In “The Red Wheelbarrow,” William Carlos Williams wrote:

so much depends

upon

a red wheel

barrow

glazed with rain

water

beside the white

chickens

It’s an almost silly poem: of course the farmer depends on the wheelbarrow. But when you consider the image and its colors as a painting (or a photograph), the imagination paints a certain scene, maybe a nostalgic one, especially for the kids who grew up outside the city.

I almost left my Nikon home on our trip to Italy. I wanted to shoot a mostly black-and-white dedicated camera because that’s my primary medium these days. (Also a nostalgic choice, but that’s a different story.) But I brought the extra weight, and I’m glad old Nikky made the trip with me.

So much depends upon a red umbrella, glazed in rainwater, over the white pants in Rome.