"For most of my life I have felt a creative yearning inside of me, however it has only been in the last few years that I discovered an avenue to express it. This discovery came about on a trip to South America where a chance meeting with a deeply spiritual and talented artist encouraged me. The timing was right and I knew it was time to put paint to canvas.

The brilliant colours and bio-diversity of this underwater environment has undoubtedly influenced my paintings. The vivid underwater images I have experienced have burned a vibrant seascape into my imagination. This is the source of my inspiration.

To me art is a way of conveying to our children, future generations and us the importance of looking after our lands, our oceans. I plan to do my next series on this topic. www.rogest.com

Ron will be visiting Kids Sea Camp this year in Curacao, Weeks 3 & 4, and Grand Cayman, Week 1,2006.

Margo Peyton - Margo began her diving in 1989 and already an artist above water began to paint and draw the world below in 1999. She is now a resident of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida after moving from the Cayman Islands.

She travels the world and loves to paint, draw and sketch many beautiful and endangered sea creatures.

Margo has donated many of her Sumi inks and paintings to The American Oceans For Youth, Our World Underwater, Fund raisers for local School projects as well. Margo enjoys painting with children and has done so for the past 8 years.


Michele Westmoreland - Michele began her diving and underwater photography career in South Florida 16 years ago. She is now a resident of Mill Creek, Washington after moving to be with her photographer husband, Stuart. She travels the world to capture images of the wonderful ocean world along with topside travel photography. Michele has been published in many highly recognized publications such as Sport Diver and other international diving magazines, Islands, National Geographic Travel & Adventure magazines, Caribbean Travel & Life and Outside. She has won several awards for her imagery. Michele lectures for numerous organizations and is a tour specialist/photo pro to exotic locations. To capture her images, Michele uses Canon cameras and lenses in UK Germany housings and supported by Ikelite strobes. If you would like to see more of her and Stuart's work, visit westmorlandphoto.com.

Carey Chen - A genuine master of his craft, Carey Chen is gaining worldwide attention for his unparalleled portraits of life at sea. Chen's fascinating use of colors and his knack for capturing detail has catapulted him to the forefront of the marine art industry. His artistic ability along with his knowledge of marine life and message of conservation make Carey a great addition to the Kids Sea Camp experience.

Carey was instrumental in the painting of three, seven-foot sections of an original mural valued over US $50,000.00 at the Curacao Sea Aquarium. To make this project unique and special, the kids were equipped with paintbrushes to assist Carey in the designing and painting of the project. The children hade a hands-on opportunity to learn tips on art and to receive information on the native sea life of Curacao.

Although painting is an obvious passion of Carey's, he ranks conservation as a close second. When he's not in his studio, Carey can be seen educating and raising money for an array of conservation projects worldwide. With this background, the children involved in Margo Peyton's Curacao Kids Sea Camp will have the opportunity to learn about protecting our oceans, reefs and other marine life that they will be interacting with in an incredible hands on approach introducing children to our underwater world.

Carey's experience at the Kids Sea Camp was completely interactive for all who attended. He held several signings for posters and prints so the kids will have souvenirs of a special experience. To see more information on Carey Chen, you can log on to www.careychen.com.

Donald Tipton - Donald Tipton began his professional photographic career in 1982 and has worked in commercial and advertising photography since that time. He makes his home in Columbus, GA with his wife, Angelyn and children, Jonathan, Andrew, and Katherine. His education in music and art have augmented his pursuit of photographic excellence. In 1987 D. Tipton obtained his basic open water rating through NASDS.

He continued his studies in diving obtaining his NASDS instructors rating in 1989. Photography has been an essential component of Tipton’s diving from the beginning . His work is a celebration of color, texture, and form that few people will ever experience firsthand. While Donald is a marine photographer it is also essential to show the wildlife in their habitats. He attempts to show beaches, marshes, intercostal waterways, and other wildlife environments in ways that we often overlook. While many photographers work only with color images, Donald works with both black and white and color images. He feels that sometimes a subject matter will be stronger when you remove the colors and have the viewer only concentrate on the subject.

Donald works extensively with marine mammals and other oceanic animals that are very difficult to approach. For this reason, he makes use of Drager rebreathers in most of his shoots. His work regularly appears in Magazines, advertisements, and art galleries. His new book Upon the face of the Waters is Donald’s vision to help all people to understand the many faces of the oceans. It will be available this year. You can see more of Donald's work at www.donaldtipton.com