nomadland

I know plenty of bikers and have yet to come across any who would see the term 'bikie' as derogatory. The Australia 'bikie' of today is far removed from the one mick welder talks about, in fact some 'bikers' in OZ, don't even have bikes! Per capita OZ has more bikers than anywhere in the world, and as opposed to others I think there a huge blight on our tattoo industry..

To be fair to Jun as id like to think I no him well, I don't think he would ever use it in the ways you are suggesting are possible, it was as I said more of legal disclaimer regarding health issues etc rather than about copyright, ownership etc. Although this of course was included. I totally agree with your points and scary thoughts though, but perhaps its just a sign of the times.

tbh, I signed the contract over 6 years ago, so the details are hazy.. some of it had to with copyright, others had to do with health disclaimers and about another whole page of stuff. Whilst I agree with your sentiments I guess it just the price of getting a tattoo of said artist. If you don't want to sign it, then don't get the tattoo I guess. My guess is this practice will become more common going forward as legal requirements become more stringent regarding a whole host of things..

This, my friend... is a very bold statement. Some of the most honourable men I know may meet this judgemental opinion. I wouldn't walk into an art gallery if you paid me. It would bore me to tears. It appears very apparent that tattooing for you & I hold two completely different cultural origins. And with that, for respect to this forum, I shall leave this at that. Enjoy your art collection champ. Obviously we disagree on this point and perhaps I painted too broad a brush. But if you can honestly say the Australian tattoo industry and subsequently the quality of its tattoos hasn't suffered because almost 100% of street shops in the country are controlled or taxed by bikies I think you have your eyes shut. Yes there are some bikies who dedicated tattoo artists and produce good work but far more often than not they are simply there to make a legal profit. Though I don't believe everything that is written, this is an illuminating article Dark secret of Queensland's tattoo industry and link to bikies | News.com.au

Jun Cha https://www.facebook.com/JUNCHApage JUN CHA

Mick, I cant speak for all tattoo artists as I have only ever been tattooed by the same guy but I have a feeling my artist is well ahead of the bell curve. I think he understands that tattooing whilst truly an art form in itself can be branched out into other creative areas. The disclaimer part is a much about publicity as it is about him using my tattoos or their imagery on things like t-shirts, paintings etc and me not suing him saying those images are mine. effectively what the legal disclaimer does is say although its my skin, they are his designs. I think if he'd simply asked me I would have done it anyway, but not everyone in the world is like me and trust me americans love abit of litigation. Think he is just covering his bases. in regards to the head face tats, think for now im going to work on the suit and leave those areas to last. So probably 10-15 yrs from now...Just wanting to get some advice or discuss with ppl who want them or have them..

no offence mate but that tattoo is horrible. best advice, laser it then cover it and don't go back to the same artist. Cheers Oz.

Have in the last 6 months sat for 2 x 3 day sessions..about 30 to 35 hours each..in the process of finishing my back plus left leg and well as a few touch ups on the neck. Progress remains slow as a couple hours on each body part dosent really equal much progress. However given that I have to sit for such long sessions and back to back its the only way pain wise that I can do it. Annoyingly I had to sign a disclaimer which means I don't actually own the rights to my tattoo's, so cant show them until they are published by the artist..but if you PM me id be happy to send you some snaps. Cheers Oz.

Was searching through the forum and couldn't find a thread on this specifically. In the process of extending my neck tattoo's up onto the back of my head and maybe in the future extending these to the front of my face. Just to a nip the inevitable 'the face/head is a huge step', 'will change your life/appearance/people's opinions of you' in the bud, I have over 200 hours of work currently on me including hands, neck and one below my left eye, I know what I getting into. any others out there with face/head tattoo's or thinking of getting them? if you do have them what's the pain like? what was the experience like? if not but are planning to get them what designs/styles are you looking at? Lets have a discussion.. Cheers, Oz

not sure if this has been mentioned already but the knee (specifically the back) was one of the most painful places I have tattooed (worse than the ribs etc). Not for the faint hearted. Good luck, Oz.

I second everyones opinion.. Just jumped on to say I love that octopus... cheers Oz.

for anyone who feels what there putting on there tattoos isn't working try this. http://www.dollyrouge.ie/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/bepanthen1.jpg

started with the idea to have a suit. black and grey (renaissance style) with a history theme. currently have a left sleeve Caesar V Hannibal (rome v carthage) right sleeve Genghis Khan and Alexander the great (kinda a horse inspired theme) back piece is saladin with background the Dome of the rock. Knights Templar right leg sleeve (half finished) and looking to start my left leg but no theme as of yet. still to do: front neck piece, finish hands, finish right leg, start left leg and chest and lower stomach. From start to finish should be about a 20 year process. My opinion, one style, one theme looks better and flows better. Its why Japanese suits have soo much power because there scale is much larger from the start.

don't shave. If you do it yourself its possible that the area could develop a rash etc before you get to the artist in question. If its the legs for men, you can clipper it beforehand but don't razor it, let the artist do that

sorry going to have to disagree with you here.. Tipping is a custom invented by big business so they don't have to pay you a decent hourly wage. - - - Updated - - - Don't bow to the resident bully's pressure mate. Ive from OZ and have got over 200 hours from an American artist in the US and never once tipped! Artists also need to understand that clients from other places might not know or understand local customs and be understanding of that. Generally speaking any US artist worth travelling to get a piece off from half a world away charges very high hourly rates for this exact reason. A rate that usually prices out most US citizens as there minimum wage is quite a bit lower. edit. If the poster in question spent the same amount of time on getting better at tattooing, rather than posting on here, he might not have to whinge and bitch about not getting tipped as he could charge a higher hourly rate.

do you have any other tattoos? backs generally not too bad, though there are some spots (spine, kidneys) that really suck. Back can hurt more due to the amount of work involved, so if you have a low pain tolerance go for the smaller sessions. After care is the same for all tattoos, except for your back you will need someone to apply the cream for you and you should avoid sleeping on it for at least a couple of days all the way up to a week. If you have no choice and have to do long sessions but have poor pain tolerance I recommend you asking the artist to do it in sections. This allows the artist to alternate between outline, shading etc..which can make a huge difference Good luck! Oz.

I like that piece, Jun Cha on Matt Kemp I think.. as much as I like the tat it wouldn't work as a cover up as your artwork is already so black.. 'white' tribal is probably the worst thing to try and cover up, if I was you, go the laser route, then go for the cover up..

what kinds of tattoo's are you into? what projects you looking at attempting going forward? welcome.. Oz

Same artist, good relationship and one who is brutally honest. This sounds like a good recipe for success. You also seem to be understanding that for an artist to do there best work they need to be given artistic freedom, I tend to feel that with my pieces the work is probably more the artists than mine even though it's of course me who wears it..after 500 hours and 9 yrs my skin has become almost his own..this is certainly a big selling point of this type of tattoo commitment. Keep lst updated and stick in it for the long haul. Oz

Sounds like a lot of different styles... Just be careful as once you start reaching the 75% mark your tattoos will become more suit and less one of pieces, this is an important consideration as once joined they tend to clash more. At the very least I recommend going to the same artist and making them aware of your future plans so they can factor this in. Good luck with it all and keep LST updated.. Cheers Oz

what kinda of big plans? Think im around the 75% tattooed mark and am always interested in talking about big projects...

I second all the above. your line work is terrible (not straight and at times you have put the needle way too far into the skin). you seem to have some creativity though, take a step back, go back to the basics, maybe even attend an art or design class and you will be much better for it. Good luck with it all though.. cheers OZ

couldn't have said it better myself...

The experience part was referring to whether or not in 10 yrs you will still like the style you gave chosen..your back is your biggest piece of tattoo territory..dnt use it until your ideas are set... And sorry mate I might respect your taste slightly more if you didn't suggest the artist/shop that you have.. Clearly time and money seem to be an issue if your going there