Herons - Ritual Behaviour

In the late afternoon of a sunny spring day on 16th June my wife and I were priveleged to spend over an hour witnessing what appeared to be ritual bonding between a pair of herons. On the banks of a large pond at Whatton Hall Gardens Leicesteshire we watched the pair conduct a "slow-motion ballet" on the bank and in the shallow water. The first to appear spent some time on the bank peering into the water as if fish spotting but then we noticed a second heron watching from a tree above.  When the second bird arrived the first moved into the water and slowly went through a routine of picking up sticks, crest waving, then settling down almost submerged. He came out of the water with occasional wing flapping and crest waving. The second bird entered the shallows and appeared to find a small fish which was "offerred" to the first. Regretfully we had to depart at the garden closing time.  Is this common behaviour? I have found little information on the web.

Photo attached (more available)