Fall is the season for Fairs

One of the things I love about fall is the fairs and carnivals.  The biggest of them all – where I live at least – is the Big E in West Springfield, Massachusetts.  It’s two weeks and three weekends of action, and I take thousands of photos there every year.

One of my favorite places is the circus tent, where I see things like this:

Professional cat catchers stand ready to rescue a leaping feline

Playing with fire under the circus tent

Motorcycles and acrobatics, fifty feet off the floor. With no safety net.

They've always got a full house, so get there early

You will never guess what came out of that little box

I love the brilliant colors, the lights, and the patterns.  And I admire the skill of the performers.

My next favorite place is the concert stage.  I've only been to two shows so far this year, but both were great.  Does anyone know who these performers are?

And we can't forget the horses and all the other animals  . . .

What are you favorite images of the fair?

The photos above were shot with Nikon Df and D3s cameras, and 28-70 and 70-200 2.8 lenses.  An SB910 flash was used for some shots.  ISO ranges from 400 to 3200.  All images (c) 2014 John Elder Robison