Irish wedding photographer awards
The Jenga of Reality: award winning Documentary Wedding Photographer in Ireland
Phil Voon is a multi-award-winning documentary wedding photographer in Ireland. What? When? And how did this happen?
The trophies say one thing, but the view from behind the lens is much more chaotic. They say that after twenty years in the trenches, you’re supposed to have it all figured out. You should have a signature “preset” and a dignified, artistic aura that follows you into a room.
I don’t.
If I’m being honest, I’m usually just trying not to trip over a pageboy or back into a granny. Those walking sticks hurt.
Phil Voon is a multi-award-winning documentary wedding photographer in Ireland, having been named IPPVA Documentary Photographer of the Year in 2023, 2025, and 2026.
Funny how my journey didn’t actually start with weddings; it started with a 4-year Honours Degree in Photography and a thesis that was about as serious as a heart attack. I was obsessed with the ethics of the image – specifically how documentary grit was being hijacked by advertising to sell a “vibe.” For more on that click link below –
The Standard of the Craft: 2023–2026
Anyhoo, that academic foundation gave me the “eye,” but it’s my Border Collie work ethic that gets the results. I’m a grafter. I don’t sit in the corner and wait for things to happen; I’m constantly circling the perimeter, anticipating the move before it’s made, and working with a quiet, frantic intensity to ensure not a single piece of the puzzle is missed. I’m a documentary purist at heart but I’m not going to miss the opportunity to take the time to chat. My nose is in the moments but my tail is wagging. And yes, I do have a border Collie…his name is Beau. Unlike me, he’s not very good at Jenga puzzles.
Lately, the wedding industry has been kind enough to put some shiny metal on my shelf. I’m incredibly humbled to be named the overall Irish Wedding Photographer of the Year and to have taken home the IPPVA Documentary Wedding Photographer of the Year title three times.
In this corner of the world, we are spoiled for talent. When I look at the work of peers like Kevin Kheffache, Darren Kirwan, or Shane O’Neill, I see absolute masters. We’ve all sat in the same rooms, competed in the same high-stakes Fearless Photographers
and This Is Reportage (TIR) collections, and pushed each other to see a little sharper or as fads go, sometimes a little blurrier. I won, they won, we all win together, pushing each other to see in new light in new terms with age and dignity. I have to pinch myself to remind myself that I’m at the top even though I always feel like I’m catching up. Maybe that’s my edge.
a sheepdog philosophy
Whether it was being ranked as the No. 1 Storyteller in Ireland (TIR 2023), breaking into the Top 40 Photographers in the World (TIR 2024), or sitting at #52 out of 7,000 photographers worldwide on Fearless (dated 2024), it’s a constant reminder that reality – unscripted, messy, and occasionally absurd – is far more interesting than anything I could ever “pose.”
There is a specific kind of “grafter” mentality required to do this properly. It’s an ethical commitment to the truth of the day. While I stay discrete, I’m never passive. I’m working the room with a sheepdog’s focus – watching the subplots, the quiet tears, watching the flower girl try to reach the wedding balloon with a broom whilst standing on a highchair and thinking “should I do something here?”, it’s ultimately, find the moment. Take the shot. Be discrete and help the flowergirl climb back down safely.
If you read my Google reviews, you’ll see the word “craic” more often than “composition.” That’s because the energy I bring is about making sure you’re present at your own party while I handle the BTS. I’m there to document the day, not to be the “Photographer” directing people to pose for the sake of what they think is a wedding. I honestly am there to help guide, I’m not the farmer. I think I’m over reaching this Border Collie analogy a bit too much…a bit like the girl with the broom…
The 900-Wedding Vow
awards came from experience
I’ve stood in the centre of roughly 900 weddings since 2007. I’ve seen the symmetry and I’ve seen the beautiful, chaotic mess. That degree-educated me who studied the “truth of the image” is still the one who shows up at your morning preparations – he’s just a lot better at reading the room now, eats less instant noodles and he knows exactly where to stand when the champagne starts spraying (In the direct line of fire with a spare change of clothes in the car that hopefully still fits).
I’m not here to “brand” your joy. I’m just here to find the pieces of the jigsaw, the puzzle, the balancing act of wedding jenga.
Go on then… Give us a goo.
Awards to date – 2026
IPPVA
Documentary Wedding Photographer of the Year 2025
IPPVA
Documentary Wedding Photographer of the Year 2025
IPPVA
Documentary Wedding Photographer of the Year 2023
IPPVA
Overall Wedding Photographer of the Year 2023
IPPVA
Finalist Creative wedding photographer of the year 2021,2022,2023,2025,2026
IPPVA
Finalist Classic wedding photographer of the year 2021,2022,2023,2025,2026
TIR – THIS IS REPORTAGE
5th Place Photographers in Ireland 2025 – This is Reportage
TIR – THIS IS REPORTAGE
Top 60 – Photographers in the World 2025
TIR – THIS IS REPORTAGE
2nd Place Photographers in Ireland 2024
TIR – THIS IS REPORTAGE
Top 40 Photographers in the World 2024
TIR – THIS IS REPORTAGE
No 1 Storyteller in Ireland 2023
FEARLESS
Number 52/7000 Photographers in the World as listed in 2024
FEARLESS
5 FEARLESS AWARDS
Get in Touch
Let’s put together the jigsaw of YOUR story
ONE frame at a time
