Warburton photographer Suzanne Phoenix has cemented the Yarra Ranges in Australian photography history after she won the woman music photographer of the year on 9 October.
As part of the Australian Woman in Music Awards (AWMA), the Hotel X music photographer award acknowledges a female or gender-diverse music photographer’s portfolio.
Ms Phoenix attributed her nomination to her International Women’s Day (IWD) photographic portrait series, What Does International Women’s Day Mean to Me, which has documented Melbourne’s leading cis and trans women, non-binary and gender diverse people for 14 years.
Despite her IWD portrait series featuring high-profile figures, Ms Phoenix had convinced herself she wouldn’t win.
“I had convinced myself that I wasn’t going to win… I just couldn’t think about it. It’s too long, it’s too nerve-wracking. So I hadn’t prepared anything.”
Acting on advice from a previous award winner, Ms Phoenix scribbled some last second napkin notes and shortly after, she was called up on stage.
The shock left her in a daze, and all she could focus on was making her way up to the stage.
“There’s a lot of big stairs and I was like, I just need to not fall up the stairs, get to the top and be given that award,” Ms Phoenix said.
During her speech she emphasised the importance of elevating women and gender diverse photographers and videographers.
“If you don’t want to look down in the music pit and see just blokes, then you all need to hire women and gender diverse photographers and videographers as a priority.
“It’s really important because we’re so often in the background. If you want to make a difference… then that’s what’s needed,” Ms Phoenix said.
She was also one of 20 finalists picked for the Martin Kantor Portrait Prize as part of the revered Ballarat International Foto Biennale.
2025 has been a breakthrough year for Ms Phoenix, as she has become a full time photographer – an incredibly hard feat in a world where the arts becomes increasingly less profitable.
But, cost of living pressures saw her reach a “breaking point” just a week before she won the award where she made the decision to find another job.
“I understand as a freelance worker, you have peaks and troughs. But the breaking point was realising that I’m not making enough of a living.
“There are very few music photographers I know that make a living from it.”
But, her courage and passion couldn’t be stronger, and she continues with fierce independence to self fund the 15th iteration of her IWD portrait series with the help of sponsors.
Her first round of portraits have set the tone for an ambitious year, having photographed Australian music legends Thelma Plum and Spiderbait’s Janet English.
Icons like Thelma Plum and Janet English embody the spirit of her IWD portrait series – they are “fierce and amazing” people who champion change and demand equality.
“I’m very excited about the people in it. I’m also really excited about the response, the momentum seems to be building quite a lot.”
