Dark almond hull overhead with a pair of oars dipping inAqua, white, black, navy. Paint the bright surface, then the hull as a dark almond with two oars.
Deep blue gradient, pale at the top, navy at the bottomTurquoise, cobalt, navy, white. Blend downward in one pass; water looks bluer the deeper it goes.
Diver's bubbles wobbling up toward a bright ceilingTeal, navy, white. Print bubbles with a cotton swab and a pencil eraser, larger near the top.
Iron chain rising link by link into the brightnessNavy, teal, gray, white. Paint each link as a small oval, fading paler toward the surface.
Light shafts falling through green water onto one turtleSea green, teal, white, olive. Drag thin white wedges down with a dry brush over the dry water.
Lone slanting sunbeam cutting through near-black depthsNavy, black, pale aqua. Scumble one pale wedge from the top corner and leave the rest dark.
Net of rippling light on a pale sandy seabedSand, turquoise, white. Paint a loose white net of wobbly lines over the dry sand color.
Raindrops hitting the surface, seen from below as ringsBlue gray, teal, white. Paint small white rings of different sizes across the top of the canvas.
Shoal of tiny fish turning as one silver ribbonCobalt, navy, white, silver gray. Press each fish with the tip of a round brush along one curve.
Sun as a wobbly white disc seen from beneath the wavesPale aqua, white, cobalt. Paint the disc, then ripple rings around it with a round brush.
Swimmer's kicking legs at the top, empty blue beneathTurquoise, navy, peach, white. Keep the legs small at the top and let most of the canvas be blue.
Three bands of sea: bright, middle and midnightAqua, ultramarine, navy. Lay three wide bands with a flat brush and soften each join.
Coral reefs and kelp 12
Brain coral and a sea fan on a sunlit ledgeCoral pink, ocher, violet, turquoise. Stipple the round coral and pull the fan as fine liner branches.
Giant clam with wavy cobalt lips, dotted paleCobalt, turquoise, tan, white. Paint two wavy lips and dot them with pale spots.
Green moray, only its head showing from a coral creviceOlive, yellow, brown, dark teal. Paint the crevice dark first so the head comes out of shadow.
Kelp forest, tall ribbons swaying toward the lightOlive, sea green, teal, pale yellow. Pull each blade up in one wavy stroke with a flat brush on its edge.
Octopus tucked under a coral shelf, arms curledRust, cream, violet, navy. Curl each arm with a round brush and dot the suckers with a cotton swab.
Orange sea star beside purple urchins on a boulderOrange, purple, gray, teal. Dot the star's texture with a cotton swab and pull the urchin spines with a liner.
Reef built from stacked sponge prints of bright colorPink, yellow, purple, orange, aqua. Press rounded shapes with a sponge, overlapping upward.
Reef wall dropping away into deepening blueCoral, ocher, cobalt, navy. Keep the colors bright at the top and gray them with blue lower down.
Seagrass meadow with one small yellow fish hidingThree greens, turquoise, yellow. Fill the lower half with upward strokes and tuck the fish among them.
Striped reef fish half hidden behind swaying pink armsOrange, white, black, pink. Paint the anemone arms first, then the fish half hidden behind them.
Teal and pink fish nibbling a coral branchTeal, pink, yellow, lime. Blend the fish from teal to pink while the paint is wet.
Yellow seahorse anchored by its curled tail to a green stemYellow, ocher, green, teal. Paint the body as an S and curl the tail around the grass.
Sharks, rays and big fish 12
Great white in profile, gray above and white belowGray, white, cobalt, black. Split the body with a wavy line where the gray meets the white.
Manta from underneath, white belly with dark blotchesWhite, gray, navy, aqua. Paint the belly white, then dab a few dark blotches on it.
Manta ray gliding with wings spread like a kiteNavy, black, white, aqua. Paint two broad triangles and the pair of horn-shaped fins by the mouth.
One huge dark fish behind one tiny bright oneNavy, orange, white. Paint the big fish as a dark oval and the small one bright in front of it.
Reef shark cruising a white sand channel between coralsGray, white, turquoise, tan. Tip the fins with a darker gray last.
School of hammerheads passing far overheadTeal, navy, gray. Paint each shark small and dark with a short bar for the head.
Shark fin above the waterline, the whole shark below itBlue gray, white, navy. Paint the waterline, a triangle above it and the long body under it.
Shark silhouette seen from below against the lightAqua, white, black, navy. Paint the bright surface first, then the shark as one dark shape.
Stingray half buried in sand, only its eyes clearSand, tan, gray, turquoise. Dry-brush sand color over the edges of the dry ray.
Swordfish driving upward, bill pointing at the sunIndigo, silver gray, white, aqua. Pull the bill as one long liner stroke.
Tuna streaming past as silver ovals, all one wayCobalt, silver gray, white, navy. Paint ovals all pointing one way and streak white along each back.
Whale shark gliding beneath you, pale spots in rowsDark gray, white, teal. Dot the spots in rows with a cotton swab and add thin pale stripes between.
Turtles, dolphins and whales 12
Dolphin diving back in, a trail of bubbles behind its tailBlue gray, white, cobalt. Paint one smooth curve heading down and dot the bubble trail with a cotton swab.
Dolphin face to face, beak toward you, bubbles risingGray, white, turquoise, black. Keep one small dark eye each side and a curved mouth line.
Hatchling turtles from below, paddling across the lightAqua, white, dark green, navy. Keep each hatchling a small dark teardrop with four dashes.
Three dolphins riding inside a wave, seen through itTurquoise, gray, white, navy. Glaze thin turquoise over the dry dolphins so they sit inside the wave.
Turtle climbing toward the light, flippers spread wideGreen, teal, white, ocher. Paint the far flippers darker than the near ones.
Turtle resting on the seabed in the shade of a ledgeOlive, tan, navy, turquoise. Shade under the shell with dark teal so it sits on the sand.
Turtle shell viewed from overhead as rough hexagonsOlive, brown, cream, turquoise. Paint the shell plates as rough hexagons with pale gaps between.
Two dolphins spiraling around each otherGray, pale gray, cobalt, white. Overlap the two bodies and keep the bellies lightest.
Whale and calf near the surface, light rippling on themDark gray, white, teal, aqua. Scumble pale ripples of light across both backs.
Whale gliding overhead, its long belly paler than its backNavy, gray, white. Paint a long low curve across the top and lighten its underside with pale gray.
Whale tail seen from below, heading down into deep blueCobalt, navy, slate, white. Blend the water darker toward the bottom, then paint the flukes as one slate shape.
Whole whale in side view beside a tiny diverSlate, navy, white, teal. Paint the diver as a dash so the whale reads as huge.
Jellyfish and glow on a black canvas 12
Bloom of jellyfish, large in front and tiny behindBlack canvas, aqua, lilac, white. Paint the far ones thin and pale and the near ones brighter.
Coral and aqua jellies passing, trails overlappingBlack canvas, coral, aqua, white. Let the tentacles overlap and brighten them where they cross.
Deep-sea fish in the dark, only its lure alightBlack canvas, pale yellow, gray. Paint the glow first, then just enough of the fish to see.
Diver's flashlight beam lighting a cloud of planktonBlack canvas, white, pale yellow, teal. Scumble the beam, then dot specks only inside it.
Glowing specks drifting like snowfall in the deepBlack canvas, pale blue, white. Dot with a cotton swab, a few large and most tiny.
Hand trailing electric blue sparks through black waterBlack canvas, bright blue, white, navy. Dry-brush the sparkle in a streak behind the hand, densest at the fingers.
Jellyfish bell from above, a pale ring fading inwardBlack canvas, aqua, white. Paint the ring bright at the rim and scumble it thinner toward the middle.
Jellyfish tentacles only, hanging like a bead curtainBlack canvas, pink, peach, white. Pull long wavy lines down from the top edge with a liner brush.
Moon seen from under black water as a broken white pathBlack canvas, white, navy. Dab short white strokes in a column, wider at the top.
Sea star and shells picked out by one pale shaftBlack canvas, orange, cream, pale aqua. Scumble the shaft first, then paint only what it touches.
Sea turtle drawn entirely in glowing dotsBlack canvas, teal, lime, white. Pencil the turtle and follow the line with cotton swab dots.
Single pink jellyfish glowing on a black canvasBlack canvas, pink, violet, white. Paint the bell as a half circle and pull the tentacles down with a liner.
Half above, half below 12
Dark discs of lily pads overhead, one frog above themGreen, yellow green, teal, white. Paint the pads as dark circles from below and the frog above the line.
Duck on the surface, orange feet paddling underneathBrown, orange, green, teal. Paint the feet bright orange under the line.
Enormous whale gliding beneath one small dinghyNavy, slate, white, sky blue. Keep the boat small on the line and fill the lower half with the whale.
Heron wading, thin legs running down among small fishGray, white, teal, tan. Paint the legs as two thin lines through the waterline and add small fish darting past them.
Mangrove roots reaching down into clear shallowsBrown, green, aqua, tan. Pull the roots down through the waterline and fade them paler below.
Palm island above, a mound of reef and fish beneathSand, green, turquoise, coral. Mirror the island's hill with a mound of reef under the line.
Pier posts running down to barnacles and small fishBrown, gray, aqua, navy. Darken the posts below the line and dot barnacles with a cotton swab.
Rain cloud above, rings on the surface, stillness belowGray, white, teal, navy. Dash the rain down to the line and leave the lower half plain.
Sailboat above the line, its keel and one fish belowWhite, red, aqua, navy. Paint the hull across the line and the keel as a dark fin under it.
Sunset sky above the line, calm dark blue belowOrange, pink, navy, teal. Blend the sky warm and the water cool, with one white line between.
Swimmer on a float ring, legs dangling in the blueYellow, peach, aqua, cobalt. Paint the ring across the line and the legs paler under the water.
Waterline across the middle, sky above and blue belowSky blue, white, teal, navy. Tape the waterline, paint each half, peel, then add one white ripple line.
How it works
Water absorbs red light, so a scene looks bluer the deeper it goes. These canvases look below the surface: light shafts, reefs and kelp, sharks and rays, turtles and dolphins, glowing jellyfish and split waterlines.
Read the full guide
Acrylic painting ideas of ocean animals
A great white is grayish above and white below, so Great white in profile, gray above and white below splits the body with one wavy line. A whale shark is dark gray with pale spots and stripes: dot them with a cotton swab. A manta has triangular wings and two horn-shaped fins beside its mouth.
Start with the water
Blend the water before any animal goes on, pale turquoise at the top and navy at the bottom, and let it dry. Light shafts are thin white dragged down with a nearly dry brush. On a black canvas, jellyfish and glowing dots need no blending.
The easy ones are under More filters, Level.
Questions and answers
Are there shark painting ideas in this list?
Yes, six in the Sharks, rays and big fish group: Shark silhouette seen from below against the light, a whale shark, a fin above the waterline, a great white, a school of hammerheads and a reef shark.
Which dolphin painting ideas are easiest?
Dolphin diving back in, a trail of bubbles behind its tail is one smooth curve and a line of dots. Two of the others overlap two or three bodies.
What is an easy underwater painting to start with?
Deep blue gradient, pale at the top, navy at the bottom is a single blend. Add one dark shape seen from below, a turtle or a shark, and it becomes a second painting.
What colors do I need for an underwater painting?
Turquoise, cobalt, navy and white make the water. Add coral pink, orange and yellow for a reef, grays for sharks and whales, and a black canvas for the glowing group.