The Smith Appleby House in nearby Smithfield, Rhode Island is one of my favorite photographic subjects. I refer to it in the title as a “modified stone ender” because the original section of the house, from the chimney and to the right, was built in 1696 and it was indeed a true stone-ender. In the late 1700s, though, as the family grew to include 10 children – 7 boys and 3 girls – the house was expanded by adding two rooms on the north side of the house. Then around 1800, another house was moved from Johnston, Rhode Island – no small feat in the early 19th century – and attached to the original. This effectively doubled the living space of the house and produced a peculiar L-Shaped structure that isn’t evident from this angle. You’ll see that in another photo at some point, though. While it’s a shame that the flavor of the original stone-ender is lost, this house provides a remarkable timeline for the development of the Stillwater section of Smithfield. I’ll try to show that in subsequent photos since the property witnessed the birth and death of industry in the area, the conversion from agriculture to industrial pursuits, and even the relocation of a road and birth of a pond. It’s a fascinating history all told on 721 acres of land.
Post processing was extremely sparse today. This is about as close to SOOC as I get, and in fact, I was very close to using the image as shot. Then again, where’s the fun in that? :) So I applied a photo pop filter in Topaz Adjust to bring out a bit of the detail in the shadows. It was early morning when I shot this, so the shadow on my side of the house was pretty dark. I used a hue adjustment to bring the grass back into line since the filter had turned the shade slightly. A levels adjustment brought the contrast back to where it was originally while preserving the details in the shadow.
@karens68@allisonrap@mariboo@calm@megsy@michellina Thanks, everyone! This is one of my favorite spots. There are so many possible shots on the property, that I love to just wander around here and explore.
April 13th, 2012
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