Kanan Mammadov (Kanan Aziz) was born in Baku.

He became a member of the photo club of the Pioneer Palace. His neighbor in Icherisheher, cinematographer Khan Babayev, noticed his passion for photography and instilled in him an interest in cinematography. After studying at the Azerbaijan Polytechnic Institute for a while (until 1971), he sent his documents to Moscow. He studied at the cinematography faculty of the All-Union State Institute of Cinematography (1971-1976, A. Galperin's workshop).

For a while, he worked in the photo laboratory of the Ministry of Oil Industry. He began working as a production operator in feature and documentary films at the "Azerbaijanfilm" film studio. He worked as a chief operator at ANS TV.

He taught at the Azerbaijan State University of Culture and Art (1996-2002).

In 2010, he was elected a member of the European Film Academy.

He is an Honored Artist (2000), laureate of the State Prize (1986).

He currently lives in Canada.