Colt Studio was founded by Jim French and Lou Thomas in 1967, as a male homoerotic photography studio and distributor of mail-order prints. Colt was a predecesor of The Lüger Studio, co-created by French, and similarly to Lüger, Colt Studio's name played with the imagery of a pistol as well as cowboy themes.

Jim French (1932-2017) was an illustrator, photographer, filmmaker, and publisher. He attended the Philadelphia Museum School of Art from 1950-1954 and pursued a career in fashion illustration. From 1955-1957 he served in the US Army, and at the suggestion of Army friend Saul Stollman to use French's unpublished drawings for a business venture the two began first Arion Studio and then Lüger Studio where they incorporated photography.

Initially French used different pseudonyms for his business ventures, Arion for Arion Studio, Kurt Lüger for Lüger Studio, and Rip Colt for Colt Studio. The name Rip was a reference to San Francisco photographer Rip Searby. The cowboy aesthetic of Colt often alternated with leathermen themes. The leather scene which was an interest of Lou Thomas, who in 1974 went on to open Target Studio which had a major focus on the leather scene.

Colt Studio established itself as one of the most successful gay erotic studios. At some point while working on illustrations, French began using polariod shots of the models he was drawing, and eventually these images were later sold as reproductions. Video was also incorporated to Colt's catalog, along with magazines and calendars, many of them thematic or featuring specific models.

In 2003 Falcon Studios acquired Colt Studio and renamed Colt Studio Group. Many of the images and videos produced by Colt Studio are still available for purchase via Colt Studio Group.