Art and Oddballs

[H.K.Luterman]

1 hour ago, Streetwise said:

I love all your photos, @H.K.Luterman!

Thanks! Seems like I always have my phone ready for pics when I'm looking at my tanks. 

[Patrick_G]

1 hour ago, Streetwise said:

I love all your photos, @H.K.Luterman!

Seriously! I can’t wait for the next episode. “What will Pooka do next?”

 

[H.K.Luterman]

Speaking of what will Pooka do next, here's some footage I got of her the other day playing in some bubbles. I decided that she might like some increased air and flow in her tank, since Featherfins are a riverine species, so I split the airline and put in an airstone beside the sponge filter. I figure the kicked up debris and duckweed roots are worth it, since she seems to be really enjoying the addition; I watch her playing in the stream every evening.

 

[H.K.Luterman]

Completely off topic for this forum, BUT... I thought I'd post a pic I just finished. I was really into an MMORPG called Wildstar before it shut down, and I played this little pink aurin Spellslinger guy named Zero. Felt like drawing him being all heroic-like. This took me forever and I'm pretty pleased with how it came out.

 

Close up.

[H.K.Luterman]

The thing about featherfins is, while they aren't necessarily predatory in the usual sense, they are opportunistic. That means if they come across a fish that is prone (usually sleeping) and small enough, it will get eaten. Mostly Pooka keeps fry numbers down, but now and then I do see damage on the adult platies in the form of scrapes or fin nips. This morning I found a platy with her head scales scraped off. 

Typically these kinds of injuries heal up fast, and I've come to accept them as being part of keeping a featherfin. I do wonder though, if I replaced the platies with a tougher fish if this would still happen (congo tetras maybe?) The thing is I don't want to stress my Pooks out. 

Obligatory pic of my big beautiful girl, wondering why I'm shoving the camera in her face.

 

Also I was watching Dinky this morning and took a pic of him.

 

And then of course Igor had to butt in.

[H.K.Luterman]

Hmmm. a mysterious plant sprout has appeared. I wonder what it will turn into. Maybe it's from the windelov? It doesn't look like one though.

 

Dinky had to come over and see what I was doing. He bulldozed over the plant and moved it a little, so it's not rooted.

 

[Streetwise]

Your fish and plant photos are amazing!

[H.K.Luterman]

1 minute ago, Streetwise said:

Your fish and plant photos are amazing!

Thanks. ☺️

[Hobbit]

It looks like one of the plants I have! ...though now that I think about it, I have no idea what they are. Huh. I got them at Petco when I was setting up my first tank. They act like anubias but I don’t see such narrow-leaf anubias anywhere online.

[H.K.Luterman]

2 minutes ago, Hobbit said:

It looks like one of the plants I have! ...though now that I think about it, I have no idea what they are. Huh. I got them at Petco when I was setting up my first tank. They act like anubias but I don’t see such narrow-leaf anubias anywhere online.

I have no idea where it came from! And now I can't find it, lol! Dragon is currently swimming around and being silly, so either he knocked it somewhere or Igor might have moved it. 

[Patrick_G]

2 hours ago, H.K.Luterman said:

Hmmm. a mysterious plant sprout has appeared. I wonder what it will turn into. Maybe it's from the windelov? It doesn't look like one though.

 

Dinky had to come over and see what I was doing. He bulldozed over the plant and moved it a little, so it's not rooted.

 

You just sent up the plant nerm bat signal. Identification is imminent! 

[Streetwise]

Perhaps it is Cryptocoryne Lucens:

https://www.aquariumcoop.com/collections/live-plants/products/cryptocoryne-lucens

[H.K.Luterman]

12 hours ago, Streetwise said:

Perhaps it is Cryptocoryne Lucens:

https://www.aquariumcoop.com/collections/live-plants/products/cryptocoryne-lucens

It does certainly look like that! However, I'm trying to remember if I ever put any in the 75. I did have some in the 40 at one point. I must have, because how else would it have gotten there, lol! I guess it was dormant in the dirt and then maybe Igor's digging exposed it? Hmmmm.

[Hobbit]

15 hours ago, Streetwise said:

Perhaps it is Cryptocoryne Lucens:

https://www.aquariumcoop.com/collections/live-plants/products/cryptocoryne-lucens

I think that’s what mine is. You win the prize! 🏆

[Hobbit]

16 hours ago, H.K.Luterman said:

I have no idea where it came from! And now I can't find it, lol!

Sounds to me like you’ve acquired a tank portal! Watch out for missing shrimp and small fish!

[H.K.Luterman]

I nabbed a pink flamingo crypt and it arrived yesterday. It's looking a little sad but hopefully it will perk up.

 

Igor is obviously very concerned.

 

And there is an on going battle in the 40. I want this anubias, the one on the red lava rock, to be sitting a few inches to the right behind another rock, and Pooka keeps moving it every night. I'm about to let her win.

[Betsy]

Love the pink flamingo crypt!!  It'll definitely perk up!  Your plants and animals always look so happy!

Maybe Pooka was an interior decorator in a former life! 😂👍

[FrozenFins]

Wow😍!!! Love me some pink flamingo crypts, only problem is their like $70CAD where I live, i think I saw them on the coop website for like $20!

🤞crossing my fingers they turn around for the good!

Good Luck with your crypt as well as your new walstand tank, so exciting!

[Trish]

@H.K.Lutermanyou have a wonderful collection of character fish, I've enjoyed every page of your thread.  

[H.K.Luterman]

WELL, there's been some excitement for the 29 gallon. The water got all cloudy, and at first I thought it was from the Tums in the Repashy I feed the mystery snails. But then on a hunch, I tested the ammonia and there was a spike! I'm surprised that everyone seemed ok. I think the only thing I really noticed was they were breathing a bit heavier than usual.

Anyways, I proceeded to do an emergency water change/tank clean, looking for the source of ammonia. Man, it's impossible to see ANYTHING in that forest of val I have going on. So I had to blindly feel around. I removed most of the rocks, thinking something might have died in the caves, I siphoned out mulm, I squeezed out the filter. Long story short, I did find a dead, stinky mystery snail that had hidden behind the filter. I'm usually really good at finding them before they rot, but this one had the one two punch of being in the val AND behind something. After two large water changes within 24 hrs, the ammonia is back to 0 and the water has cleared. It's been staying at 0 now so I think the crisis is over.

In my panic, I put in the seeded quarantine filter to help process the ammonia, and now I kind of like having the extra filtration in there. So I'm seeding an extra filter in the 75 to eventually put in the 29. I'm sure everyone appreciates the extra air.

While I was sitting here this morning, drinking my coffee, I had one of the lights moved and the lid open. I don't know, I kind of like the look of the dimmer light in there. 

 

I turned a light off just to see how I like it. I might experiment with placement, and watch how the val grows with the reduced light. You can see the quarantine filter on the right helping out.

 

Also, I moved the EBA, Tesla, to Pooka's tank, because I noticed my mystery snails were keeping their feelers pulled in; I think he was harassing them. So far Pooka's ignoring Tesla, so hopefully she'll let him grow out in there.

 

Just a shot of the limia eyeballing me as I tested their water. I need to pick up the Co-Op strips. I have the regular ones but not the ammonia ones.

 

And one of the baby mysteries. I might move one into the Walstad tank once it's seasoned enough. 

[H.K.Luterman]

New art! T-shirt design I did for a client.

 

 

[Lemon]

you are really good at art, do you have tips for digital art? my sister is amazing with paper but uh . . . there is room for improvement with digital. we want to make a game so we can't use the paper art.

[H.K.Luterman]

7 minutes ago, quirkylemon103 said:

you are really good at art, do you have tips for digital art? my sister is amazing with paper but uh . . . there is room for improvement with digital. we want to make a game so we can't use the paper art.

Just practice, practice, practice. Also looking up tutorials on Youtube is a great way to learn.

[Lemon]

36 minutes ago, H.K.Luterman said:

Just practice, practice, practice. Also looking up tutorials on Youtube is a great way to learn.

does tracing help? I get discouraged when a line doesn't turn out right or when whatever I am drawing ends up weird, so I think tracing could be helpful but I'm not sure 

[H.K.Luterman]

1 minute ago, quirkylemon103 said:

does tracing help? I get discouraged when a line doesn't turn out right or when whatever I am drawing ends up weird, so I think tracing could be helpful but I'm not sure 

Tracing is a good way to learn how to draw something, and so is trying to copy another artist's work. However, be very careful about this; don't ever claim something you traced or copied as your own work (and ESPECIALLY never use copied art to make money for yourself). And if you post it online anywhere, ALWAYS give credit to the original artist. Something like, "Here is an image I traced for art practice. The original art was created by Artsypants McGoob." Most artists won't mind if you copy their art if you credit them and aren't making money from it, but some may still request that you don't post it.