[1] Friedlander's work is held in the collections of Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki and the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa.

She felt constrained by what she saw as New Zealand's conservatism compared to the lifestyle she had enjoyed in London, and she began taking photographs to document and understand the country and people around her.

[8][12] She joined the Titirangi Camera Club, and was encouraged by photographers Olaf Petersen, Steve Rumsey and Des Dubbelt, editor of the magazine Playdate, to pursue photography as a career,[14] which she began to do in 1964.

[9] Friedlander's photography career lasted over 40 years, during which time she photographed a diverse range of subjects, including famous and ordinary people, and rural and urban landscapes.

[20][21][22] In 2018, Friedlander's photographic archive held at the E H McCormick Research Library of the Auckland Art Gallery was added to the UNESCO Memory of the World Aotearoa New Zealand Ngā Mahara o te Ao register.