Stewart White: 20.06.39 - 01.07.26

Having attended Regent Street Polytechnic in London, at 17 Stewart started his career as a photographer with Universal Press syndicate in Fleet Street working for publications including the Evening Standard. One of his first assignments took him to a North London hospital to photograph a young couple involved in the rapidly growing motor industry sportscar sector and their new-born daughter. Over the next 40 years the names Colin and Hazel Chapman and Lotus would go on to feature heavily in the world of Stewart White.

At 19 Stewart started his own business Monitor Press Features based in Camden and later Old Street. After that brief initial meeting with the Chapman family, Stewart’s passion for the fledgling brand saw him buy one of the very first Elans on the road. Stewart fell in love with the Lotus brand due to his love of driving and the handling of the cars. Using the Elan as a daily driver covering thousands of miles for work meant that Stewart’s car essentially became an official customer development car and, was in and out of the Lotus Cars service department at Cheshunt on a frequent basis.

One of Stewart’s many visits to Cheshunt brought about a chance meeting in reception with chief accountant Fred Bushell who enquired what line of work brought somebody to cover so many miles in their car. Stewart’s reply of “photographer” prompted the question from Fred “would you like to photograph a car for us?” The reply of “sure, I would love to” would shape Stewart’s life and career. So much so in fact, that Stewart’s regular visits to Lotus and contact with receptionist Dene on the service desk turned into a relationship that would eventually see them marry and raise two daughters Joanna and Eleanore.

That first job for Lotus would turn out to be memorable. Sent to a remote race circuit location in Scotland, 26-year old Stewart was asked to meet with a man he didn’t know, Ian Scott-Watson and shoot a Lotus Elan belonging to a friend of his, none other than Team Lotus F1 star driver Jimmy Clark. The red and silver car registered 997 NUR given to Jimmy and used as his daily transport would become synonymous with Clark and photographed on many occasions. But Stewart, trusty Cannon in hand and Rolleicord round his neck, was the first.

As the working relationship with Lotus grew, so did a personal relationship with Colin and Hazel. At the age of 27 Stewart took on the challenge of flying and have passed his flying qualifications would accompany Colin who had also taken up flying, on trips to the continent that required a co-pilot. Many adventures ensued. Stewart would fly in and out of Norfolk on a regular basis, often at short notice late in the day at the weekend just to meet with Colin and discuss creative ideas for presenting the next Lotus. He was at Hethel to document the official opening of the factory and flying into East Carleton, Stewart would usually pass over Hethel and take many aerial views of the track and factory that help provide us with a historical document of the brand.

Through the strong relationship Stewart formed with Colin and the Lotus brand, Monitor Photography would keep Lotus Cars as one of his major clients through to the mid 1990s. In a working partnership that lasted over thirty years the Monitor studios led by Stewart, photographed virtually every model from the first 1960s Elan through to the1990 Type 100 Elan and Esprit range including the Sport 300. Stewart was there to shoot all the advertising, commercial and brochure images for every new model of Lotus, with a shooting list that included all the Europa variations, the Sevens, +2, Elite, Eclat, Esprit and of course his favourite Lotus model, the Excel. Over this period, the Monitor Advertising group also created and placed just about all the Lotus Cars Press advertisements we all know and recognise, not to mention all the Moonraker boats.

Having photographed the Excel in its early days Stewart became a long-term, highly enthusiastic and loyal owner and would drive his highly developed car many thousands of miles. The Excel was the ‘family car’ and there was always room for Jo and Elly in the back. “We cover many miles in those bucket seats.”Many of those miles were covered on trips to the south coast of England to visit Monitor Marine a company established due to Stewart’s other passions in life, of sailing and engineering. Even at the age of 86 driving the Excel still gave Stewart a lot of joy and he was still making regular trips around the country. In the summer of 2025 Stewart and the Excel were back at East Carleton Manor for the CTL Garden Party fondly remembering his many visits to Hazel and Colin and telling me about one of his favourite Lotus adverts he put together.

When hearing the news, Clive Chapman remembered Stewart fondly. “I remember him as such a nice man who always lifted the occasion. Plus, he must have got the job done if he worked with Colin for so long.”

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