A fellow parent, behind the lens

Still & Golden is one person with a camera, a lot of patience, and two small kids at home.

Hi, I'm Deep — a dad of two based in Cranbourne East, and the person behind Still & Golden. I have a three-year-old who keeps me on my toes and a brand new baby who has completely stolen my heart (and my sleep).

Photography has been my passion for over ten years. What started as a hobby grew into something I couldn't put down — photographing friends and family, documenting milestones, finding the light in everyday life. This year, I decided to make it official.

I know firsthand how fast these early days go. My approach is gentle and unhurried — I work at your baby's pace, in a space that feels comfortable for your whole family. What you'll take home are warm, honest images that feel like you.

Why I shoot the way I do

There's no studio, and there never will be. Not because I couldn't rent one — but because a studio can't give you the kitchen floor on a Saturday morning, the nursery you spent months putting together, or your bed where the whole family piles in at 6am. The backdrop of your photos should mean something. In twenty years it will mean even more.

And there's no posing, because posed isn't what you'll miss. What you'll miss is the scrunched-up laugh, the way your toddler runs — never walks — down the hallway, how impossibly small your newborn looks in their dad's arms. Those things don't happen on command. They happen when everyone forgets I'm there, which is more or less the entire method.

The other reason is more personal. In most families there's one person who takes every photo and appears in almost none — and I know how that story ends, because one day your kids will go looking for a photo of you. My job, more than anything else, is to make sure it exists.

What a session with me is like

The unspoken question before any family session isn't "will the photos be good?" — it's "will this be awkward?" So here it is plainly:

• Nothing is required of you. No tidying, no outfit rules, no rehearsing the kids.
• The first ten minutes are meant to be nothing. The kids case the place, you hover, I stay out of the way.
• You'll be asked to do something ordinary — make toast, read the usual book, shoot hoops out the back.
• Around minute twenty, everyone forgets I'm there. That's the whole method.
• Someone will wander off, and nobody will chase them.
• Nobody says "everyone look here." If it feels staged, I've done it wrong.
• Two weeks later it's done — and you didn't have to manage any of it.

Areas I service

Everything happens at your place or a spot you love — there's no studio to get to. I'm based in Cranbourne East and travel is included across the south-east.

Say hello

Whether you're expecting, your baby arrived last week, or the family photos are simply a few years overdue — I'd love to hear from you.