Hamilton Island panorama - original acrylic painting by Alan Benge

The Whitsundays are a source of inspiration for artists as all the ingredients for exciting paintings are here. Sea, sun, tropical landscapes, and a marvellous marine lifestyle.
In this original painting, I decided to have the mid-foreground framed by palms, with a selection of Hamilton Island golf carts travelling along the winding road. If you have ever visited Hamilton, you will have seen the golf buggies - the preferred means of getting around for many.
In the background of this acrylic picture, I painted in yachts making their way across a light blue ocean, with misty hill shapes and islands dotting the horizon.

Marine painting by Alan J. Benge of Hamilton Island, North Queensland.

This triptych panel was the result of a holiday that I spent at Hamilton Island, on the Great Barrier Reef.
The view from my hotel room was magnificent, so I was pleased that I'd packed my oil paints and brushes in case a good picture opportunity came up. I might add it was hard to find the time to do this trio because the beach beckoned, and swimming was an option I didn't want to miss.
However, after having a dip - the water was great by the way - I returned to my room and worked quickly on the panels.
Foreground interest was helped by the obliging white cockatoos which came and sat on my balcony. They were so friendly, that it was a job to keep them off the drying canvas panels which I put out in the sun on the balcony to dry.
I used a range of blues to depict the tropical surroundings. This view looks East towards the background, and when I painted this "en plein air" the hills in the distance were misty with haze.
The actual panel size was limited to what I had brought in my luggage, with each panel only about 30cm X 20cm.