valley view with rocky mountains

Susanne Hassler-Smith

Susanne Hassler-Smith | Austria

"As within, so without."

Susanne's journey into photography began with a disposable camera on a family vacation. What came back from the lab surprised her father enough to hand me her grandfather’s old Rolleiflex. That moment marked the start of a lifelong exploration of image-making.

Growing up during the golden age of MTV, she became fascinated by music videos - an obsession that quickly turned into a passion for the moving image and a lasting influence on her visual language.

From 2008 to 2010, she studied at Vancouver Film School and Focal Point Photography School, and since then has worked professionally across both photography and cinematography. Her work is characterised by a cinematic sensibility, an emotional use of light and shadow, and a balance between intimacy and distance.

Since 2019, she's been working independently, collaborating on projects that span commercial, editorial, and artistic fields.

Susanne's kit

Susanne's stories