my first attempt at making something to look like water, as 
elcangrejo 's second for the creek . I subdivided the rectangular plane and displaced it based on a cloud texture . nothing close to the final visual, but trying!
I also really liked the tutorial that 
ladymito shared . That tutorial doesn't seem to handle displacement, which I find to be a compelling idea , so I'm curious about whether there is a way to combine the effect of an image texture and the effect of materials.
trying on a material. doesn’t have much to reflect. you can see the seams of my array modifier. also made the pace more gentle based on 
ketre 's great feedback!
very different approach from using displacement modifier. making the canvas of the dynamic paint move
I set the material to have the IOR of water, but it seems the light from the icospheres isn't being bent
aubrie I love the ripple effects you’re getting. It will be neat to see it react with the waterwheel! 💦
