I could not be more excited to publish this blog post! Jesse + I went to middle school and high school together back in Bailey, Colorado, and have remained friends ever since. After graduating from Platte Canyon High School, we went our separate ways — Jesse to the Air Force and I to Colorado State University. More than ten years later, we’ve both relocated our lives, to Las Vegas and Denver, respectively. Whenever I head out to Las Vegas, whether for a photography conference or simply for pleasure, I always make it a point to try to have dinner with Jesse.

For my past trip, I decided to head out to Sin City just to spend time with Jesse and his husband, Nick. Jesse had recently returned from a six-month deployment from Qatar, so I jumped at the opportunity (and on a $70 round trip ticket — thanks Spirit!) to see him before he heads off to Seoul, South Korea, in April.

I only spent a quick few days out in North Las Vegas, but it was more than enough time to do a sunrise photo shoot in the Apex Sand Dunes and an evening photo shoot off Fremont Street, in downtown Las Vegas. We also made enough time for In N Out Burger (obvi) and our favorite sushi restaurant, the Grand Wok, at the MGM Grand.

It was so lovely to finally meet Jesse’s husband Nick, who was so incredibly sweet. Jesse had proposed to Nick at Disneyland (YAAASSS) and then the two were married this past June in Orange County, California. I wish them both nothing but the best in their upcoming years of wedded bliss, and I’m so glad I was able to capture some portraits of them while we were all in the same hemisphere. :)

See more couples portraits from Urban Safari Photography: Kim + Ryan’s downtown Denver photo shoot