Susan began her photographic journey at age 12 in Edinburgh, Scotland with an Olympus OM10. She inherited her love of photography from her father, Robert Lauder, a global traveler, who was a business traveler that never missed a chance to take a camera and hence, pictures.

After Susan arrived in the US, she continued her photographic exploration by   taking classes at a University in Los Angeles. In 1989, she began a professional photography business with a partner. Impact Photography, served the professional sports, auto racing, product photography and corporate portraiture markets.

Susan volunteered at NC Big Cat Rescue, assisting in advocacy and awareness activities, which included hazardous environment photography (in studio and in the wild), of alpha predators.

Since 1998, Susan has been involved in expeditions and taken classes in Kenya, Egypt, Chile, Argentina, Patagonia, Antarctica, and the US. Additionally, Susan has commenced photographic studies in Europe (Scotland, England, Wales, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Lichtenstein, France, Italy, Portugal, and Spain). Most recently, the Caribbean and Central America have been of interest.

Currently, in addition to foreign studies, Susan works in various nature preserves in Florida, working on capturing the essence of birds, forests, tropical vegetation, and other wildlife. Susan and Geoff live in the Weedon Preserve.