By Jenny Hirschkorn (Telegraph.co.uk)

If you thought black-and-white photographs look old-fashioned and dreary, take a look at Justin Bailey's images of children and families on the walls of The Lighthouse Studio. They have a mood and a clarity which is missing in coloured portraits.

"I wanted to specialise in black-and-white photos which are timeless and flattering" he says. "I was first inspired by the fashion photos of the 1960s. My main goal is to produce a picture which people will have on their walls for a lifetime, rather than something which will date in a year or two. There's nothing wrong with colour photography, but when you look at portraits you want to notice the eyes and features rather than the clothing and background."

Mr Bailey started his career in a tough school - spending two years travelling around East Anglia, setting up his booth in shopping malls. Then in 1996 he joined Dumbletons, the long-established photographic studio in Cambridge. "It was still very traditional, doing classical portraiture with dark brown backgrounds and ornate furniture."

But there he learnt invaluable lessons. "It was the sort of thing that you wouldn't be taught at college; how to arrange people within the frame, work out the composition of the picture and arrange the most flattering position for the subject."

The team at Dumbletons was young and enthusiastic, and everyone was involved in marketing as well as taking pictures. "We had meetings to talk about ideas, ways of getting more business and how to treat your customers." Lessons which he found useful when he decided to set up on his own.

"I opened a studio in Bury St Edmunds -far enough away not to be in competition with my former employers." He borrowed £10,000 to spend on the first few months' rent and furnishings and opened for business in January 2004.

"I started by advertising in the local papers, offering complimentary sessions to bring people in. It was slow to start with but now personal recommendation accounts for 70pc of the business."

When he does advertise he uses it as much to maintain brand awareness as to attract customers. "I send press releases to the media about our special offers at holiday times, and often people follow up months later to make an appointment."