JONATHAN CHERRY: What was the last thing to really inspire you and why?

TOUFIC BEYHUM: Nearly everyday something inspires me but the last big inspiration for me was the Don McCullin photo exhibition in Berlin a few months back.

JC: What equipment did you use for the Swakopmund project?

TB: I used a Hasselblad 500 that a good friend of mine gave me last summer, for me the Hasselblad was the perfect camera for a place like Swakopmund, nice and slow.

JC: What is Swakopmund all about?

TB: This town is quite a strange one, its on the coast of Namibia, Wikipedia will tell you all about it. But in a nutshell its an ex German colony and It was founded in 1892. It was the main harbour for German South West-Africa. The town is surrounded by some of the biggest sand dunes in the world and there are also lots of Uranium mines dotted all over the place. Now a days its a very popular holiday destination for South Africans and Germans during Christmas time, the rest of the year its dead. The architecture is German, the streets are pristine and the people are very strange. David Lynch would have a field day here.

JC: In your own opinion what makes a successful portrait?

TB: For me a successful portrait is being able to tell the personality & even history of that person in one image. Portraits for me have to be spur of the moment, not all dressed up with make up and studio lights.

JC: What is next in the pipe line for you photographically?

TB: Im off to Petra, Jordan in mid April to photograph the Bedouins who live and work with tourists. Myself and a writer (Carl Gough) will be living with the Bedouins for about 3 months. We will document their everyday lives with still photos (Im taking 3 cameras with me, Hasselblad 500, Leica R4 and my Fuji GA645), words and we are even filming a small documentary. We are trying to get as much sponsorship as possible as this is a self funded project and as you know, film, processing and traveling dont come cheap. Have a look at the blog we started for it.

JC: Are you excited about 2010?

TB: 2009 was emotionally the hardest year of my life so I am definitely looking forward to this year.

JC: Have you got any other thoughts?

TB: I have plenty but I dont think it would fit on your web-page, besides, most of it is either weird or rubbish.

JC: Favourite meal at the moment?

TB: Im loving my lental soup.