Exploring Chocolate World
This (Hershey, PA) is my hometown. I grew up visiting various Hershey Entertainment and The Hershey Company attractions regularly. This is the most obvious reason why my photos of Chocolate World do not resemble typical tourist photos. So, here I offer an insider's perspective of this enchanting little gem in Pennsylvania.
I'm fortunate enough to have witnessed the constant evolution of this place for the past two decades and I've seen old photos of how it used to look. Chocolate World has been a thing since 1973, built as a substitute for the original chocolate factory tour. The tour ride is the most famous attraction there. My favorite version of the ride is the way I remember it as a child. I haven't really photographed anything on the ride because I'm not sure if that is ok with them. Arguably, the next best part is actually the jungle! I have always been kind of obsessed with strolling around the indoor jungle as I ate my sample of candy after the ride. Where else can you go to see cacao trees in the middle of the winter?  The outdoor photos at the end of the gallery below, feature the fresh construction of the new entrance and roller coaster at Hersheypark. Â
The path that I explored with the composition and post post-processing of these images, is the study of the interesting relationship between nature and man-made materialism. I intentionally focused on the relationship, as I experimented with various examples of exposure and color adjustments. Some examples you can tell I really dug in deep with emphasizing various color theories and dynamic compositions. Camera gear featured: Canon 90D, 50mm f 1.8 lens, natural midday lighting.
Hope you enjoy! Please comment with your thoughts and questions below. Feel free to share which photo you like the most or your personal memories. These photos are also available for purchasing prints.