Coney Island

I have had a long-standing obsession with carnivals and state fairs, the grittier the better. I love the colorful, flashy lights on rides and vendors' booths, attended by grumpy, cigarette-smoking carnies. I love the dichotomy of pretty and ugly, sparkly and worn, innocent and seasoned (a la Mary Ellen Mark's Indian circus portraits).

So when Mark and I heard that a large portion of Coney Island's amusement park was going to close after this summer, we knew we had to go. We spent a week in New York, and went to Coney Island on July Fourth, with the purpose of taking pictures all day. We rode some rides, attended the Sideshow by the Sea (supposedly the last remaining "freak show" in the United States), and ate a bunch of really unhealthy food.

The day started off with the Nathan's Hot-Dog Eating Contest, the olympics of competitive eating. Mark and I arrived too late to get a good viewing spot, so we just listened and took in the crowd. The contestants were described in such ways as "burrito specialist," "birthday-cake-eating champion of the world" and "a vegetarian who only eats meat for contests" (my personal favorite).

Here are some of our photos from the day.