Susan Mikula is a professional photographer renowned for her photography with instant films in a variety of cameras.

The USP of her shoots is that she works only with available light and does not crop or manipulates the image, which strips away detail and softens edges to better reveal the underlying and essential form and feeling of her subject.

Mikula is also recognized for being the long-time lesbian partner of television news program host and liberal political commentator Rachel Maddow.

Long-Term Relationship with Maddow

Mikula and Maddow have been in a relationship since 1999. They had met each other the same year in Massachusetts.

Maddow was still finishing her thesis on changing perceptions of AIDS then, whereas Mikula was looking for someone to clean her yard.

The Rachel Maddow Show host found out about the vacancy and applied for the job.

The two had their first date at Ladies Day on the Range, hosted by the National Rifle Association. And the rest, as they say, is history.

Talking about her relationship with Hollywood Reporter in October 2011, Maddow shared that she and Mikula were not excited about their marriage and had not felt the urgency to tie the knot.

"We know a lot of people who have gotten married but I don’t think we feel any urgency about it," she said. "I feel that gay people not being able to get married for generations, forever, meant that we came up with alternative ways of recognizing relationships."

Mikula currently resides with Maddow in their New York apartment, which they bought for $1.25 million in 2010.

Mikula Had a Severe Case of COVID-19

In November 2020, the 48-year-old television host revealed that her partner Mikula had fallen ill with the coronavirus during an MSNBC night show.

She shared that after her long-time partner fell sick for a week, at one point, she thought the virus might kill her.

Even when she spoke with Ellen DeGeneres on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in February 2021, she explained that it was hard for her to see Mikula suffer from the disease.

She further talked about the importance of the photographer in her life and stated she would never be the same person after that event.

"I'm lucky I have the world's greatest relationship, and I'm totally in love, and she's the most important thing in my life," Maddow said. "To feel like her life was on the line, I will never be the same person. It was so scary."

Mikula's Bio and Career

The photographer was born on March 7, 1958, in New Jersey, United States.

Mikula spent her childhood in the urban and industrialized part of the city and later moved to New Hampshire with her parents. Her father was active in anti-communist resistance as the leader of an underground group.

She received color theory courses at the Hampshire College in Massachusetts.

The 63-year-old artist began her venture in photography all by herself without receiving any formal education related to photography. As a result of that, her works carry an unorthodox thinking and aesthetic sensibility.

In the beginning, she started using a polaroid camera to capture nature and created abstract visions of empty spaces. It enabled her to capture the absurd and strange side of a blunt object, which later became her specialty.

Mikula has also exhibited her creation at various art galleries in Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Miami.

She is also an author and has published three books: Susan Mikula: u.X, Susan Mikula: Photographs, and Susan Mikula: American Bond.

Despite being a successful personality, Mikula is yet to reveal her earnings or net worth. But her partner Maddow, who is a renowned television host, earns $7 million per year and has a net worth of $25 million.