When people have a baby, it's completely natural for them to want to share every detail with the entire world. You've probably experienced it when you're scrolling down your Facebook news feed. Bombarded with pictures of your friends' babies or grandbabies. There are first day of school photos, new born photos with the cute little ribbon on their heads, baby sleeping photos, baby eating photos.
All kinds of photos.
Frankly, when they aren't our kids, we can get a little sick of them. One dad from New Jersey has managed to get our attention though.
Back when Matt MacMillan and his wife Alyssa had their first child, a beautiful little girl named Ella, the couple obviously took hundreds of photos.
Posted by Matt MacMillan on Sunday, July 16, 2017
Ella proved to love the camera, but Matt put his Photoshop skills to work to make some new pics that everyone would love.
Pure concentration on the nosegrind.
Posted by Matt MacMillan on Wednesday, October 12, 2016
He photoshopped a very young Ella doing sports, like skateboarding or playing pool. There's even one of her playing football.
Of course any parents' heart would stop if they saw their new born on a skateboard, but rest assured Matt only Photoshopped Ella in and she was always 100% safe.
The MacMillans were delighted when they found out they'd be growing their family. Ella was to have a baby brother, but Alyssa's pregnancy hit an unexpected complication.
Alyssa gave birth 9 weeks premature, to a 3-lb boy named Ryan.
"He spent 6 weeks in the NICU and it seemed to last forever," Matt told BoredPanda.
Even in those scary moments, Matt didn't lose his sense of humor.
Sorry for the nip slip.
Posted by Matt MacMillan on Thursday, July 19, 2018
His friends were treated to frequent photos of Ryan fighting to grow and get healthy.
Like father like son.
Posted by Matt MacMillan on Wednesday, August 1, 2018
When they finally got to take him home, the MacMillans did what every parent does: started to take pictures.
"We joked that he wasn't premature just "advanced" "“ so I came up with the idea that we should do a photoshoot of him doing manly adult things," Matt said.
And boy, did Matt deliver.
Ryan blows leaves.
Posted by Matt MacMillan on Friday, October 19, 2018
At first he started with a photoshoot of Ryan helping him with the yard. The results blew away more than leaves. Many of his friends commented and shared. Soon thousands of people were loving his hilarious photos.
Ryan mows the lawn.
Posted by Matt MacMillan on Monday, October 15, 2018
"Most people found them funny but there were always a few people that feared for Ryan's safety. I always explained how the "danger" all came from photoshop and he was always being held and was never in any harm."
Matt is excited to see what Ryan thinks when he turns 18.
Of course, anyone who has ever used Photoshop knows that it's not just as easy as clicking a few buttons. Matt has spent hours behind the camera and on the computer.
"Most of the work is in the setup and editing. First, I had to make props and find outfits for most of the pictures. The next step was setting up the scene, framing the shot, arranging props, and setting up the lighting where appropriate."
Ryan takes a peek under the hood.
Posted by Matt MacMillan on Friday, November 16, 2018
Matt says his wife is totally on-board with his extra curricular activities. He says they both share the same sense of humor, and she helps out by holding Ryan.
Still, some of the work seems intense.
"Some of the setups were elaborate "“ like for the benchpress photo. For this one, I made a rig that hung from the ceiling. It mounted the camera and also held the barbell above Ryan so all he had to do was grip it rather than hold it up," said Matt.
Posted by Matt MacMillan on Friday, December 7, 2018
Having a premature baby is never easy. It's often a scary time for the entire family. Matt offers some advice to parents of premature babies:
"My three pieces of advice for parents of premature babies are to be patient, be positive, and seek support."
We can only hope to see more photos of both Ryan and Ella in the future.
Here are some more adorable photos of Ryan:
Ryan goes to work.
Posted by Matt MacMillan on Friday, November 30, 2018
Ryan shaves. He has finally become a man.
Posted by Matt MacMillan on Friday, December 14, 2018
Ryan chops wood.
Posted by Matt MacMillan on Friday, November 2, 2018
Ryan goes fishing.
Posted by Matt MacMillan on Friday, November 9, 2018