During a hike along a nature trail in a lush tropical garden in south Florida, I brought my camera to capture reference photos of the scenery for future paintings. The water lilies caught my eye immediately—their serene beauty floating on the still pond surface—and I was especially drawn to how perfectly they reflected in the dark water.
This painting is based on one of those photos: a single white water lily with a bright yellow center, surrounded by green pads, set against a deep, shadowy background. For this one, I decided to switch things up and try acrylics instead of my usual oils. Oils take so long to dry, and I wanted quicker results, plus I was curious how acrylics would handle the smooth gradients and reflections.
The real focus was practicing those mirror-like reflections in the water—I worked on getting the symmetry right, with soft blended edges and subtle color shifts so the flower appears to float above its own inverted image. Acrylics dried fast enough that I could build the details quickly without waiting days between layers.
It was a fun technical challenge and a nice change of pace from oils.