Odd Barrier
03 December 2014 -- 337/365
Providence, Rhode Island
While driving down historic Benefit Street in Providence, I spotted this odd collection of granite blocks in front of one of the early 19th century homes that line the street. The plaque on the front of the house was too faded and blurred for me to read the original owner's name, so I haven't been able to find anything about the placement of these stones. They resemble uncut tombstones, so it's possible the house was once owned by a colonial mason that cut them (although slate was more often used for graves in the 18th and early 19th century.) What struck me, though, was the resemblance to a modern anti-terror barrier. That's the other possibility - not anti-terror, but anti-skidding-motorist. Directly opposite the house is a narrow but extremely steep road. Once can imagine the ice that forms on that road in the winter, and I wonder if more than one car has ended up in the living room of this home. Once would be enough for me to erect this barrier if I were the homeowner!
Post processing started with a classic filter in Topaz B&W FX. I adjusted color sensitivity sliders, adaptive exposure, regions, contrast, boost black, boost white, and protect highlights. A b&w gradient map at 50% opacity and a levels adjustment were added in PSE.
