Young Energy, Timeless Vision

There’s something special about a teenager who discovers his passion, earns recognition for it, and still remains down-to-earth and humble. Christian Palazzolo is an award-winning automotive photographer who also happens to be a high school freshman—too young to have a driver’s license. But his work is already turning heads. This June, his photos will be featured in Highlands at The Bascom, a Center for the Visual Arts, during the Highlands Motoring Festival, placing him among seasoned creatives.

He and his family split their time between Cashiers and Lakewood Ranch, Florida. Born in Connecticut, Christian’s family moved to London when he was 18 months old, and there he became fascinated with life-sized versions of the Hot Wheels cars he loved to play with and collect as a little boy.

After eight years in London, the family moved back to the U.S., and a pivotal moment followed. Christian’s grandfather, who is also a photographer, gave him his first serious camera—a high-performance mirrorless Fujifilm X-t50. “I was so excited,” says Christian. ”I remember the first car I shot with my camera. It was an old Chevy Camaro that I saw in an underground parking garage. It was light blue and had that badge on the front fender.”

His parents, Rachel and Chris, recognized that this was more than a passing interest. Supporting Christian has meant traveling to photograph cars across the country and around the world. “I’ve learned more about luxury cars than I ever wanted to know,” his mom says with a laugh, “but we’re so proud of Christian and excited for him to spend time doing something he loves so much.”

A freshman at a high school in Florida, Christian says he’s pretty good at most subjects and plays ice hockey and tennis. But the majority of his free time is spent behind the camera and in his home “office” editing photos. Self-taught through online tutorials and YouTube videos, he uses Adobe Lightroom to meticulously edit his images, sometimes spending five times longer in post-production than in the field.

He studies techniques and draws inspiration from leading photographers, including Australian automotive photographer Ben Hargreaves, the creative behind Life through Optics, whose work Christian admires. “His pictures are amazing. I’ve learned a lot from him,” Christian says.

Building a Brand

To showcase his work, Christian created a website called CarstoCamera.com, where he explains his work: I specialize in luxury automotive shoots, museum-quality prints, and custom collector commissions. My style blends a sophisticated yet unscripted, high-energy perspective to the lens, capturing the raw soul of the cars while remaining refreshingly authentic (because of my age). I travel to shoot cars around the world, and I hope one day to shoot an advertising campaign for a luxury automotive brand.

His vision has earned him international recognition. He took 2nd place in the prestigious International Photography Awards (Automotive category) for his photo 911 Sunset, competing against photographers from over 100 countries.

His photograph, London Fog, taken here in Cashiers, was also named among the Top 100 in the Auto Photo Awards, and he received an honorable mention in the ND Awards, an international competition celebrating fine art photography.

Recently, Christian completed an artist residency at the Art Ovation Hotel in Sarasota, FL, where his exhibition nearly sold out and concluded with a VIP reception sponsored by Porsche Sarasota. He serves clients throughout Florida and travels for private shoots, events, and special commissions.

He has photographed at high-profile gatherings, including during his spring break this year at the Celebration Exotic Car Event to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation. “It was such an impressive show,” shares Christian, “and it was neat because it started with a car show on the main street and ended on the track at Daytona Raceway, so I was able to get a lot of different shots from one show. I have never seen so many hypercars (automobiles that represent the pinnacle in automotive engineering, performance, and price) in one place before. There was an 11-million-dollar Bugatti on display." 

At the event, he sold prints to fund new camera equipment, donated signed pieces to the charity auction, and provided images to support the event’s future promotions. The spectacular event raised $1 million for the foundation.

“I would shoot all day from 7 am to 5 pm and then would spend the night downloading and editing photos,” Christian explains.

He loves shooting luxury cars in all kinds of settings but is especially drawn to shooting at sunset, when shifting light adds drama and depth to his compositions. His dream car is the rare and luxurious Kimera 037 made by the Italian brand Lancia. It’s called 037 because there are currently only 37 in existence.

With his 16th birthday approaching in July, he has more practical dreams of a first car—a Hyundai Elantra N. “I know I'm young, so my only requirements right now are to get a car with a powerful engine and a manual transmission. I like the feeling of power and being in control of a car.”

Featured artist at The Bascom Gallery in June

Visitors will have the opportunity to experience Christian’s work firsthand during his month-long trunk show at The Bascom, with a meet-and-greet scheduled for June 13-14 during the Highlands Motoring Festival with a Porsche from Porsche Asheville parked outside.

"Part of our mission is to provide opportunities for artists, especially emerging ones,” says Zachery Rogers, director of exhibitions at The Bascom. “When our Exhibitions and Retail departments work in concert, we can expand those opportunities beyond a more traditional approach, and both the artists and the community benefit."

Retail Manager Jessica Lammers adds: "We're delighted to feature Christian Palazzolo's photographs in one of our retail gallery spaces this June. The Shop houses the work of over 150 artists, and his photography is unlike anything else we carry. With his trunk show coinciding with the Motoring Festival weekend, it's a natural pairing; car enthusiasts will have the chance to meet an internationally award-winning automotive photographer and take home his work. We look forward to highlighting his beautiful pieces at The Bascom."

Speaking of the Motoring Festival, Christian has been recruited to work his magic.  Rhett Blanchard, General Manager of Porsche Asheville, says, “We at Porsche Asheville are really excited to work with Christian to document the beauty of these vehicles and the landscape of the Highlands Motoring Festival.  Christian has a great eye for capturing these incredible Porsches, and we are excited to work with him!”

He can’t drive just yet, but Christian Palazzolo sure is going places.