Newlywed press photographers Steve and Sarah Barney are hoping to make their dream of life away from daily deadlines a reality, with the launch of a new business in Italy.

Express and Star lensman Steve and Worcester News snapper Sarah (formerly Sarah Jeynes) are planning to buy a house in Puglia – where they were married on September 8 – and run digital photographic holidays.

And Steve is to leave his job at the West Midlands newspaper on Friday, after 19 years there, to get the ball rolling.

On Sunday he will begin the 1,500-mile one-way trip through France, Switzerland and Italy on his motorbike, with the hope of finding a house and beginning research and marketing for the business.

When he first arrives he will be house-sitting for friends who run their own creative arts holiday business there.

Sarah plans to join him at a later date and the couple hope to be welcoming the first guests to their new home in Italy within a year.

Steve, (48), said: “We may have already found a property but I need to get builders quotes and so I need to be there ‘on the ground’.

“I’ve been working in newspapers since I was 19 so it’s a big change, but we have made lots of friends out there who are all going to help.”

Once up and running, ‘Capture La Vista’ will welcome up to six couples at a time for short breaks, where Steve and Sarah will guide them around the region and help them get the best from their pictures.

Steve, who has also worked for the Harborough Mail and Evening Telegraph in Kettering, said: “We’ll be helping people with an interest in photography and giving them tips on a few simple techniques to make their pictures a lot better in a relaxed environment.

“The idea is to give them a feel for the area so that they will come back, not necessarily to us, to an area which we have learnt to love and which we feel has got a lot going for it.”

31-year-old Sarah, who has also worked for the Shropshire Star, added: “We hope to attract people who want a few days away in a warm climate.

“Half the time when you go on holiday you usually leave your camera in your bag or in your room.

“We want a better way of life. We are both press photographers which can be hectic, and we want something more relaxed.”