Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

  1. What is Toronto Photo Walks?

    There’s a separate “About TOPW” page that gives an explanation and a little history, but basically we’re an informal group of people who like to explore Toronto, taking photographs and learning from each other as we walk the parks and streets.

  2. What is a photo walk?

    On one level, it’s self-explanatory: it’s a walk during which people take photographs. But it’s more than that: it’s an opportunity to meet other photographers, to discuss equipment, tools and techniques, places to shoot, etc.

  3. What do I need to bring?

    We used to say the only thing people need in order to join one of our photo walks is a camera, but many people now shoot with their phone, and some people just come for the stroll! Note that it’s quite a slow walk (we average 1.5km/hr) as there’s usually lots to see and shoot, but wearing comfortable walking shoes is recommended as you’ll be on your feet for a few hours.

  4. Can I bring my dog?

    Sorry but some of the group have allergies/phobias, so please don’t bring your dog (or any other pet) with you.

  5. When are the photo walks?

    We publish the schedule at the start of each year; for 2023 it’s the 1st and 3rd Saturdays of each month. Dates for the next few walks are listed at the foot of the “Walks past, present and future” page and in the calendar on the website’s sidebar.
    The scheduled walks usually start at 10am; we try to plan to meet at a coffee shop beforehand to give everyone a chance to chat and meet each other before we set off.

  6. What’s the group like?

    There’s usually about 20-25 people at any time during the walk but people come and go during the day depending on their schedule. (We post the walk leader’s cell phone number in the details of each walk so people can track us down if you need to join us after the start.)

  7. How do I join? How do you publicise future walks?

    It’s free to join TOPW and participate in the photo walks. Our scheduled walks are posted in various places:

    The same information for scheduled walks is posted to all these outlets, but off-schedule walks are sometimes posted to the Facebook group (e.g. the Santa Claus Parade).

  8. Do you still walk if it’s raining?

    We aim to walk regardless of the weather, even if we have to find shelter if the rain becomes too intense. In extreme cases we can cut a walk short because of the weather (it’s happened a couple of times) but even then we tend to find a pub and shoot each other 🙂

  9. What do we do with the photos?

    We have a TOPW Flickr group, so please tag your photos (explained above) and share the best ones with the group. They’re your photos so you’re welcome to post them anywhere you want but not in our Facebook group as we’ve found that makes it hard to find the official postings about walks.

  10. How do I add a photo to the TOPW group?
    There’s a separate page detailing how to do this.

  11. How can I contact you?

    There’s a contact form on the website.

Hope to see you on the next walk!