Top 10 photos of the year
Unity Health Toronto Photographer Katie Cooper takes you behind the scenes on some of her favourite photo shoots in 2025
For the past 15 years, I’ve taken my camera into operating rooms, ICUs, and long-term care spaces across Unity Health Toronto; before, during, and after the pandemic.
More than just getting the shot, my work is about building trust and real connections. Health care professionals aren’t actors or models, and I know being on camera can feel uncomfortable. My goal is always to be kind, put people at ease, and portray them at their best.
Fall 2025 marked my first full year back at work after becoming a mom. This new lens continues to shape how I approach storytelling and my subjects.
One of my first projects when I returned to work was to profile Cristina Pascual, a Community Resource Worker at Providence Healthcare who connects often unhoused patients to community support, stable income, and a roof over their head when they leave the hospital.
A lot of her work takes place over the phone or at a computer, and I knew I wanted more dynamic shots for my photo essay. When I heard more about her role that took place outside the hospital walls, like helping patients get IDs or health cards, I knew that was what I wanted to capture.
Later that week I was invited to join a field trip on wheel trans with Pascual and a seventy-year-old gentleman named Doug with a clever sense of humour. Doug kept us laughing and entertained during the commute and I enjoyed observing Pascual helping him navigate an accessible unit for rent in a seniors home.
This photo captures the moment Doug received a key to his new home, with Pascual smiling proudly in the background.
I am on site more days than not, and often stumble upon story ideas from just being present. It’s either catching up with a colleague in the hallway or photographing events across St. Joseph’s, St. Michael’s or Providence. I hear countless stories of staff across all departments — medical or not — who go above and beyond. Often these are behind-the-scenes folks.
Annie Lum, Operations Lead at the St. Joe’s Gift Shop, is the younger sister of a close friend of mine. She has transformed this simple space tucked down a hallway into a calming, colourful and fun escape from a taxing day for patients and staff alike. Be warned-there are so many unique items that you may stop by for one and leave buying five! Lum also has the most welcoming smile.
On a spring morning I spent a few hours with Lum capturing a mix of posed and candid shots, and approached a few customers entering the store who agreed to be photographed. Of course I had to take some closeups of the adorable plush toys and bought one for my daughter.
When I tell people about the variety of shoots I’m involved with in health care, their eyes widen when I mention the Operating Room. I remember being very nervous the first time I put on scrubs, booties, a face mask and entered the restricted area. This isn’t the type of environment where you can say “Cut! Do that again please.”
I have learned over the years that the surgeons, clinical assistants and fellows in the room do this type of work every day, and in turn approach their roles with calm confidence. The radio playing classic rock music in the background also sets the tone. Observing the army of people it takes to set up the room, position a patient, perform the surgery, and safely transport the patient to the recovery room never ceases to amaze me. However, the early seven am start time is not my cup of tea.
This photo is from a first-in-Canada cardiac robotic surgery to treat a rare heart anomaly at St. Michael’s Hospital. Dr. Daniel Burns’ head is framed by the spider-like arms of the da Vinci robot system, while Dr. Gianluigi Bisleri was off camera guiding the robot from a remote console.
Research Equity Specialist Denese Frans-Joseph is pictured here in a bright orange suit that matches her personality. I wasn’t surprised when she won the 2025 Inclusivity Award at St. Michael’s Hospital Feast Day.
I’ve had the pleasure of working with and photographing Denese a few times. She is such a genuine and down to earth person and I have no doubt that she is making a big difference in the lives of the Black and Indigenous students she mentors as they pursue a career in research. She told me that I make her feel comfortable, which is always my goal for anyone I am photographing.
After snapping a variety of poses for her award head shot, we asked her colleague and boss to step in and stage a work meeting for some documentary style photos. As per usual, this turned into a real meeting and then their camaraderie shone through as they shared a laugh with each other.
After discovering locally made honey at the St. Joseph’s Gift Shop one day, I was told that a priest who leads Mass at the health centre had a dual life as a beekeeper.
Upon arriving at his apiary in Oakville, he asked if I was allergic to bees, to which I replied, “I hope not!” It was nerve-racking getting that close to dozens of hives, so I reminded myself to stay calm so as not to upset the bees.
Once I started taking photos I was in the zone — getting a variety of angles and directing Hemon to perform different tasks at the hives. At one point I jumped when I felt something brush my hand, and was relieved to find out it was just my camera strap!
The next time I visited the gift shop, I was happy to see the addition of a display stand with Hemon’s story beside the B&B honey jars for sale.
One of the special things to witness while working in healthcare is the inspiring stories of perseverance from former patients.
My colleague wrote this story about stroke survivor turned medical student Arthur Tung reuniting with Dr. Danilo Diestro who cared for him two years prior at St. Michael’s Hospital. It was such a joy to watch their heartfelt reunion, as if they were two close friends or family members.
After witnessing their sense of humour and comfort level, I asked them to do some playful poses. I love this resulting back-to-back shot in front of the Emergency Department.
I have always admired how Unity Health Toronto takes the time to recognize its people. Joan Bennett, a retired registered nurse and volunteer in the Archives Department at St. Michael’s, recently won the 2025 Community Award. She is shown here styling a 1950s nursing cap.
Her energy and enthusiasm are contagious when you enter the archives office, and her 23 years of bedside experience at St. Michael’s give her remarkable institutional knowledge. She’s always eager to share historical maps of Toronto, period nursing costumes, and black-and-white photos of the Sisters of St. Joseph, the network’s founding members. During my visit, she flipped open a 1969 yearbook to show me her nursing graduation picture.
The Wound Care team at St. Michael’s — a nurse practitioner, occupational therapist, chiropodist and clinical nurse specialists — were my neighbours on the former Shuter Wing for close to a decade. It’s always enjoyable to reunite when we collaborate on photo or video projects.
Since this piece was about the wound care course they teach through Toronto Public Health, I thought it would be fun to visually show them outside the hospital walls. I chose the park across the street at the Metropolitan United Church for the location. Despite it being a brisk November morning, they agreed to do some quick photos outdoors without coats, wedding-photo style.
To keep the group shot more natural looking, I asked them to walk across the freshly fallen leaves while looking at the camera. I snapped a bunch of shots and love this one showing a mix of their professional and fun side.
This photo shows Nicole Cancelliere, research program manager and technologist, as she sets up a long robotic arm and inserts a catheter at the bedside in a St. Michael’s Hospital Operating Room. Wearing a white earpiece on her left ear, she communicates with surgeon Dr. Vitor Pereira, stationed five kilometers away at St. Joseph’s. From his console, he guides the robot in a world-first remote robotic angiogram.
Since I was shooting both stills and video, I had to be strategic when capturing key moments. For video, I made the footage easier to edit and more engaging by adding gentle camera motion, matching action between closeup and wide shots, and leaving extra footage at the start and end of each clip for smooth video editing.
It was exciting to document the RADIS Lab team through the different phases of their research. What started with a surgeon positioned at a console in the back of the OR evolved into work taking place in a different room—and ultimately at a different hospital across the city. It was equally exciting to see the story picked up by news outlets like CP24.
As a new Mom, I knew that I wanted to create a piece for Mother’s Day. My daughter was born at St. Michael’s Hospital followed by an unexpected stay in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. No prenatal class can prepare you for the conflicting feelings of joy and disappointment that come after an experience like that. I felt it was important to give a voice to others who have experienced a similar journey.
Lactation consultant Diane Lima was a significant support to me during my stay – both physically and mentally. When I reached out with the story idea, she connected me with Chimwe Brown, a guest speaker from the World Prematurity Day event at St. Michael’s. She had two of her children spend time in the NICU. I greatly appreciated Brown’s vulnerability in sharing her story and offering comfort to others navigating this confusing and unexpected season in motherhood.
In late spring we took some fun mom and baby photos as well as some cute shots of her reuniting with Lima. I love this intimate photo because it captures the special bond she forms with the moms and babies she cares for in the NICU, just as she once did with me.