Barred Buterflyfish

Barred Butterflyfish, 8X10 inches, 20X28cm Oil on stretched canvas
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Finished this one just now, I'm really zooming along. Maybe I'll paint some more of these pretty little fishes. The orange things with the holes are Volcano Octopus Sponges. No, I didn't make up that name, it's in the I.D. book. And the (haha) pile of little round donut things is supposed to look like Great Star Coral.

Photos from the Fredriksted, St. Croix, Pier

Here's a Trumpet Fish trying to hide a under some Rope Sponges.
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My dive buddy Jan, pointing at a lobster. You can see his whisker- antenna, up on the piling. Lobsters try to find hiding places during the day, but you can often spot their antennae out feeling the currents. When you come closer, they start waving their antennae back and forth.
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This is scenery under the Fredriksted Pier. The pilings are five feet in diameter, a little less than two meters. Depth is from twelve feet, four meters, to 93 feet, 60 meters, very roughly.

We found a seahorse, an octopus, and lots of other critters, a fun dive.

Perfectionism raises it's head and snarls

Detail, "Brown Encrusting Octopus Sponge"
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Well, I couldn't do it, just blob blob blob globs of paint. I'll finish this one tonight. The peek-a-boo fish is either an Ocean Surgeon fish, or a Doctor fish. Can't tell from the photo.

I'm going to dive the Fredricksted Pier in a little while. The camera's battery is charging. OK.

Two more

10X8 oil on stretched canvas
Out with perfectionism, in with quantity. I have boxes of these little 8X10 canvasses, might as well get them painted and learn how to better paint in the process.

These might get some tweaking tomorrow. There is a Stoplight Parrotfish near the middle of the deep image, on the left. That was about seventy feet deep. 25 meters.

The Lineup

All oil paintings on canvas, 8X10 inches, 20.5 X 25.5 cm

I've been chugging right along doing little 'vignettes' reef paintings. Nice that the PerFecTionisM is fading, giving way to 'hurry up and do a painting!' Quantity builds quality. As in, the next one will be better. This one is OK, learn from it.

Someday soon I'll find a business partner and start selling these things. I am worse than horrible at numbers, mail, taxes, contracts, and all that's business.

Jan's Turtle

8X10 inches, 20X26 centimeters, roughly, Oil on canvas
Went for a dive with my buddy Jan in Cane Bay and saw this little Hawksbill turtle perched on a coral head, Bommie the Australians call them. We went on by slowly so as to not make him(her?) run away.