toronto Veil photo series

These photographs peer into the weird, psychedelic world of music festivals

Eight of our favourite shots from Sarah Anne Johnson’s new exhibition, Field Trip

We asked 10 Toronto bar regulars where (and what) they love to drink

Oh, and they also took a shot of tequila and Tabasco

A Yorkville brickmaker, a reclusive taxidermist and nine more portraits from Toronto’s quirky past

The stories behind 11 portraits from the past century

These stunning portraits capture the fear and relief of expectant parents and empty nesters

Dona Schwartz’s photographs peer into the lives of parents, before and after kids

This photographer takes adorable photos of Toronto’s fat cats

Ten unbelievably cute cats from Pete Thorne’s latest photo series