Firm focus on the stars

The pair, who formed digital photography business Finesse Imaging two years ago with help from the Prince's Trust, secured one of the hottest tickets in town at the weekend.

They were invited to join other top snappers at the Prince's Trust Urban Music Festival at London's Earls Court.

Said to be the largest festival of its kind in the country, the event was headlined by top hip-hop and R&B artists Jay-Z, Beyonce, Alicia Keys, Jamelia and The Streets.

Bardsea-based Finesse Imaging, run by Alex Kilty, 31, and his brother Mike Kilty, 27, got the call to photograph the two-day festival thanks to their contacts at the Prince's Trust.

Organisers were seeking three Prince's Trust-supported businesses to attend the festival alongside national newspapers and picture agencies, and Finesse Imaging fitted the bill perfectly.

"We'd already done a lot of urban music photography and so were able to show that we'd done this work before," explained Alex, who is business manager.

His brother Mike, a trained photographer, spent the week-end capturing hundreds of images of the stars performing on stage and, thanks to the advances in digital technology, was able to instantly email them off to potential clients, such as music and celebrity magazines.

In return for the plumb job, the brothers agreed to supply publicity pictures to the Prince's Trust and to share any profits they make from the festival with the charity, which helps young people to make the most of themselves.

"It was really good news for us to be able to go down to the festival because it's an A-list event. Now we are trying to get into other festivals, such as Glastonbury and Notting Hill carnival," said Alex, who previously worked in the hospitality industry.

The brothers launched Finesse Imaging with help from the Prince's Trust in the form of a grant and loan, and also do a wide range of commercial photography, travelling to wherever work is available.