The New York State Fair photo results, 2024

With good traffic, it takes about two and a half hours to get from the Capital District to Syracuse for the New York State Fair. And if I time everything properly … I can get a prime parking spot.

Look, it’s the small victories.

If you arrive before 9:00 a.m., the New York State Fair shuffles you off to the Brown Lot, which requires walking a great distance to reach the Fair’s entrance. But if you arrive just after 9:00, you can access the Fair’s Orange Lot, which gives you a shuttle bus from the parking lot to the Fairgrounds.

And sure enough, I arrived at 9:08 a.m., and parked right next to the shuttle bus stop. Sweet.

Of course, there are a few traditions with me at the New York State Fair. Before I can enter the Harriet May Mills Art Center and find out how my photos did this year, I have to pose at the I ❤ N Y sign.

And I had my brand new T-shirt on this year.

I also walked around some of the agricultural exhibits, including watching a barrel-racing competition. That was fun.

I should also note that there were plenty of T-shirts for sale at the Fair, including shirts dedicated to the new meme of 2024.

It took all of my will power from pulling a hawk tuah on those shirts.

In fact, this one dealer had a ton of Trump-related shirts and memorabilia. Including a big-ass flag to advertise his wares.

Well, it’s a flag. What do you do when you see a flag like that?

You salute it, of course.

Okay, it’s now 1:00. Let’s see how things turned out.

Last year, although I had four entries shown at the Fair, none of them received ribbons. It’s not the Syracurse of old – where I would submit entries and they would all get rejected outright – but I certainly need to up my game here.

And right off the bat, I saw one of my pictures, the Boy Scout still life be pRepaired.

Well, it’s on the wall. That’s better than I did with this image in Iowa, so there’s that.

Okay, let’s see if my macro shot 17 Jewel Movement received some love.

Uh-oh. This is looking like a repeat of last year.

Come on, at least my photo of the Saratoga, Corinth & Hudson Railroad crossing the Sacandaga River HAS to garner some love.

Nuts. It’s there, but …

Surely my eclipse photo at least earned something. Come on, eclipse photo. Come on, come on, come on…

Yeah, in case you’re wondering, that Honorable Mention ribbon is for the photo next to How God Sees an Eclipse, so right now I’m ribbonless.

I have one entry left. A shot I took last year at the Fair of the gondola ride against an angry sky, a shot called Skywatchers. Yeah, I’m kinda resigned to my fate …

Now wait a second. That’s a sweet red ribbon for a second-place finish in photos taken at the Fairgrounds. Aces. First ribbon at Syracuse in two years. Hello, pretty little red ribbon.

And now comes another personal tradition. Because I won an award of third place or higher, I must now eat “fair food.” And by “fair food,” I don’t mean just the average deep-fried Oreos or venison jerky. No, it’s got to be something really out there.

And this year … it was this.

Bacon cheeseburger poutine with honey hot sauce. Oh, and a diet cola to counterbalance everything. 😀

Okay. Much better feeling than last year, and it’s an upswing in Competition Season 2024.

But now, after walking all around the Fairgrounds … I need to head home. Two and a half hours to get back to the Capital District.

Two and a half hours to get home …

And three hundred days to come up with six more photos for Competition Season 2025.

I cannot give up now.

No way, man. I’m on the upswing.