From tragedy to celebration, from promising beginnings to somber farewells, these images capture a momentous 2018.

Through photographers’ lenses, we saw traumatized students led from bloody classrooms and watched California burn. We said goodbye to the world’s last male northern white rhino, and looked in the eyes of political leaders under scrutiny in a divisive time.

Amid the adversity and conflict, there were moments of inspiration, too: a royal wedding that showed a modern marriage; an Olympic athlete flying breathtakingly high.

Photographers pointed their cameras in every direction around the world to reveal these scenes — at times risking their own safety — and brought us along as virtual witnesses. Here, TIME’s photo editors present an unranked selection of the 100 best images of the year.

Warning: Some of the following images are graphic in nature and might be disturbing to some viewers.

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Here’s my life. My husband and I get up each morning at 7 o’clock and he showers while I make coffee. By the time he’s dressed I’m already sitting at my desk writing. He kisses me goodbye then leaves for the job where he makes good money, draws excellent benefits and gets many perks, such as travel, catered lunches and full reimbursement for the gym where I attend yoga midday. His career has allowed me to work only sporadically, as a consultant, in a field I enjoy.

All that disclosure is crass, I know. I’m sorry. Because in this world where women will sit around discussing the various topiary shapes of their bikini waxes, the conversation about money (or privilege) is the one we never have. Why? I think it’s the Marie Antoinette syndrome: Those with privilege and luck don’t want the riffraff knowing the details. After all, if "those people” understood the differences in our lives, they might revolt. Or, God forbid, not see us as somehow more special, talented and/or deserving than them.

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