”Portrait Photography is a tool for recording the story we try to tell posterity – a story not of features alone, but of the human force behind those features.” – Paul Gittings, Sr.
Paul Gittings, Sr. was born in 1900 and at the age of 11, starting taking odd jobs to help support his family. He ended up at the famed Bachrach Studios in Baltimore, taking a job as a plate boy and eventually becoming an esteemed photographer, which was the beginning of his true career and passion. In 1928, he moved to Texas and opened studios in Dallas and Houston, purchasing the rights for these studios from Bachrach and opening them under his name, Gittings Studio.
The studio developed a style with a distinguishing attention to detail and a focus on delivering quality and in 1963, Gittings opened a studio within Neiman Marcus. This enabled Gittings to expand throughout the south and they became the official portrait studio of the Neiman Marcus brand. Being affiliated with the most prestigious retailer in the nation turned into a clientele roster like no other including dignitaries, politicians, executives and social elites.
During his career, he won many awards including the George Harris Award, Professional Photographers of America; Fellowship, Royal Photographic Society of Great Britain; Fellowship, Photographic Society of America; Fellowship, American Society of Photographers; and First American Licentiate member, British Institute of Photography. He also gave back to his profession and was instrumental in establishing and funding the International Photography Hall of Fame.
Although Mr. Gittings passed away in 1988, many of our photographers were trained by those he worked with and continue to employ his professional and artistic techniques. His legacy lives on in the unsurpassed quality of craftsmanship of every portrait that bears the Gittings name.
In 1998, Greg Lorfing, who is an esteemed photographer and holds a B.A. in Portraiture from Brooks Institute of Photography, acquired Gittings Studios and is the company’s President.
Rick Bettinger, Master Photographer, joined Mr. Lorfing in ownership in 2002 and holds the Dallas and Fort Worth Studios. In 2011, Mr. Lorfing started GittingsLegal which provides photography for law firms on a global scale.