Rolf Sachsse is a German photographer, author and professor. Born 1949 in Bonn/Germany, trained by Karl-Hugo Schmoelz and Walde Huth in Cologne as a photographer with specialization in advertising, architectural, and industrial photography, he worked in these fields for several years to finance further studies. He studied art history, communication research, and German literature in Munich and Bonn. PhD on the history of architectural photography in Germany 1900-1975, 1983.

Sachsse worked as head of a building preservation campaign concerned with 19th century interiors, 1978/79. He was a freelance writer, exhibition maker, and artist between 1975 and 1990. Member of the Artist Placement Group, London from 1978 to 1984. Since then he has been a freelance author, photographer, curator, consultant.

1985 - 2004 Professor of Photography and (since 1993) Electronic Image Media at the Niederrhein University of Applied Science in Krefeld. 1994/95 Professor of Art History in charge of Hans Belting, since 1995 Associate Professor in the Department of Art History and Media Theory at the Staatliche Hochschule für Gestaltung Karlsruhe. Awarded an Honorary Diploma of the Academy of Arts in Uzbekistan, Tashkent, 2000. 2002 Guest professor in Theories of Design at the Staatliche Hochschule für Gestaltung Karlsruhe. 2004-17 seat in Design history and Design theory at the Saar University of Fine Arts, Saarbruecken, 2013-17 Pro-rector for Academic Affairs. Since 2018, lecturer at the University of Bonn.

He lives in Bonn.