Stony Brook University Political Science Department Election 2008 Debriefing

I know this is a little late, but hey, better late than never.  So, my wife Lindsey is a professor in the political science department at Stony Brook, and a few days after the election, they had a debriefing to discuss the results.  Three of Lindsey's colleagues, Profs. Stanley Feldman, Leonie Huddy, and Helmut Norpoth worked behind the scenes during the election coverage at CBS (Stanley and Leonie) and the New York Times (Helmut) and gave us the insider's perspective on how the polling data came in and how they made their calls and everything.  It was really cool.

-Sam

Grad students excitedly gather to listen.

Leonie and Helmut discuss the final touches on their presentation before they started.

Stanley chats before the presentation.

Prof. Milt Lodge listens attentively.

Leonie shares her behind the scenes perspective.

Department Chair Prof. Jeff Segal ponders the results.

Helmut really had a great time with the NY Times.

Stanley tells us how it all went down.

Grad students trying to glean new insights.

More from Leonie

Grad students attending the presentation.

Prof. Frank Myers sharing his opinions.

The crowd paying close attention.

More attentive grad students.

Prof. Howie Lavine laughing at something...  I can't remember what, but it was funny.  Probably had something to do with Palin's political prowess.

"Sleeping By The Curbside"

Been digging through my archives lately, and came across a project that I did for a photo book design course back in college.  It was my response to 9/11, I guess, all about rubble and junk and how the mundane stuff that people leave behind and the beauty that it can still possess.

Anywho, here's the introduction to the book that I wrote ages ago that probably makes more sense than I can probably make now, and, of course, the photos.

Enjoy!

-Sam

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These photographs were taken as I walked around my neighborhood. They are of things forgotten; things that we used, but then tossed aside when we were finished with them. These forgotten things now stare back at us from the curbside, blanketed in decaying leaves, waiting to be found and loved again. Most, however, rot away silently as we pass by day after day.

These forgotten items are remnants of our consume and throw away society. Everything is rendered obsolete before it is made. On the streets and in alleys, I found not only discarded junk, but scraps of culture, peeling and fading away. A bumper sticker stuck to a sign post reminding us to vote for someone for president, but we do not know who anymore, and no one seems to care. Vinyl records collect rain drops in a storm. An old eight-millimeter film editor sleeps in a small garden on someone’s lawn. These are things that were once useful, but are now junk, trash.

The purpose of this book is to prove that junk can indeed be beautiful where it is found. Irving Penn was able to give street garbage new life by bringing it into the studio. I have chosen to leave the junk be and give it life and beauty where it lies now. Our junk, our forgotten things, do describe who we once were and now want to forget. They become poems of our lives, stories of our pasts.

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Adventures at Stony Brook's Health Sciences Center

Autumnal Snaps!

Yay!

Da President Elect (over two years ago) 

:) I voted!

The big win tracked on my cobbled together electoral map puzzle.

Good times ahead!

-Sam

Trisha and Tim Got Married!

The other day, my buddy Mike and I had the pleasure of photographing Trisha and Tim's wedding. This was a fantastic event, because Trisha and Tim are a fantastic couple, we had a beautiful venue to work with (The Swan Club), and this was my first wedding actually on Long Island since moving here a little over a year ago! Also, Trisha is Joe's (from my previous post about our excursions in Greenport) sister, so it was fun to meet the rest of his family. Joe used to work with OFN, a longtime client of mine, and now he's moved back to Long Island to work for Brookhaven National Lab.

Here are a few special moments from Trisha and Tim's big day!

Congrats guys!

-Sam

Oops! The pastor dropped the rings!

Trisha and Tim making their grand exit from the church.

A little moment before the Rolls had to roll... pardon the pun.

And we were off to the gardens at the Swan Club, which afforded many awesome backdrops.

And flower beds for me to kneel down in to get some cool vignetting colors while the happy couple is comfy across the way.

A quick autumnal portrait for the season.

Their first dance was all smiles.

A colorful cake awaits...

Trisha's dress had some fancy lacing up to do! It took a little longer than anticipated, but was totally worth it!

And that pretty cake made it's way onto Tim's forehead. Thankfully, he's got a great sense of humor.

The ladies showed Tim how to high kick with style!