After spending a week back in Afghanistan I am back in Dubai and preparing to head to Abu Dhabi to work the country’s 40th National Day.

I went to Afghanistan, in part, because I needed to exit the UAE and re-enter to activate my residency. Of course, I could have done a day trip to Oman, but that didn’t hold the same possibilities for shooting.

I had hoped to stage another fable for my series, but since the trip was pretty last minute and I hadn’t planned or researched anything, I wasn’t sure if it would come off. The first time I photographed for my fables series in Afghanistan was probably my toughest fable shoot yet.

This time, after spending some time scouting locations, I decided to shoot at Namak Dan (salt container) in Herat. As you may have guessed, I originally went there under the impression I would find salt and be able to shoot it for my Salt series. No such luck, but it did provide a perfect backdrop for The Saint and I was even able to cast some of the characters from the grounds of Namak Dan and the adjoining Khaja Abdullah Ansar.

The cast and crew – crew consisting of my driver and the son of the man who was playing the part of the Saint – thought it was peculiar but funny that I had bought clothes for them to wear, had placed tiny eggs on the blanket with them, and had one of them hold a still flopping yellow fish for the others to look at and react to. Admittedly, the reactions are subtle as I’ve come to expect in Afghanistan.

Though I had a great trip I think this will be my last cold weather trip to Afghanistan for a while. Next time, maybe spring or summer. …I have another fable in mind that requires a man to be sitting in a tree full of berries…