Waves Crashing On Sandstone Rocks Stock Photo

In the foreground are typical Scottish beach grasses and seaside flowers. These lead down to a beach which is made up of a range of different pebbles, the first row of these being dry while beyond the strandline they have been newly washed by the sea. There are also small clumps of seaweed left behind by the retreating tide. The sea is slightly choppy and we can see the different colours of the sea: white oxygenated water at the seashore, with slightly bluer water further out, leading to almost purple-blue water. To the left of the scene are a group of pale yellow, buff, sandstone rocks which clearly show vertical, columnar jointing. We can also see some horizontal jointing. Between the two sets of vertical rocks we see a flatter section of rock which shows an example of layering. The sea waves are crashing onto the further set of rocks, sending water high into the air. The rocks are part of the New Red Sandstone of the Permian, and are at Hopeman, Moray, Grampian, Scotland.