A Profile of Lunch. Leitz Telyt-V 200mm

It's a beautiful, unseasonably-warm spring day, and I decided to take some time this morning in the Mt. Auburn Cemetery. I headed for one of my favorite spots, at the tomb of Mary Baker Eddy.  Adjacent to the elaborate granite monument, is a largish pond, and, standing like a statue, with the patience of Job, was a Great Blue Heron on the lookout for lunch.  I spent about an hour with him, leaning awkwardly against a tree to steady myself and the camera.  Using the big, old Leitz Telyt lenses is a challenge, not only because of their size and weight, but they don't offer auto-focus. It has to be done the old-fashioned way:  choose a spot, focus on it, and wait for the action to walk into that spot.  And so I leaned against my tree, focused on Big Blue, and waited for him to do something.  I could tell he had spotted potential prey when he would tense up and extend his neck.  The lunge was incredibly quick, a pause with victim in that vicious bill, and then down the hatch.  And so, I offer a nice profile portrait as the Main, and the Lunge, and finally a detail of Lunch, as Extras.