Jacob Russell is a freelance writer, photographer and video journalist based in the Middle East. He trained as a press photographer in the UK and then moved to Iraqi Kurdistan to become picture editor and trainer at Metrography, Iraq's first photo agency. There he mentored Iraqi photographers and worked to raise the profile of Iraqi photojournalism on the international stage.

As a freelancer Jacob covered the rise and eventual military defeat of the Islamic State in Iraq and the changing fortunes of Iraqi Kurdistan. He is now based in Lebanon from where he continues to cover the Middle East and further afield. He specialises in reporting on the use of cryptocurrency and blockchain in fragile economies.

Jacob is also a regular collaborator with Raw Music International, making short films focusing on music in changing places. With RMI he has produced films from Iraq, Myanmar, Ukraine and Mongolia.

His work has been published in the Guardian, Le Monde, Der Spiegel, Neon Magazine, Neue Zurcher Zeitung, Die Zeit and CNN, amongst others. His video work has appeared on NBC.com and Time.com and he has also published written work in Der Spiegel, Al Jazeera English and Roads & Kingdoms.