Safe Travels

SOUKAH: I like nature and especially hiking in the mountains. The peaceful but impressive landscape there restores my energy for daily life and I can get my head free. Hanging out with my friends and having a drink or two while listening to music or having a good talk about what’s going on in the world is important to me. I always try to work on myself and learn new things so you can find me in the sun or on my couch reading a good book or in the kitchen cooking some healthy and fresh meals. And music of course. If it’s listening, producing, mixing or enjoying a good dance is the most important thing that keeps me going in life.

Ben: I live on the South coast of England near the city of Brighton with my wife and two children and I’ve been taking photographs since the early 2000s. What drives my life in terms of photography is to try and make each new photograph better than the last, although it usually feels like the opposite is true.  

Tell us about an inspirational event in your life from the past few months.

Ben: I recently had some images displayed at a community photography space near to where I live and on the opening night I met a whole bunch of very nice local photographers and artists who were incredibly welcoming and inspiring. I’m also visiting Photo London this coming weekend, an event that I find endlessly inspiring. 

SOUKAH: Musically I definitely would say my gig in Budapest a few weeks ago. It was the first time I was playing a gig outside that far away from my hometown. The crowd was insane and the people were very kind. I met a lot of new and old friends there. It was amazing.

How would you categorise your musical/visual influences?

SOUKAH: That’s a tough question. When I listen to music at home I rarely listen to dubstep even though I listen to it on a regular basis. It could be some old Roots Reggae, Gothic,Death Metal or anything between. All these different genres have a musical influence on my sound. It’s hard to tell names here or songs in particular because sometimes it’s a second of a song, a little background melody or a drumflow which I draw my inspiration from. I had to list hundreds of artists of different genres here and they all had an impact on me more or less.

Ben: I’ve been influenced by a range of photographers and photographic styles and although my own work is usually in black and white I take inspiration from lots of different photographers. Obvious influences would perhaps include Eugene Atget, Paul Strand, Robert Adams, Vanessa Winship and Barabara Bosworth, but I feel I’m just as influenced by literature, poetry, film, music, and other visual arts, as by photography.