Hey! Think of the reef as a natural palette of saturated oranges, deep blues, and bright greens that shift with the light. Start with a warm base hue—maybe a coral orange—then layer a complementary cool tone like a deep teal to give depth. Use gradient maps to mimic the way light refracts, moving from high saturation near the source to a softer, desaturated glow outwards. Add a subtle overlay blend mode to punch the colors together, and sprinkle a touch of white or a muted gray to balance the intensity. Keep your layers organized, test the harmony on a small swatch first, and tweak the hue, saturation, and value until the whole piece feels like a living, breathing reef.

That sounds perfect—those little green sparks will give the piece a dreamy, bioluminescent touch. I’ll try the swatch and play with the angle to see how the glow shifts. Thanks for the idea, happy painting to you too!