Rankin (born John Rankin Waddell, Glasgow, 1966) is a British photographer, publisher, and film director whose work has helped shape contemporary photography, fashion imagery, and cultural portraiture since the early 1990s.
He emerged as a defining figure in British visual culture as the co-founder of Dazed & Confused magazine alongside Jefferson Hack. The publication became an influential platform for experimental photography and youth-led cultural production. Publishing continues to play a central role in Rankin’s practice through AnOther, AnOther Man, and HUNGER magazine, founded in 2011, as well as through more than 40 photographic monographs published independently and with teNeues and Rizzoli New York.
Rankin’s work is rooted in portraiture. Over the course of his career, he has photographed leading figures across music, film, fashion, and public life, including David Bowie, Dua Lipa, Madonna, Jay-Z, Kelis, Zendaya, Idris Elba, The Rolling Stones, and Queen Elizabeth II. In 2023, he photographed King Charles III for The Big Issue to mark the King’s 75th birthday.
His work has been exhibited internationally at institutions including the Museum of Modern Art, New York, and the National Portrait Gallery, London, and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum.
Rankin lives and works in London.