Prince's Trust backing for photographer

With the guidance and positive feedback of the trust's enterprise programme team, Priya Walia has now successfully launched her photography business, Sorriso Weddings and Portraits in Coronation Road.

She was given the opportunity to access funding and mentoring to further her business and is now actively engaging in networking events and wedding fairs and is securing wedding bookings for this year.

After a string of temporary jobs after graduating from Coventry University in 2008, in

November 2013 Priya was asked to intern for world recognised wedding cinematographer and photographer Simeon Quarrie, whom she considers to be one of her biggest inspirations.

"After various talks with Simeon, I had a penny drop moment and I knew that running my own business was the way forward. I contacted the Prince's Trust after finishing my intern and took the plunge into full-time self employment," she explained.

After a string of temporary jobs after graduating from Coventry University in 2008, in Priya was offered a series of temporary employments for various administrative roles. With no permanent position presenting itself, in 2013 she felt it was time to turn her passion into a paying career.

Photography has been the one consistent activity in Priya's life since a young age, and throughout her years of temporary employments and periods of unemployment she kept actively involving herself in anything photography related.

She would take part in unpaid photo-shoots and workshops, was given the opportunity to be a second photographer for a wedding photographer, and spent a small fortune of her savings to purchase equipment so that she could experiment further and really learn her craft. November 2013 was a pivotal moment as Priya was asked to intern for world recognised wedding cinematographer and photographer Simeon Quarrie, whom she considers to be one of her biggest inspirations. This gave her the confidence to set up her own creative business.

"When Simeon invited me to London to intern for him, I was knocked for six because I had followed his work for a number of years and admired his vision and creativity,. After various talks with Simeon, I had a penny drop moment and I knew that running my own business was the way forward. I contacted the Prince's Trust after finishing my intern and took the plunge into full-time self employment," she explained.

Lucy Davenport, a Prince's Trust Enterprise Programme Executive who worked closely with Priya, encouraged her to go through to the earliest available launch panel meeting. This would give her the opportunity to discuss her ambitions to further explore the western wedding industry as well as secure funding to start up her business.

After Priya took her existing photographic portfolio to the city's Prince's Trust Enterprise Programme launch panel, chairman of the panel Clive Gerard – a retail professional who used to manage Wolverhampton's Beatties department store – described her work as "the best photography portfolio we have ever seen on our panel".

Priya added: "I'm not from a business background, I'm the first in my family to take on self-employment and felt very overwhelmed with the panel's comments and with how encouraging and positive they were towards my passion. I cannot thank the Wolverhampton Prince's Trust team enough. Their guidance has been invaluable."

To view some of Priya's work go to www.hellosorriso.com, or . For more information contact [email protected] or call 07516 224888.