Historic Downtown Frederick Engagement | Jawti + San | Maryland Wedding Photographer

Historic Downtown Frederick is one of the most charming towns in Maryland, although I may be biased as I grew up 30 minutes away :). Unfortunately, I don’t have as many opportunities as I’d like to go down to visit, so when Jawti suggested the area, I was so excited! Jawti has family connections with VOLT restaurant, and we were able to use the space to capture their engagement portraits. San also lives in Washington state but they were quickly able to arrange their session during his visit right after Mother’s Day.

Before the session, San shared with me a little bit about Burmese culture and how he met Jawti through a few social events that occur several times a year throughout the country with those from the same area in Burma (and who speak the same language). Before this, I wasn’t aware that Burma has approximately 100 spoken languages and that Frederick is one of a few hubs for the Burmese dialect that Jawti and San speak. I could tell by our conversation that cultural tradition and language is very important.

As we prepared for their engagement session, I was struck by the surrounding details - the ivy wall, courtyard garden and sunshine at VOLT created the perfect secluded, romantic environment in the midst of the quaint town. Even though Jawti and San live on opposite sides of the country, their connection is so obvious. San shared with me that he had been in other long distance relationships that just didn’t work, but with Jawti, it was different. They talk every night for hours, using such tools as Facetime to stay connected and are excited for after their wedding to finally be together. My husband and I were in a long-distance relationship during our entire dating/engagement period and I understand the strains that this can cause. But I'm a firm believer that getting through these times and learning how to communicate through the challenges, can create a strong foundation for marriage. For Jawti and San, their chemistry and love is so clear - I'm excited to be a part of documenting their wedding day moments in August!