Need advice for next tattoo...

[anomaly1964]

I just said that Matrix tattoos aren't particularly special? You're not finding anything because tattoos like that rarely look good, which is why it's not a great idea.

But WHAT makes a tattoo special? Because it is a respected art form? Because someone famous did it? Or because it has meaning to the person wearing it?

You are right, you can find a million Batman and Star Wars references for tattoos and maybe TEN for The Matrix...

There is probably nothing special about this tattoo to you:

But it means a great deal to ME...

[Graeme]

People like you with an elitist attitude are what drive people away from forums.

I wish this was true. Eight pages (so far!) of this thread says it isn't.

[anomaly1964]

I wish this was true. Eight pages (so far!) of this thread says it isn't.

Yeah well, I have thicker skin than most. Maybe if you type in capital letters I will be more afraid of ya...grin.

[tatB]

nothing wrong with getting special/meaningful tattoos. it is just odd to ask strangers for help finding something that is special and meaningful. most of us here are interested in tattoos as art so we seek out specific artists but many people just want a permanent personal symbol from the closest tattoo applicator.

[anomaly1964]

nothing wrong with getting special/meaningful tattoos. it is just odd to ask strangers for help finding something that is special and meaningful. most of us here are interested in tattoos as art so we seek out specific artists but many people just want a permanent personal symbol from the closest tattoo applicator.

I get what you are saying too Brian. But I could get a tattoo from the perceived best tattoo artist on the planet and pay $3000 for it. But if it is the coolest oriental dragon human eyes have ever seen but doesn't speak to me, then...

I know I asked for advice, and I REALLY do appreciate the positive comments (I just need to remember some folks are gonna be a smart ass on the internet because THEY CAN)...

In advice I guess I was thinking, here are my interests and that maybe someone had seen something that I hadn't yet discovered...

Thanks again for your advice Brian...

[tatB]

I know I asked for advice, and I REALLY do appreciate the positive comments (I just need to remember some folks are gonna be a smart ass on the internet because THEY CAN)...

I try to be a smart ass as often as possible in real life too :)

[smiling.politely]

You don't have to find the "best in the world" to get a great tattoo... My boss has been tattooing 18 years, is a local guy who hasn't done conventions in around a decade, and does tattoos that would hang with anything posted on here on a daily basis. And he's not expensive, either. People here post by folks that I've never heard of that are local guys, who kill it on a daily basis as well. There's no excuse anymore to get a bad tattoo in whatever style, other than laziness when it comes to learning about what you are trying to get.

If you want advice, take advice. If you want to work it out on your own, work it out on your own. But don't respond poorly to advice, then claim you're being treated like crap because people respond in kind. Also, not to be rude, but if you're happy with the quality of the tattoo you first posted, then insult Adam Hays' work like that (intentionally or not)... I don't know that there's a lot of room to talk there.

As far as everyone seeming like they're giving you the same advice, it's because we really do want you to get a good tattoo. But it's not good trying to shoehorn in a million meanings to every tattoo, or get things that may look cool on paper but will look like a mess when it's tattooed, let alone in 10 years, 20 years, or 30 years. Don't think so literally, and if you can't help but do that, find a tattooer you like, and let them be creative for you. It's their job.

p.s.- Did anyone else see how heavy handed I was trying to be with the red pill/blue pill thing earlier?

- - - Updated - - -

Double post, my bad. But, as a personal example...

My roommate in college and one of my best friends in life and I really, really like Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Wanted to get bro tats for the movie. Didn't get Hunter's face, or Ralph Steadman art. We got daggers with some elements themed to references from the book/movie, and half of the phrase we both liked the most. He got the lizard dagger, I got the bat dagger. He has since completed the set, I'm waiting to go see him in Arizona to get my lizard dagger. 5 years later, by the way, and they look just as like they did then, and the guy who did mine gave me the chance to work in this business and make a living.

(also, us goofing around midway through- https://scontent-b-dfw.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xap1/v/t1.0-9/60231_781027023591_1119459_n.jpg?oh=d2c37e1947a7af9f4e64268e6b5805ac&oe=54727246)

[anomaly1964]

You don't have to find the "best in the world" to get a great tattoo... My boss has been tattooing 18 years, is a local guy who hasn't done conventions in around a decade, and does tattoos that would hang with anything posted on here on a daily basis. And he's not expensive, either. People here post by folks that I've never heard of that are local guys, who kill it on a daily basis as well. There's no excuse anymore to get a bad tattoo in whatever style, other than laziness when it comes to learning about what you are trying to get.

If you want advice, take advice. If you want to work it out on your own, work it out on your own. But don't respond poorly to advice, then claim you're being treated like crap because people respond in kind. Also, not to be rude, but if you're happy with the quality of the tattoo you first posted, then insult Adam Hays' work like that (intentionally or not)... I don't know that there's a lot of room to talk there.

As far as everyone seeming like they're giving you the same advice, it's because we really do want you to get a good tattoo. But it's not good trying to shoehorn in a million meanings to every tattoo, or get things that may look cool on paper but will look like a mess when it's tattooed, let alone in 10 years, 20 years, or 30 years. Don't think so literally, and if you can't help but do that, find a tattooer you like, and let them be creative for you. It's their job.

p.s.- Did anyone else see how heavy handed I was trying to be with the red pill/blue pill thing earlier?

- - - Updated - - -

Double post, my bad. But, as a personal example...

My roommate in college and one of my best friends in life and I really, really like Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Wanted to get bro tats for the movie. Didn't get Hunter's face, or Ralph Steadman art. We got daggers with some elements themed to references from the book/movie, and half of the phrase we both liked the most. He got the lizard dagger, I got the bat dagger. He has since completed the set, I'm waiting to go see him in Arizona to get my lizard dagger. 5 years later, by the way, and they look just as like they did then, and the guy who did mine gave me the chance to work in this business and make a living.

(also, us goofing around midway through- https://scontent-b-dfw.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xap1/v/t1.0-9/60231_781027023591_1119459_n.jpg?oh=d2c37e1947a7af9f4e64268e6b5805ac&oe=54727246)

For those who have not spoken down to me, I think I have listened well...

As I said earlier, you may think the guy who did the Star Wars tattoos is awesome, but me PERSONALLY, I don't like that style. That does not mean it's BAD, it means it's not for ME...

The more pics I see posted, the more I do realize that we ALL see things differently...

I am curious as to what you see wrong with my first tattoo, it's a year old now and holding up very well...

[CultExciter]

All we care about is that you get a quality tattoo. That's all. WE DON'T CARE WHAT SPECIAL MEANING YOU PUT BEHIND IT OR HOW UNIQUE IT IS, THAT SHIT IS FOR TV SHOWS.

[smiling.politely]

For my tastes, it's just a bit visually unexciting. The design isn't that readable to my eye, either. Took about five looks to realize it was something Batman related. That being said, that's just my taste in tattoos, or even visual art. I prefer Roy Lichtenstein and William Eggleston to Chuck Close or Ansel Adams.

[anomaly1964]

For my tastes, it's just a bit visually unexciting. The design isn't that readable to my eye, either. Took about five looks to realize it was something Batman related. That being said, that's just my taste in tattoos, or even visual art. I prefer Roy Lichtenstein and William Eggleston to Chuck Close or Ansel Adams.

Gotcha...

It's RORSCHACHish...it's Batman and The Joker combined...

[Fala]

I can't believe this thread is 9 pages long...

Dude - this has been said again, and again, and again and there's no way I'm going to be able to state it as eloquently as others but... Pick a couple of images that follow a theme, then bring them to a tattooer (a GOOD tattooer) and let them take care of the rest. You can have meaning all you want behind the tattoos, the tattooer doesn't care what they mean to you because they need to create a great tattoo. If you need to explain it to someone else, what it is (not why it is) then it's a poor tattoo. FWIW - I didn't get the whole batman/joker image in your current tattoo until someone else said it then I went back to look at the tattoo - tattoos should be easy to read...

[smiling.politely]

Gotcha...

It's RORSCHACHish...it's Batman and The Joker combined...

I understand that. But, isn't the point of a Rorschach image that it isn't actually anything, and is defined by the mental bias and psychological profile of the viewer? And doesn't making a Rorschach into a definable image sort of defeat the purpose of a Rorschach test card?

[anomaly1964]

I understand that. But, isn't the point of a Rorschach image that it isn't actually anything, and is defined by the mental bias and psychological profile of the viewer? And doesn't making a Rorschach into a definable image sort of defeat the purpose of a Rorschach test card?

Well if you weren't quite sure what it was...?

This is the original image...

[smiling.politely]

I saw a face, didn't see Joker or Batman at first. Seeing a face, and it being intended as such, still takes away from the Rorschach element, in my opinion.

[DJDeepFried]

Some thoughts on "the thread that would not die":

-- I like your Batman tattoo just fine. Didn't see the Joker face until you pointed it out, but okay.

-- The Matrix thing, on the other hand, is a terrible tattoo idea because NO ONE will know what it is, and it's visually dull.

-- One of the Star Wars crests would go nicely with what you have because of the general shape -- especially if you added some other element: the Death Star, Millennium Falcon, etc. (An actual falcon would be better than anything else you've proposed.)

-- A good portrait artist CAN make faces look right -- particularly if it's non-human (e.g., Yoda, Chewbacca). You just have to find the right one.

-- Your Faith tattoo looks solid enough, but there's nothing outstanding about it. Whether it's special or meaningful to you is irrelevant to 99.9% of this board. Take a look at the "What makes a good tattoo?" thread. What matters to us are tattoos that are visually interesting and well executed -- regardless of their personal significance for the simple fact that WE AREN'T YOU.

-- That Boba Fett father & son is the most kickass Star Wars tattoo I've ever seen.

[Therinx]

I would wait until you find what you're looking for. There's no rush to get a tattoo. Other people aren't going to find it for you. You'll probably "find" it, when you're not looking for it, trying too hard can have the opposite effect than what you expect.

Patience.

[misterJ]

-- The Matrix thing, on the other hand, is a terrible tattoo idea because NO ONE will know what it is.

-- One of the Star Wars crests would go nicely with what you have because of the general shape -- especially if you added some other element: the Death Star, Millennium Falcon, etc. (An actual falcon would be better than anything else you've proposed.

I feel like that is the point of the matrix tattoo, I'm not trying to offend but I get a sense of you picking the most obscure thing in that awful trilogy (great first movie) so you get to explain the tattoo when people go what is that.

Getting a big ass falcon tattoo is a great idea

Also that cowboy chewie is too funny

[DJDeepFried]

I feel like that is the point of the matrix tattoo, I'm not trying to offend but I get a sense of you picking the most obscure thing in that awful trilogy (great first movie) so you get to explain the tattoo when people go what is that.

You make a great point, and one that the OP may not realize b/c he only has a few tattoos: how f-ing annoying it is to have to answer that question for the zillionth time.

[misterJ]

You make a great point, and one that the OP may not realize b/c he only has a few tattoos: how f-ing annoying it is to have to answer that question for the zillionth time.

OR the look when your answer is "I like them That's why"

[sighthound]

I think it's a cool image and a very good tattoo. It translates well from paper to skin and will have no problems holding up over time. Everything else is (art)subjective.

As for your next tattoo, up to you. Not being a huge Matrix fan, I'd opt for another Batman or Star Wars tattoo - just my 0.02.

[Graeme]

I am about 99% sure I am going to to with the symbol from The Matrix.

I sincerely hope the 1% of doubt is because you're also thinking of getting this as a tattoo:

[CultExciter]

@Graeme YES, the meta-troll. you just broke the internet.

[anomaly1964]

I sincerely hope the 1% of doubt is because you're also thinking of getting this as a tattoo:

Awww, those ARE cute...

[Mick Weder]

As long as "I" know what it means...right? :)

Not necessarily.