Tom Langlands Photography Blog

Water is essential for life. We can survive quite long periods of time without food but only a few days without water. Despite the fact that we live on a planet where most of the surface is comprised of water the pure, clean, fresh water that we need to drink is an incredibly valuable commodity. Some nations have it in abundance and others have so very little. The fundamental relationship between water and life is the reason why scientists trawl the universe looking for planets that exhibit properties indicative of water-rich environments and the same fundamental relationship between water and life was what made our ancestors revere it, wonder where it came from and who was controlling it. Waterfall in a Celtic Rainforest As life-giving water often emerged from holes in the ground or oozed from cracks in cliffs it was assumed that it must be coming from another dimension, a world that we did not inhabit. It must also be controlled by the forces or spirits that lived in

The inhospitable but amazing Bass Rock The Bass Rock, or simply 'The Rock' as it is referred to by locals, is a  volcanic plug that rises out of the waters of Scotland's Firth of Forth and dates back some 320 million years. It shares a common ancestry with the not too distant Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh and also Castle Rock on top of which stands Edinburgh's world famous castle. To reach Bass Rock necessitates crossing the waters at the mouth of the Firth and Forth and it is only when doing so that you realise just how inhospitable and inaccessible The Rock is. Even in a gentle breeze the waters around the steep cliffs that rise from the depths have a notorious swell and dangerous swirling currents that make landing on The Rock very difficult. Trips to the Bass Rock can only be arranged through the Scottish Seabird Centre in nearby North Berwick as they have exclusive landing rights. I have made the crossing on a small traditional Scottish fishing tr