"Dust and Blood."

I took these photos on a blistering hot day last summer in the village of Saint Marie de la Mer in the Camargue region of Southern France. The Camargue bull is an incredibly powerful and hardy animal that has roamed the wild marsh lands of this region for over 2,000 years. An ancient breed they are renowned for their wild and untameable characters as well as their sharp intelligence. Due to the fact that these bulls have never been able to be domesticated, they are bred for fighting. However, unlike their Spanish cousins, they are never killed and can live many years gaining increasing strength, skill and notoriety, becoming legends in their own right. The Camargue bull is revered in this region and It's not the bullfighters, but the bulls that are the celebrities here. The great fighting bulls are buried in the marshes , and villages erect statues to them and I am told that every self-respecting Camargue village has its bull statue. These photos are a tribute to these bulls that rule this wild and breathtakingly beautiful region.