scottyg

do NOT laser it.
I think we all feel a little bummed when things don't turn out as we envision it, but that's why you have to trust your artist, and trust you made the right decision choosing your artist.
kirin usually look the way you describe, with the legs sticking up at the back/in the air, and the head in the front. and they're a mythological animal, so....

Hey everyone.  Brian here.  Just starting on a chest/shoulder/sleeve tattoo.  Here for community and advice.

yes all 3 when they were freshly done

PICO or Q-Switched laser? I had a small black tattoo lasered a few years ago. It didn't respond well at all. I did six sessions over the course of a year with a Q-Switched laser which was the only type available in my area. After six sessions, it was finally light enough for up for a coverup. Good luck!  I know the neck must suck...good luck!

Thank you for the in depth response and advice. Don’t worry, I wasn’t planning on cramming all of those into one scene. I do like your idea of the turtle dragon on a leg very much. Considering the hannya/oni would be better saved for another. Body part, and that foo dogs come nice in pairs (which may be too busy to go with the turtle), do you have any suggestions for a creature/character that would go well with the turtle dragon? And as far as the filler/background, I would assume finger waves and maybe a peony flower would jive well, but suggestions in that area are welcome too.

As far as location/artist, I live in Virginia Beach and am considering Chris Stoll, @stoll_tattoos21 on Instagram at Red 5. He did my first tattoo (just a simple outline of a whale caricature a family member drew), however I’ve been keeping up with his Japanese work and feel it is coming along well.

I haven’t had a formal sit down with anyone yet as this is just in the very early brainstorming/learning stages. I also am not in the position to make things happen anytime soon, so I’m taking my time and absorbing suggestions.


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Just wanted some opinions on my Poly pieces. Outer arm, back, trap and shoulder pieces are healed, chest and inner arm was done about a month ago. Need touchups?  MAHALO bruddahs🤙

Hello all, brief introduction. 26 y/o male from Virginia Beach. Recently got my first tattoo a few months ago. Of course more to come most likely in the near future. I see it’s tradition to show what you’ve got to start off, so I’ll include a picture with a quick explanation.
My cousin, who I was very close to, passed away a few years ago, taking his own life at the age of 18. My uncle had drawn this caricature of him when we were younger titling it the Stew Beluga, which became a nickname of sorts. The tattoo design was kept very close to the original crude pencil drawing, only cleaning up the line work and hair a bit.
 

 
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If you have a particular artist in mind, I would probably look through all of their work and/or start talking to them about your idea/concept. In addition, you could probably play around with photoshop or any cheap photo editing app and put together stuff and try to come up with something you like? 
My advice here may not match what you like and i'm pretty bad at putting concepts together. 
My favorite artists are: Nicklas Westin, Artemy Neumoin, Jess Yen, and Filip Leu. They've got some nasty work if you haven't already checked them out. 

Just got this sleeve almost finished by Eddy Deutsche recently. I am currently a Tattoo apprentice but I do paintings and such my instagram is @sg.artist

How’s it going everyone! New here ✌️

Yeah, the laser application process isn't precisely uniform - so the results are going to vary by degrees. It'll also take a month or more before you see what the real progress is in any area. There will be further fading from each session even 3-4 months down the road. 
For what it's worth, I think the tattooist did a great job with application, line-up, etc. I don't know the impact of the particular message or local culture where you are, buit educators here in the States (or most of them) don't have to worry about minor ink showing . . . 
Temporary make-up wasn't an option?

Well guys, the day came and went, and honestly its fantastic. The artist did a great job with the design, and it didn't hurt nearly as much as I thought it would. Overall I think I was just having first time jitters (plus I have major anxiety over even small desisions so...yeah). But now that its done I have no regrets!
 

I got trash polka, lettering, realism, and looking forward to getting oriental next. I like em all and idc what anyone tells me.. except my bank when they tell me I don't have enough money for all these tattoos 😉

Definitely agree with you both! I don't know why but I just have this huge sense of urgency and want that immediate gratification from getting the full sleeve done. With all this being said, we'll see how long i'm able to last lol. Longest i've sat was 5 hours and the 5th hour was hell. 
Thanks for your thoughts!

I'm doing a Japanese backpiece, and generally speaking, that's a situation of slow and steady wins the race.... which I rather like. It becomes a part of the rhythm of life in a way that's gotta be different than a sprint. Getting tattooed monthly over the span of many years is the true marathon.
 
just my 2 cents

I'm doing a Japanese backpiece, and generally speaking, that's a situation of slow and steady wins the race.... which I rather like. It becomes a part of the rhythm of life in a way that's gotta be different than a sprint. Getting tattooed monthly over the span of many years is the true marathon.
 
just my 2 cents

I think it's going to be hard to get a top quality sleeve done in three days, just my opinion. Good work and careful attention to detail takes time. If you can sit for three full days, more power to you; I don't think there is a reason not to.

ongoing leg weirdness by the magical El Tragico from Saturday....  next up two headed snake blastover to cover some eighties/nineties "tribal" and a bit more leg...  

I'd love to be closer to someone like that to get an extraordinary Japanese peice.

@scottyg Thanks for the recommendation! Absolutely love his work. Definitely want someone like him to do a back piece or leg sleeve at some point in the future. 

Takashi Matsuba at Behind the Circle in Brooklyn is the place to go:
 
http://behind-the-circle.com/

Hello everyone! 
New to the forums and looking forward to conversing with you all. I have a mix of different tattoo styles on my body but had a specific question about neo-traditional/japanese. I have been into realism since the beginning and I now have a better "trained eye" so to speak. I know what to look for and know small little red flags now. However, I know nothing about traditional/neo-trad/oriental tattoos and i'm not sure what makes a tattoo artist "great" in this style. I looked through the forums and didn't find an answer so I'm hoping someone can help educate me on what to look out for. I'm also in NYC so if anyone has any recommendations of artists around this area, it would be much appreciated!
 
Thank you!

A healed photo showing where I am currently, I'm back in the chair in about two weeks and I can't wait! Looking forward to those last traces of the old pieces disappearing. 
 

Forgot about this thread.  What a gem...

this was the inspiration for this piece. this is a beautiful song,sit down and take a good listen to it.