In this tutorial I am showing you how I painted the under water backgrounds in my turtle and shark paintings (see below). This is by far the easiest way to paint water without having to paint every single detail!
This water painting technique creates a swirly effect that replicates the look of the sea under the water, and it’s the perfect background when painting underwater animals.
The video below is a quick tutorial showing you the process of how to paint this water, or if you would like to watch the full length tutorial then sign up to my Patreon and you will get instant access to this as well as all of my other full length art tutorials.
Let's get started!
To paint this under water background you will need:
- Acrylic paints (I used Liquitex paints) whites and blues
- Acrylic inks (I used Liquitex acrylic inks) whites and blues
- Water
- Paintbrush
Step 1:
Paint a gradient starting from a light blue turquoise at the top of your canvas, and finishing in a deep blue at the bottom. Blend the colours together by moving your paintbrush from side to side.
This gradient will look like the sun is shining through the water.
Step 2:
Dip your paintbrush in water, then add the water to a section of your canvas. Make sure there is a puddle of water, and that your canvas is laying on a flat surface so the water doesn’t run.
Step 3.
Add some drops of dark blue and turquoise acrylic inks to the puddle of water in random places.
Step 4.
Then take your paintbrush and gently move the inks around, creating a swirly pattern. Be careful not to over mix the acrylic inks.
Step 5:
Repeat this process at other points on your canvas, leaving some gaps for the gradient to show through. When you are adding the inks over the lighter background, make sure you are also adding lighter inks.
Step 6:
Then add some blue acrylic paint to your paint palette, and use your fingers to add the paint to the remaining sections of the canvas, blending in with the edges of the inks. Use a swirly motion with your hands to create the under water effect. This is shown in more depth in the full length tutorial on my Patreon.
Step 7:
To finish your underwater background painting, continue to add blue paint to the canvas using your fingers, making sure you follow the gradient that you painted in step 1.
I hope you found this underwater background painting tutorial helpful! If you want to learn more about how to paint colorful animals sign up below to get my FREE top 10 tips sent straight to your inbox!
