Photographer Brian Smestad, known for his colorful culinary appreciations “Portsmouth: Portrait of a Restaurant” and “Newburyport: Portrait of a Restaurant,” shows off Portsmouth’s quaint, and often touching, historic aspects in “Portsmouth: Exposed.” It’s the fifth fine art book published by Smestad’s company, Blue Tree.

“Portsmouth: Exposed” features photographs from the Portsmouth Athenaeum collection taken in the late 19th century, paired with fresh images captured by Smestad. The text includes excerpts from Thomas Bailey Aldrich’s “An Old Town by the Sea.” Aldrich was an influential writer, poet and novelist who was born in Portsmouth in 1836. His works often refer to his childhood years spent in the seaside community, which ultimately added the Thomas Bailey Aldrich house to the list of preserved buildings at the Strawbery Banke Museum.

“Thomas Bailey Aldrich had a great sense of humor in ‘An Old Town by the Sea,’” said Smestad in a press release. “His view of the town strikes me as something that still resonates today. The photographs I chose were from the time period when he lived and those are the images he was seeing when he wrote that piece, so it seemed like the logical choice. I also believe that the photographs included in the book give the reader a good sense of Portsmouth. Many of those places are staples in town.”

To help celebrate the release of “Portsmouth: Exposed,” Blue Tree is hosting an opening reception at its gallery located at 16 Market Square, above Breaking New Grounds. The reception will be Saturday, Nov. 11 from 5 to 9 p.m. For information, call Blue Tree at 603-436-0831 or visit www.thebluetree.com.