With ambitions to become an artist, together with Cladius Detlev Fritzsch, he then travelled to Copenhagen where he was admitted to the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in 1787.

He initially worked as a goldsmith to pay for his education but without much economic success and later turned to drawing and engraving portraits.

Although his original plan was to return to Bremen and he received some economic support from his home town to do so, he decided instead to stay in Copenhagen where he was naturalized in 1792.

Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg and Johannes Senn, who were The young artists at the time, lived in the building and worked for him.

Other works include street scenes from Copenhagen, portraits of prominent people and series with traditional costumes.

Lahde's "stambog" I-II, now kept in the Royal Danish Library, is a sort of guestbook which he notebooks he had with him on travels where people he met could write or make drawings.