To go along with that scenario of "spot" waiting on you for food, a few ponds that I walk around (mine included) have LMB that follow me around the pond. Whether they are expecting a handout (my pond) or catching grasshoppers that fly into the pond because of walking around the perimeter, they still play follow the leader.
I agree with your assesment of running a lure past their nose vs. "feeding" a lure to them.
A couple of years ago I watched a LMB try and grab a BG when it was feeding. I started by fin clipping one (BG) and putting a #10 hook in it's tail stub, then putting it into the pond for the LMB to eat. (I watched the LMB try to move around the un-clipped BG to grab it head on.) I found that if I were to pull the BG backwards a bit, then the LMB would grab it. I'd quickly yank the small hook out so I didn't hook the LMB. After a while, it'd jump out of the water to get the BG as I lowered it to the water. You could swim a BG past it and it wouldn't give it a 2nd look, but dangle one? I was amazed at how far above the water it could see the BG and get it.
I don't feed until the fish stop eating, the fish clean up the food in <10 seconds (the RBT are the biggest eaters in the pond).
