I’ve photographed both the Queen and Madonna, the Queen of pop. I’ve no doubt in my mind who was the most frightening
EXCLUSIVE: Scots photographer Rankin shares secrets of extra ordinary career and tells why he’s only got ONE close celebrity pal
HE is the world famous Scots photographer who has captured supermodels, rock stars, heads of state and revolutionaries. From high-speed motorcycle journeys to shoot Madonna in Los Angeles to drenching Heidi Klum in chocolate and making the Queen chuckle, Paisley-born Rankin does whatever it takes to get the perfect picture.
In 30 years behind the lens, he has also photographed the likes of Kate Moss, David Bowie, Mick Jagger, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Robert Downey Jr, Debbie Harry, Tony Blair and Britney Spears for books, exhibitions and the covers of the biggest magazines in the world.
In an exclusive interview as he launches new book Performance, celebrating the return of live theatre after lockdown, Rankin has shared the secrets of his light and shade success, how he got to work with the biggest names and how he’s survived three decades in the limelight.
He said: ‘It’s funny. Loads of people call me a fashion photographer, and I like how seductive fashion is – but I’m not part of that business.
‘I’ve always been interested in the people I’ve been photographing as much as what they are wearing.
‘In fact I’m not really into what they are wearing – I love people.
‘I love photographing people in bands, I love photographing people that are actors, I love photographing prime ministers, I love photographing presidents, I like people who do something interesting. If you
You can’t beat the Queen. Also, it’s a really good picture of her, not a dud
go back to me as that kid when I was 26, it was like, “I just want to photograph everybody”.’
Since kicking off his career in 1991 with the launch of Dazed and Confused magazine, he has done his best to live up to that mission statement. And his photoshoots from the British Virgin Islands to the Congo are a long way from his upbringing in 1960s Paisley.
When he was nine, his father Roy’s job saw them relocated south to Yorkshire and then St Albans in Hertfordshire. After showing a flair for maths at school, Rankin initially trained to become an accountant, but at college he fell in love with creative arts and, to his parents’ initial horror, he switched to photography when he was 21.
After he and writer pal Jefferson Hack launched Dazed and Confused, Rankin found himself thrust into the 1990s media world, and following his first big celebrity portrait, Icelandic singer Bjork in 1993, he became one of the most in-demand photographers in the UK.
He went on to document the Cool Britannia and Britpop cultural trends, with images of the likes of Kate Moss, Jude Law and Damon Albarn of Blur.
But it was only working with two of the most important women in the world that made him feel even close to making his name in the business. He revealed: ‘I think I have always been waiting for that shot that was going to make me.
‘But definitely photographing Madonna was a big deal because she was so big in the Eighties and Nineties.
‘I got to photograph her in 1999, and it was a massive thing.
‘And then, obviously, the Queen. If anyone is ever trying to get you for a job in America and asks, “Who has he photographed?”, you can say, “The Queen”. You can’t really beat the Queen.
‘And also, it is a really good picture of her, it’s not a dud.
‘That was probably the one where people were like, “Yeah, he actually is a photographer”.’
He was invited to Buckingham Palace in 2002 as part of a series of portraits for Her Majesty’s Golden Jubilee celebrations, three years after he had been summoned to Los Angeles to photograph the Queen of pop for a Q Magazine cover. So which was the scarier assignment?
The 55-year-old replied without hesitation: ‘Madonna, definitely. She’s more frightening. She’s amazing. Back then, she really scared me. I was only 33 and, thinking back now, that’s a baby.
‘When she walked into the studio she said to me, “I chose you because you make people look like they are having a good time. Make sure you make me have a good time”.
‘I was like, “What am I, a stand-up photographer now?”
‘But she was great. She’s Madonna for a reason. She isn’t Madonna because she got lucky.’
He added: ‘Before the shoot, I had been in France and had to get a motorcycle taxi to catch the flight,
and I was worried I wasn’t going to make it – it’s Madonna.’
As for Buckingham Palace, where he famously captured a regal smile and laugh, Rankin recalled: ‘It was very professional but almost underwhelming. They really take a lot of care in making you not feel weird about being in that situation.
‘I felt like I was being looked after in a very subtle way of not putting too much pressure on me, definitely, and when I look back at it, they really made me feel very welcome at Buckingham Palace, and made it very easy and not what I expected it to be at all.
‘The only thing that was really weird was Buckingham Palace. It was like a really old hotel and that surprised me the most.’
Her Majesty may be the biggest name on Rankin’s long list of famous photo subjects, but he has fond memories of most. He loved working with Iron Man star Robert Downey Jr, one of the funniest people he has met, while ex-PM Gordon Brown was one of the most surprisingly charming men he has pictured, and taking shots of the Rolling Stones was fun and energetic.
Rankin said: ‘It was like shooting a group of teenagers. If I ever get a young band who’s all grumpy, I’m like, “The Rolling Stones had more life than you, and they’re triple your age”.’
While he is in the unique position to get in the room with some of the most important people in the world, he is not the type to have celebrity pals – with a few exceptions.
He said: ‘I don’t tend to have a group of famous friends, I’ve never really felt a part of it. I don’t know if that’s a conscious thing or me just not feeling comfortable.
‘Heidi Klum is a laugh, and I’d say she is a friend because we’ve spent so much time together.
‘She’s such an amazing woman who’s got so much energy. I’ve never met anyone who loves to work as much as Heidi, and she and I are both aligned on wanting to work.
‘If we’re asked to do one shoot, we’ll always want to do three shoots, maybe four.’
They have collaborated on adverts, books and magazines, travelling the world for exotic locations and unique set-ups.
Once, she wanted to be drizzled all over with melted chocolate.
For another, they were on the stunning beaches of the British Virgin Islands.
And then she was partially nude at the top of the biggest landmark in LA.
Rankin recalled: ‘We shot on the Hollywood sign once, which was amazing, but I got stung by a bee which was really painful.
‘Up on the sign was hilarious, she was doing a bit of climbing up and then being around it.
‘I have been on yachts with her, been on planes with her. She is not the best flier in the world, she doesn’t love to fly. But she is so much fun all the time.’
The list of famous faces Rankin hasn’t photographed seems shorter than his client roster, but he does have a few regrets, including when a lost visa at the US border meant he missed out on Friends star Jennifer Aniston.
He said: ‘I was in Canada for a job and trying to get from Vancouver down to LA, but they wouldn’t let me in because I’d lost my visa.
‘That could have been the shoot that kicked off my American career. As everybody did, I thought I’d get on really well with her, and was like, “She could be my Friend”.’
He photographed Polish Solidarity leader and statesman Lech Walesa in 1999 for the New York Times – but was left red-faced.
Rankin said: ‘He kept me waiting for ages and ages and I’m like, “I’m from the New York Times, what are you doing?” Then after the shoot, the publicist was like, “Oh, yeah, unfortunately he’s got cancer and he wasn’t feeling great”.
‘I felt so guilty. Since then, I’ve had this thing, “Rein it in, mate, you’re only a photographer”.’
He once missed out on a job with Irish pop band The Corrs when hungover after a birthday night out, and hasn’t made that mistake again.
But the Scot has swapped the excesses of his youth and mad London parties of the Nineties for country living with wife Tuuli and four dogs at their home in Suffolk.
‘I’m a little bit embarrassed by the guy I used to be,’ he admitted.
‘The reason that I would get drunk was that I was really not very good at socialising. I was rubbish at it. So I just thought I’d get kind of p***ed up and stupid. I’m so glad I got past that.
‘It’s a very social business and I remember there was a party every single night through the Nineties. And we didn’t have any money, so we’d be going to parties to eat something and get free drinks.
‘I’m the complete opposite now, and I don’t even understand who that was really.’
He added: ‘I think meeting my wife who I’ve been married to for 13 years now, that was a big deal and I just think getting more mature and realising that I didn’t have to be a show-off.
‘I don’t regret it, but I’m really glad I’m not that person any more.’
Now his life is taken up with a mix of portraits, advertising, filmmaking and campaigns. He launched his own magazine, Hunger, ten years ago, and recently presented his first TV series, The Great British Photography Challenge, for the BBC.
Rankin is an outspoken critic of the overuse of social media image filters, and has also been working on weighty issues for charities and NGO groups such as clean water, the NHS, Cop26 and housing.
His newest book and exhibition, Performance, saw him photograph 156 London theatre people – including Andrew Lloyd Webber and Bond star Rory Kinnear – to mark the return after lockdown, with proceeds going to the Theatre Artists Fund and youth homelessness charities Depaul, akt, Centrepoint and
If I get a grumpy young band, I’m like “The Rolling Stones are more lively and they’re triple your age”
I’m a little bit embarrassed by the guy I used to be... I’m so glad I got past that
the New Horizons Youth Centre. He said: ‘My mate had the idea last year, and the more things remained closed, the more relevant it became. It was crazy, and the brilliant energy of those people coming back was so positive. I’m so worried for them now because of this new variant, but it was bottling a moment in time and you don’t get the chance to do that very often.’
His next project is a new book on flowers inspired by his time in Suffolk, and he admits he would love to photograph former US presidents Obama and Trump.
He is also hoping for a longawaited homecoming north.
Rankin said: ‘I’ve been trying to persuade my wife that Scotland is the next adventure, we should be looking at northern Scotland. I do like being in the countryside.
‘I’d love to create a museum. I really love where some photography is going, it’s exciting that everyone can take pictures, and there’s a whole generation of photographers. I’d love to be at the heart of something to do with that.
‘The great thing is you can do that from anywhere because you don’t need to be in the room any more. I’ll never give up taking pictures and my eye is going on more serious subjects in the future. If there are any museum spaces going anywhere in Britain and in Scotland especially, I’d be well up for it.’
● Performance by Rankin is available from Ranking Publishing, £30.