In the early days of automotive racing and before television only an artist or photographer could capture the magic of the automotive racing world for enthusiasts around the world to experience. One such photographer was Jesse Anderson. Anderson was born in 1929 in Santa Barbara, California. He attended the University of California at Santa Barbara. In the early 50's he became interested in motorsports. He first owned an MGTD, and then a Morgan Plus Four followed by a Sunbeam Talbot. He started to visit local tracks at Pebble Beach and Palm Springs to photograph the races. At Palm Springs he witnessed Clark Gable driving the lap of honor in his Jaguar XK120. Then he saw Johnny von Neumann behind the wheel of the first Porsche 356 to be driven in California. These experiences led to his passion for motorsports.



Then in 1953 Anderson went to Mexico to photograph the Pan American Road Race. This was the beginning of a lifelong career documenting motorsports. A year later he and his family traveled to Europe where Anderson acquired a VW Microbus to journey around the continent. He ended up in Reims on July 4, 1954 and began photographing the French Grand Prix. His shots of Formula One races and international championship events have appeared in numerous automotive publications such as Car and Driver, Road & Track, and Automobile. In 1965 Newsweek assigned him to cover the 24 Hours of LeMans. Then in 1967 Sports Illustrated published a spread on motorcycle racing. In 1997, Nissan commissioned him to shoot the drivers, crew, and race cars for the Infiniti Indy project. Jesse also began working in his personal darkroom enlarging his images for display in galleries. Anderson's photography is unique in the automotive world in that it goes beyond documenting cars and reporting races to reflecting the emotions of the people involved and it is this attribute that gives his work universal appeal. His images of drivers, mechanics and spectators are popular with collectors who don't even like motor sports. However, they do appreciate his unique ability to capture the drivers' emotional reactions to their moment of triumph.

For instance, in 1962, the late Jim Clark drove a circuit he despised. Both his teammate and a close friend and been killed on the same track in two different accidents. Yet Clark won and it was his first Formula One victory. While Anderson's portrait of Clark shows a certain satisfaction, there is still a touch of sadness as opposed to elation over a victory.

Anderson has several books to his credit including Forty Years of Motorsport Photography, At Speed, Looking Back, Salute to Ferrari, and Driven: The Racing Photography of Jesse Alexander 1954-1962.

He has been awarded the prestigious Dean Batchelor Lifetime Achievement Award for excellence in automotive journalism. His work is on display in galleries around the world and has been appeared in various exhibitions such as Art and the Automobile in Ogden, Quebec, October 2009.

Anderson still makes his home in Santa Barbara, California where he continues to create museum quality fine art prints in his personal darkroom.