The Reef

When I draw underwater scenes, I use what's around me as inspiration.  I'm on the east coast of Florida, so my ocean is the Atlantic.  Sure, other oceans might be more colorful or exciting, but one of my mottos is to be happy with what you have and make the most of it.  So you won't catch me dreaming about far away seas, you're more likely to find me chasing all there is to see in the one that's right here. When I need to know what seaweed or a coral looks like, I run off somewhere nearby to see what that thing looks like when it grows here.

I was out on one of the local reefs and felt like sharing some of the shots. This reef is only in about 20 feet of water, so the light is usually pretty good and it makes things look nice.

Being underwater is like being at a party where no one wants to talk to you. Except instead of being uncomfortable it feels totally right.  Fish just swim around doing their thing.  When they pass each other they don't make awkward comments to each other about the weather or their outfits, they keep on swimming.  There's a flow to it all and once you get used to it, it's really relaxing.  Actually, the only times I've ever been uncomfortable underwater were because there were big fish that were overly interested in me. That was a little strange.

Anyways, here are some things you'll see on the reefs in Florida.

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That's me, swimming around over the reef. I am not native to the reefs of Florida.

This is Puffs. In my world all puffers are named Puffs. He's my favorite fish and most of my dives are spent just looking for him. He has the best eyes and smile. This is what Puffs looks like when he's small.

This is what Puffs looks like when he gets old. The big ones are always very shy.

This guy was on the largish side. I liked him because he was a pretty brown color.

Oh, look, it's another puffer. This one is just napping.

Some corals and fans and such. I draw that yellow one on the left a lot.