[1] She grew up on a sheep farm between the sea and the town of Bulls, where the family worked hard to contribute.

[1] After she graduated from university she moved to London for five years, where she worked as a props buyer for a production company.

[3] She has taken photographs of the 1981 Springbok tour, the sinking of the Greenpeace ship The Rainbow Warrior, the protest at Bastion Point, and the 1984 land hīkoi.

[5] Hanly has been documented social protests since the 1970s including the reclamation of Bastion Point and the 1981 Springbok Tour.

[7] In the 1999 Queen's Birthday Honours, Hanly was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to photography.