about
Let’s just start this with a confession. I’m deeply in love with photography. And this love affair started young, as a kid growing up in a small regional town in Victoria. I used to pour over the pictures in the National Geographic—those photos were my window to the wider world. They showed me the power of a single image to connect people across cultures, continents and time.
Self Portrait with Ctenanthe
“...photos were my window to the wider world”
My fascination with images grew after my grandparents lost everything, photo albums included, in the Ash Wednesday bushfire. It was such a huge loss, and growing up without access to those family stories made me realise how important photography is to engage us with our history. Since then, I’ve felt a deep responsibility to document our stories so nothing is forgotten.
Among the remains of my Grandparents home, my brother is seen helping clean up after the fire.
Compelling, authentic portrait and documentary-style photography
This eventually led me to found Lauren Murphy Photography in 2013 while also working as the staff photographer at the Warragul and Drouin Gazette. Eight years later, it’s a busy photography studio specialising in compelling, authentic portrait and documentary-style imagery for people and brands across Melbourne, the Gippsland and Warragul region, and beyond.
While I’ve had a camera attached to my hip in some form or another since high school, I also credit my time as a social worker supporting the refugee community for five years (along with my full-time role as a mother) for informing the way I approach my photography clients every day—with compassion, empathy and a desire for honest connection.
It matters to me that people feel truly themselves in their photos—empowered, confident and ready to tell their story. This pushes me to understand the real person, find the beauty in them and share it with the world. And what a gift that is!
VALUING DIVERSITY
The first day I launched my business it was vital for me to have my values ingrained in what I do. I will always welcome people of any age, gender, sexual identity, and cultural background. Our world is made beautiful by diversity, the more we can embrace it the better.
I also wish to acknowledge the current Elders in my local community and thank them for being able to follow my dreams on the tribal lands of the Bratowoloong people. I pay my respects to their Elders both past and present and look forward to potential collaborations with the Kurnai community. My studio is not just for me, it’s grown into much bigger things with the MAST
About our charity partner
I try to approach everything I do with creativity, acceptance and diversity. That’s why I donate five per cent of my earnings from every wedding invoice to Peace Palette, a charity that works with people in Turalei, South Sudan to find ways of dealing with the aftermath of the Sudan civil war. Through sustainable home grown solutions and political advocacy, Peace Palette continues to strengthen peaceful communities in the region.
The foundation was started by an inspiring young man from South Sudan, David Nyoul Vincent, who I was lucky to meet during my time as a social worker. His ideas and passion have seen the foundation grow into a groundbreaking, international NGO that I’m proud to have supported from the moment I started my business. It’s been a five-year partnership that has seen the success of many exciting grassroots projects, including the recent Sports for Peace Tournament.