Photoshoot of grumpy baby goes viral, has the internet cooing: ‘He’s like seriously?’

The only thing cuter than a baby is a baby that makes silly faces.

Lauren Carson, a Cincinnati-based photographer, might know a thing or two about that, considering she has taken professional photos of newborns for a decade. One of Carson’s baby portraits recently went viral, drawing the attention of thousands of people who have flocked to her Facebook page to check out the adorably grumpy baby for themselves.

“I’ve been photographing newborns for a decade and have photographed hundreds of babies who have given me tons of great expressions. But none, and I mean NONE compare to the looks this sweet guy threw my way,” Carson wrote.

The post has garnered over 150,000 reactions and almost 20,000 comments since it was first posted on May 15. Many have taken to the comments to coo over the baby or crack jokes about his rather serious expressions.

“This isn’t his first life, he’s like ‘seriously? I’m back again?” Megan Genevieve wrote.

‘Portrays what a lot of us are feeling’

The response Carson has gotten in the last week has been tremendous, fielding supportive messages in the comment section and phone calls from parents interested in getting their babies photographed, Carson told USA TODAY Wednesday.

“The comments have been fantastic to read. They’re hilarious. People are loving the expressions. I think the baby just kind of portrays what a lot of us are feeling right now. So, it’s been a lot of fun,” Carson said.

Carson says the baby’s mom is taking the attention from the post in stride, describing her as “very laid back.”

“She thinks it’s pretty amusing as well. It’s been kind of fun to chat with her. And as the numbers keep climbing and seeing what people are saying,” Carson said.

A typical photo session, all expressions aside

While the newborn’s expression may seem a little atypical, Carson says it was just like any other session. This baby was wide awake when he got to the Sharonville studio, which meant that a swaddle session would precede the photo session.

Newborns are usually “pretty happy” when they are swaddled because they are all nice and cozy wrapped in their little blankets, according to Carson.

“So, we wrapped him up and were gonna take some pictures when he just started throwing all these faces. His mom and I were just completely cracking up, laughing because of the intensity of his looks plus the eye contact,” Carson said.

It didn’t take long for the little guy to tire himself out since newborns don’t usually maintain “extended eye contact.”

They were able to get some more traditional newborn pictures after he fell asleep, Carson said.

Capturing babies’ personality and quirks is fun

Carson knew the pictures would be popular because they’re cute, but she didn’t expect them to be this popular. She said the best part about taking pictures of newborns like this is knowing that “these tiny little people” are gonna grow up and be whoever they’re going to be.

“There’s so much potential in this little, tiny person and so to see the little quirks of personality and being able to appreciate it is just a lot of fun,” Carson said.

As Carson’s children, who are ages 9, 12, and 15, continue to grow, she finds herself appreciating the tiny ones more and more.

“We’re so far removed from that in our household of having the little, tiny ones to hold and the little attitude-filled toddler that it’s appreciated a lot more now that I’ve been through that side of parenting,” Carson said. “And I also know how fleeting those stages are and being able to capture those moments for my clients is really important to me.”