He stood above the rocks,
a silhouette against skyburnt granite.
Not alone — part of a group.
But this one had the high ground.
He wasn’t the loudest, or the largest.
Just the stillest.
While the others grazed, moved, shifted —
he watched.
Not tense. Not timid.
Just deeply aware —
of me, the camera, the heat in the air,
and the invisible threshold between distance and disturbance.
I didn’t move closer.
He didn’t need to step away.
That was the agreement:
silence exchanged for presence.
He blinked once. Then turned.
Not a performance.
Just a creature that knows his place
and doesn’t need to defend it.
Composure isn’t the absence of fear —
it’s the decision to stay still anyway.
The Lens: Leica APO-Vario-Elmarit-SL 90–280mm f/2.8–4
Built for distance. Honest about weight.
There’s no trick in this glass —
only patience, reach, and the ability to wait
until the subject chooses to be seen.
