On one trip, Lonnie was arrested by an overzealous but under-literate police officer who was unable to read either of the English and Farsi permission papers issued by the king. He was locked in a dark and tiny cell for several hours before being released. With his 42 pounds of gear he was left to walk five kilometers in 100 degree heat, without camel, back to the site. And so he did. And he was still able to get in enough shooting to fulfill his client’s needs without adding another shoot day.
On another trip, Lonnie was denied entry into the country, even though all of his paperwork was in order. Then there was the time he was beaten with a stick by an elderly woman who did not want to be photographed. Though his recent trip was much less extreme, it was no less interesting.
For Lonnie, an unaccustomed but exceptional culinary experience is the perfect complement to a long location shoot day. While he enjoyed some of the finest near beer he ever remembers tasting, one lunch in particular was especially delightful. At a restaurant that specialized in cage free and organic fare, fresh chicken was the meal du jour every day. Free range chickens scurried about the back yard. Upon being seated, the diners were not given a plate. instead, the server promptly came by and dumped about five pounds of rice right on the table and then topped it with a generous pile of cut-up chicken pieces. All four diners ate from this pile. The meal was wonderfully fresh and delicious and could only have been improved by a cold beer - that actually contained alcohol.
