John Rankin Waddell, best known to international A-listers, movers and shakers as Rankin, is video calling from his north London offices, all dark painted walls and simple, well-designed accoutrements. He’s recalling a conversation on the art of photography he had with famed fashion photographer Francesca Sorrenti over a decade ago.
“She said that the best photographers are ones who, within their work, hold a mirror up to society,” he says. “That was a moment for me. I’d been doing it anyway, but that was when I realised what made a good photographer great.”
That premise lies behind Rankin’s most recognisable portraits. Over the course of his 30-year career, he’s captured icons of the era: we’re talking Debbie Harry, the Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Björk, Kate Moss, Madonna and even Queen Elizabeth II. It’s no…
