Gunns shooting Orange for four generations

Kaycie Gunn grew up with cameras, but instead of still shots, she liked video. She enjoyed making moving shots and adding music to them. For the past decade, she's had a video business that includes drone photography.

But those studio still portraits are in her blood. She's now been studying under her father, Chris Gunn, to learn the techniques and lighting needed for the profession. She is now becoming the fourth generation to operate Gunn Studio, which opened in Orange in 1945, 79 years ago.

T.L Gunn, Kaycie's great-grandfather, opened the business. Later, T.L.'s son, known as Buzzie, was the photographer, and then the business was taken over by Kaycie's father and Buzzie's son, Chris.

Kaycie's grandmother and Buzzie's widow, Dayle Gunn Weatherford, worked in the office for many years. Some of Kaycie's early memories include watching her "Paw Paw" as a kid shoot a wedding.

Gunn Studio portraits for decades filled the senior sections of high school yearbooks, were printed in high school football programs, and hung framed in living rooms across Orange County. Teens dressed in formal attire for proms would line up outside the studio for portraits.

The family didn't stick totally to portraits and through the years managed to capture a lot of Orange's history and landscapes.

Buzzie and Chris Gunn had hundreds of credit lines in newspapers through the years of shooting sideline photographs of sports, mainly high school football. The Buzzie Gunn trophy named for the photographer is awarded to the winner of the Bayou Bowl, the football game between Orangefield and Bridge City.

Kaycie said she's found files of aerial photographs that her grandfather took of Orange while leaning out of a helicopter. T.L. Gunn also took an iconic snow scene picture of downtown Orange. The photo was taken at night in February 1960 during a rare big snow fall. It shows Green Avenue looking south down Fifth Street.

Of course technology has changed drastically in the past 79 years. Kaycie said she has a large camera that belonged to her great-grandfather. It weighs about 100 pounds and moves about on wheels.

Cameras and flash equipment not only got smaller, lighter, and more compact, it also moved from film to digital.

Kaycie said Gunn Studio isn't open all the time like it was during the old days when people could walk in off the street to be greeted by an employee. People could come in to see about photo packages and book a portrait reservation.

People wanting to add another Gunn Studio photograph to their generational family scrapbook can contact Kaycie for an appointment through social media sites or at [email protected]. Her phone is 409-313-0159.

And though Kaycie's aunt is not officially part of the family's studio, Lacey Gunn Hale, the daughter of Buzzie and Dayle, is a retired teacher. After teaching video and other subjects at West Orange-Stark High School for many years, she's now taking portraits of dogs.

As a volunteer, Lacey is going to the Orange, West Orange, and Pinehurst animal shelters to take photos of dressed up dogs up for rescue through adoption. The pictures posted on social media have helped abandoned pups find furever homes.