Meghan Hendricks | Senior Staff Photographer / The Daily Orange

The NY State Fair Midway is home to rides and carnival games designated by a large illuminated sign that reads “Greatest Carnival on the Planet.” Axis was one of the several rides at the fair that featured a flying or twirling effect.

Meghan Hendricks | Senior Staff Photographer / The Daily Orange

The Hollywood Racing Pigs brings a large crowd to the Family Fun Zone three times a day. Pigs like Baconator and Darl Earnhog Jr. ran around the small track as fans both young and old cheered.

Meghan Hendricks | Senior Staff Photographer / The Daily Orange

Sea Lion Splash is one of many events in the Family Fun Zone at the NY State Fair. The performance featured three sea lions — Gouda, Maya, and Abba — and showcased many of their different tricks such as ring toss or balancing a ball on their nose.

Meghan Hendricks | Senior Staff Photographer / The Daily Orange

The American Dairy Association North East’s annually changing butter sculpture is a crowd marvel at the NY State Fair. For 2023, the sculpture’s theme was “Dairy Every Day is a Healthy Way – Keeping Kids' Health on Track” and featured a cow and a sign displaying different types of dairy.

Meghan Hendricks | Senior Staff Photographer / The Daily Orange

The Toyota Coliseum is home to the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association competitions throughout the duration of the fair. On Sunday, Aug. 27, Syracuse University was among the teams competing as well as Alfred and Cornell Universities.

Meghan Hendricks | Senior Staff Photographer / The Daily Orange

Peachey’s Baking Company is one of the many small food vendors to take up camp at the NY State Fair each year. Owner Dan Peachey worked with his team to produce fresh donuts and soft pretzels throughout the day for fairgoers to enjoy.

Meghan Hendricks | Senior Staff Photographer / The Daily Orange

Cages line the poultry barn with chickens, turkeys and ducks as well as rabbits and guinea pigs. In the center of the barn, a child watches the baby chicks for sale sleep under a heat lamp.

Meghan Hendricks | Senior Staff Photographer / The Daily Orange

Throughout the fair water gun games draw in large crowds as an adrenaline rush-filled easy game to win. Toward the end of the night, a small child eager to still win a prize dragged their parent to the stools and sat down waiting for an opponent.

Meghan Hendricks | Senior Staff Photographer / The Daily Orange

Dairy cattle from around New York gather in one barn for competitions. The cows range from months to years old and are judged on appearance and personality.

Meghan Hendricks | Senior Staff Photographer / The Daily Orange

Lights from the rides and food stalls illuminate the paths of the Midway as the crowds start to dissipate. The sweet treat locations were the busiest locations at the end of the night as people looked to satisfy their sweet tooth before heading home.

Meghan Hendricks | Senior Staff Photographer / The Daily Orange

Fairgoers fly high about the crowds on the ground on the three-person swing ride featured in the Midway. As the sunsets and shadows get long, parents holding tired children or large stuffed animals won at games start to make their way to the exit.

Meghan Hendricks | Senior Staff Photographer / The Daily Orange

The Exposition Center is home to Dinosaur Expedition — a Detroit-based exhibition that brings life-like dinosaurs to zoos and fairs nationally — for the 2023 NY State Fair. Most of the dinosaurs require complex motors and pulley systems to make them move.

Meghan Hendricks | Senior Staff Photographer / The Daily Orange

With two hours left of the NY State Fair’s operational hours, one of the game attendants sits waiting for participants to approach. After a child hit the target and read their score they got to choose from the array of prizes ranging from inflatable aliens and giant hammers to Pikachu hats.

Meghan Hendricks | Senior Staff Photographer / The Daily Orange

The sun sets over the New York State Fair and puts a cap on the summer as students head back to school and the weather starts to turn cooler. From the Broadway Skyliner fairgoers can oversee the crowds gathered at games, getting food and waiting in line to ride rides in the Midway.