Dian Lofton Photography

My husband and I met a couple expecting twins in the hospital waiting room on the day our boys were born. From that chance meeting, we’re now two years into a blossoming friendship. We can speculate that our kids will be BFF’s…wouldn’t that be something? The best part is getting together to exchange notes and experience the similarities and differences of our gender-opposite kids.

So what better way to spend an afternoon with friends than on a picnic in Prospect Park, Brooklyn? I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect day or a more natural family to photograph. I love the easy-going way they flow together, and the girls make my smile hurt! As a mother of two boys, I’m learning that girls have a decidedly different approach to life, mainly one that doesn’t include throwing everything within reach. But in their defense, my little guys love an adventure and this day in the park was right up their alley.

My memory of living just blocks from the park for 10 years doesn’t do justice to the cinematic scenes we experienced in one afternoon. I was definitely seeing it again for the first time through the wide-open eyes of my sons. Ironically, our new friends moved to our old neighborhood a few years after we’d left. Standing there in the heady swirl of colors, smells, sounds and faces, I thought to myself, “Why did we ever leave?”

Well, for fear of this post turning into a “I [heart] Brooklyn!” festival, I’ll just say that there is definitely something very special about that particular latitude and longitude. And a big part of it is our friends and their sweet and hysterical twin daughters. They know just how much we appreciate their friendship and the very unique bond we share. This gives us every excuse to visit our old stomping grounds, and it has me looking forward to exchanging notes on all the many milestones to come.

Aaahh–thank goodness for what I like to call “the photographic edge.” That often misunderstood and neglected edge of frame. Actually, it’s one of my favorite parts of a photo–what’s just out of view, what’s hidden just out of sight, that blank your brain rushes to fill in. Oh, the stories the edge of a photo can tell. In this case, ladies and gentlemen, we have the most exciting part of my job–little guys in perpetual motion. What a challenge! What an adrenaline rush! What a lot of fun!!!

And I love a dad with a great sense of humor (and a mom with nerves of steel–just look at that sparkling smile). As this family portrait session was settling into the starting block and all members were assembling on the blanket, dad said to me with a little grin, “Are you ready? Okay, on your mark…get set…GO!” And he wasn’t kidding.

This first image was the third frame I snapped. Well, I’m pretty well-versed in twin boy toddler energy, having a set of my own at home. But it’s always nice to see that individual spirit rush out in all directions. This amazing family knows they hold a very special place in my heart, and I hope to keep documenting them from here to eternity. You guys are absolutely the best!