nomadland

They aren't guns, they are machines.

heres a FB page for ya mate

https://www.facebook.com/ItsATattooMachineNotAGun‎CachedSimilar

thinks there about 32 likes on it...you can be the 33rd wanker to like the page..

What do guns have to do with tattoos and LST posts? I don't understand...

TATTOO guns...

dont worry your tattoos wont trick us into believing you are knowledgable.

Im not saying that to be mean. I just dont have enough self control to not post a half decent one liner.

On the topic of finger/hand tattoos... how does one wipe their ass with fresh finger/hand tattoos? Do you have to glove up for each bowel movement?

this is exactly my point...unlike others who feel because they have x amount of tattoos, have held a gun for x amount of years or have racked up 100's of posts on LST I dont feel the need to tell others what they can and cannot talk about..

:confused: Can I have some of your smoke bro ?

let me explain further...

having tattoo's as opposed to not having tattoos gives you more insight on the process, the feeling/pain..

it dosent give you more knowledge on the history, the cultural significance, sociology etc etc...there's plenty of cleanskin professors/academics, travellers that would know a hell of alot more on these subjects than travis barker..

dont equate someone that has lots of tattoos with lots of knowlegde, whilst generally speaking they can be mutually inclusive than can also be mutually exclusive..

i can see by your smartarse remark that you fall into the forum police with graeme and co..

jump off your LST high horse

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I think the needs of people who want socially unacceptable tattoos need to be balanced with the needs of the people who create those tattoos. It's obviously not in their best interest if a 20 year old gets a blurry knuckle tattoo they regret, gets it lasered off, and tells all of their friends tattoos are for unemployable idiots who don't think things through. It would be better for the reputation of tattoos as a whole if people were encouraged to not make decisions that impair their lives.

Most of the people who tell me they don't like tattoos, really mean they don't like bad tattoos. The less people get bad tattoos, the easier life is for everybody. I'm not saying all hand tattoos are bad or will ruin the wearer's life, but I see the real risk involved, I don't think it's about being cool enough to deserve it. I don't think the people on LST are Nazis. This isn't your forum or my forum and I think it's pretty reasonable for the regulars to explain why it's not a good subject, rather than just deleting my post without explanation as some people would do.

the top paragraph i can agree with. hand tattoos like neck or face tattoos should not be for the fainthearted. My point however lies in the fact that they should be discussed. I havent accused anyone of being a 'nazi'...i think the connection between iidentifying forum police and national socialism is a tenuous to non existent link period. TBH I dont care how much you post or how many tattoos you have, everyones entitled to there opinion on tattoos and or where to place them on their own body...bo ho for the tattoo community if this reflects poorly on them, you dont own the culture you are merely a sum of its part..and guess what anyone who interacts with tattoos at some level is part of that culture too...even the idiot that got the finger tat...

@nomadland

I actually agree that the whole 'forum police' can be a trap people fall into, but at the same time when is it that and when is it more a case of someone like @irezumi speaking up and just giving to the point, professional advice. Is that 'forum police'? Seriously, he gave the best advice in this thread hands down.

The internet gives everyone a platform to voice their opinion, but I'm sure you agree they're not all equal in value. Why would we not give more weight when a tattooer weighs in, reluctantly in this case, on tattooing?

Wasn't actually referring to him when mentioning the forum police..

As I said he raised valid points..

The whole idea that we can't talk about hand tattoos on a tattoo forum because the OP didn't have enough tattoos or experience to deserve them is utter BS...

There are some interesting points brought up here, some I agree with and some I respectfully don't, but I have to agree with @Graeme in that we don't need to be talking about hand or finger tattoos on this forum and for the same reason he mentioned.

That brings me to a thread de-railing topic.

It is the nature of things and people to evolve, everything around us in life and in the digital world is evidence. Not always a bad thing, but often brings about mixed blessings.

This forum is evolving and in its own way that is/was the point of it, to talk about and educate people about good tattooing. The initiation thread has been blowing up with new members constantly and that's a great thing to see because it shows the amount of people that are interested in learning more about good tattooing, or (although fewer and fewer) people with vast amounts of experience and information come to share it.

It is a positive thing to try to help fairly new people to tattooing learn about topics that they might not know about yet, just out of sheer ignorance(The word ignorance not to be taken in a negative light). It's great that there is a place for people to share this kind of information with each other. But personally for me it is rapidly evolving into me sitting at the front desk telling every single customer the bad news they don't want to hear. This is a topic that I've been doing for years and years and years and pretty much still tell people every single day in real life. It is becoming more difficult to want to participate when all I'm doing is basically saying the same thing I do every single damn day to people. This forum has been kind of a refuge for me when I wanted to escape the bullshit questions that I face all the time by people who like I said just don't know better yet. This place was almost all professional tattooers and or people who were heavily tattooed, which is what was the appeal to me. The number of professional tattooers that still post here has been dwindling at a fast clip over the last year or so. And I think I know some of the reasons why without having to ask them. One reason is "busy working" but that's not what I'm talking about.

Hogg, I know you have asked us to save you from hearing "this place ain't the same anymore" (although it is undeniably true) but I am trying to show that there is a positive side to this evolution. Like I said it is merely just mixed blessings, not something BAD. I'm just a little bummed because it's evolving into an animal that I probably wouldn't of been interested in if I were a recent arrival.

Thanks for letting me soapbox for a minute. I still like a lot of you people.

Don't get me wrong mate you raise some valid points here..

Not a gripe at you personally but the amount of self righteousness and self entitlement that pervades this forum is ridiculous...yes I have a lot of tattoos but no I don't think that because of that I have more right to talk about tattoos or get certain types or places tattooed..I think ull find that there are plenty of cleanskins more knowledgable about tattoos than 99.9% of those who are heavily tattooed..the forum police on here need to get a fucking life and stop acting like tattoos are some form of sacred entitlement that only those who embrace the culture can understand...tattooing is as natural to humans as breathing and yes I'm sorry to all on here that tattooing has gone from a sub culture to mainstream but word of advice get the fuck over it...

Don't know much about Sydney but Melbourne has at least three dudes that I would consider "world class" in Japanese style @nomadland. Trevor McStay, Geordie Cole and Adam Kitamoto are all top shelf.

Did you make it to that other shop @Pup94 ?

Trevor McStay is certainly the best Japanese tattooer in OZ...choosing him wouldn't be a mistake..of course it's subjective but I wouldn't put him anywhere near my top 10 artists worldwide in that style...

Not that this thread seems about that though...I just love the process of trying to get work by the best and therefore do not settle for anything less...also feel that before you get 50 + hours of Japanese work you should pay it some respect but trying to understand it...

Thanks for all the suggestions guys, appreciate the honest advice. I got to say I'm happy with my first piece done but it can't hurt to look around further.

I want to get a black/grey tattoo but have sort of struggled with ideas, however I had this come to me a few weeks ago so am rolling with that in the meantime.

This is what I've come up so far with my full back piece:

A dark graveyard scene.

Grim reaper carrying a body to its tomb (left side of piece).

A Phoenix (brightly coloured) flying away from the tomb.

Large dead tree on the right side of the piece.

It would be totally a black/grey piece, except for the Phoenix of course. I need more ideas to fill up the middle of the piece, I'm sure it'll come to me. :)

Hey mate,

I'm also from sydney...

Have close to 200 hours of work on my body with a large proportion of that on my back..

Word of advice do your back last..

Biggest spot for the best tattoo...when your 19 u won't have the money/time/experience to do it justice..

None of my work is Japanese but have travelled extensively through japan as well as the states...trust me Japanese work in OZ is well below world class.if you can't afford Japan go to the states..mike rubendall in New York is a good place to start

http://www.kingsavenuetattoo.com/artists/mike-rubendall/

If you really want the best wait for horiyoshi 3 and start saving...

Cheers

Please explain what you don't like about it?

Line work seems fine to me?

Hey mate and welcome...

Yeah man...I agree with Josh. If you want to keep those designs have them re worked.

Don't stress. I've had plenty of work re worked, covered and it all works in with the suit just fine. welcome to a fkin great journey in getting smashed in ink :)

Take your time now, suss a few different tattooers, just talk with them, be straight up...find a fella who can cover/ re work well. Believe me...I've had real dark tattoos just ploughed over real heavy and it works well if the dude knows what he's doing...just be mindful, round 2 is the last round with this approach.

When ya find a good bloke that will help fix these tattoos for ya, just treat him with some respect & give him some clean skin first to work some real nice pieces. It's about building rapport.

Good luck with it all.

Mick those are some serious tatts you have mate...

Hope you don't live on the Goldie or in QLD as I'd imagine they'd give you some seriously unwanted attention...

Love the body suit mate...I'm in the process of getting a black and grey one, 130 hrs in...

If you don't mind me asking how many hours for yours?

Cheers

Josh

That is exactly as I thought. Just wanted someone to say it rather than me sounding like a knob! I'm so bloody worried now though about finding someone to re-work it! I'd rather not have to have it lasered as I'm sure that costs alot?

Sami,

You have two options...ether you get the work touched up to make it look better or you get it lasered to the point of being able to get a whole new piece...

Given your tattoo is both black and faded I can't imagine you would need no more than 6 sessions to get it to the point where you can get a whole new tattoo...the negatives being laser is both expensive and extremely painful..

If you like the designs just get someone to re-work it...

Good luck mate

Josh

I concur with the bloke above... Have about 130 hrs of black and grey on my and to me it's looks like the artist has combined both bad ink and poor work...lucky for you as it's very faded/light it should if you go to the right artist be easy to fix...

Hey mate and welcome...

If you want a smiling villian heath ledger as the joker in batman takes the cake...

I also see your into B&G and arnt afraid to spend $$$ so take a look at Jun Cha... I highly recommend him...

My boy has his right arm done by Jun Cha. Owl on his forearm and some religious piece on his upper arm, flew from NY to LA to do 8+ hour sessions. Jun Cha is a hell of an artists, but a lot of B&G artist' pictures of piece look A LOT better than how they look in real life. The shine, newness, maybe a little camera work and it looks amazing. In person, while still quality work, obviously doesnt pop as much.

Hey mate,

Sorry for the late reply have been travelling so off the net..

I do to an extent agree with your statement between the difference between photo and real life...

I think in Jun's case him posting most pics in black and white and using a 10 grand SLR do help the photo...but the above statement is true of any artist/tattoo

What did your mate think of jun/ the experience?

I'm coming up to 135 hrs with jun and I love the bloke..but have never got work of anyone else and reading forums like these make me realise the uniqueness of Jun's process...

On another note, @nomadland, I live in LA and I never heard of Jun Cha before but looking at his work I see he is amazing! I can see why you go to him. His work reminds me of James Spencer-Briggs who did my whole left arm. Not sure if you've ever seen his work: JAMES SPENCER BRIGGS

or

https://www.google.com/search?q=james+spencer+briggs&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=0evRUvOLNNLqoATYq4DgAg&ved=0CAkQ_AUoAQ&biw=953&bih=461

Looks like they both learned from/worked with Chuey Quintanar.

i checked that link at that guy is amazing too.. when i first met Jun he was a lowrider tattoo studio with jose lopez but since then his opened his own private space and tattoos by appointment only..his clientele seem to be mostly people from oversea's which is why he may have gone under your radar..check his facebook page out for his most up to date tattoos as he dosnt upload them instantly to his website..his getting better and better everytime i see him as his only in his mid 20's...but his leart from some B&G legends like jose but also baby ray and a few others...he really respects the chicano legacy

lol this conversation has gone into stoopid territory again . fuck all this price talk.

sorry, im new and didnt realise why raising price may be an issue.. the resulting discussion has illustrated why not rather nicely...

brings out the trolls who automatically assume because your tattoo costs more than theirs that I think im better than them..

That still works out to $500/hr, which is still pretty ridiculous. And as if just nonchalantly mentioning "regularly" spending $5000 a session (plus travel fees) didn't seem enough like trying too hard, you also imply someone is a pussy if they can't sit 10 hours. Wow.

I regularly spend that amount of money 2-3 times a year because A. I virtually save every cent of my paycheck and B. am prepared to pay that much for the artist in question. And no i didnt imply that people who can't sit for 10 plus hours are pussy's what I did say however is that on certain areas I cant sit for the usual marathon session that i usually do (not because in a perfect work I would sit for that long but because i live half a world away) as I'M abit of a pussy when it comes to certain areas...

5 grand a session?? Jesus Christ! Well, if you're happy with paying it I guess I can't argue...

they are generally very long sessions 10-14 hours depending on where his tattooing, (on some areas im abit of a pussy) but yeh he is super expensive but worth every dollar...in my opinion anyway

While we are not supposed to talk $$ here, I say a definite yes. In the US tipping is pretty customary and not tipping tends to mean you are dissatisfied. Personally I tip 20% but amounts are up to you. Wait, did you just say $5,000? When I first read it I thought it read $500. 20% on $5,000 would be quite a lot. :confused:

Sorry about mentioning $$$...im new here, but i learn quick!

If you think thats alot, thats simply per session, ive probably spent 6 or 7 times that amount so far on tattoos from Jun..not too mention flights, accomodation etc...ive honestly never tipped him and his never battered an eyelid, i think because primarily he tattoo's people from outside the US his probably used to not getting tipped..also given how expensive he is, he probably dosent expect it ether...

I just thought i'd throw the question out there though..

I'm from australia and find US tipping customs to be very confusing...Ive only ever got tattooed of Jun Cha in Los Angeles and he dosnt charge per hour, he simply tattoo's and says that will be $5000..my question is, should I still tip?

Josh, yeah, I appreciate that. And I'm absolutely looking to find someone I can work with. The "best" in the world might be available, but if he or she isn't cool I don't want them working on me. So yeah, next time I'm in Atalanta I'll visit a couple of shops and just chat with some folks and see what's up.

Abe,

I may get shot down from others on the forum about this but in my experience the best tattooists arn't to be found in your typical tattoo shops, whilst there are exceptions (generally because some of the best tattooists tattoo out of shops they own), most of the world's best don't need the shop environment to be sucessful (e.g money from walk in's, advertising etc). Search online and trust the fact that generally speaking the best tattooists in the world arn't simply the best because of their artwork but because their also good with people too.

Josh

Before I go into, I'm using the term greyscale for all black. Is there a more accurate term the community uses to describe that kind of work?

Hmm. I'll tell you about them and perhaps you can tell me if they fall into a style. I've tried reading about different styles so that I could communicate with artists about the work and I've yet to find the right vocabulary.

The first I thought I was a little set on and the more I look into it I'm changing my mind.

I want a phoenix on my left shoulder, I'm a pretty big guy so there's room to work, I had kind of envisioned a pastel look with just orange, yellow, and red flames and no real outlines. I wanted the feet holding five roses, three turned to the right with blossoms, and the other two to the left that are wilted.

So get back to reality, after talking with artists and researching, that vision needs to be changed. I really wanted this to have vivid flames on the wings in place of feathers, that still might be possible. On Ink Master season 2 the lady did a phoenix in greyscale I think and there were elements of it that I liked, I don't want to copy that, just some elements that would work for me. So when I find the right artist for me I'll be asking his or her opinion, telling them what I'm getting at, and see if they can help me interpret into a workable piece that will hold up.

Next two are kind of companion pieces. On my left shoulder blade, kind of large taking up about the upper quarter of my back, I want kind of a fallen angel. Not Lucifer, but it's female, but not sexual, she's kneeling and either looking away or down. This would be greyscale. I have some pictures and images I've saved kind of about her body, but the artist I work with would really have to help me out with the wings, I'm a little lost on them.

The third is on the right shoulder blade, takes up about the upper quarter of my back and is the angel of death with his scythe. I like greyscale on this, but possible with some blueish or greenish tinting, maybe like a green fog in the background. The color, if any, I would look at the artist and ask if they think that is a good idea, if not then the whole thing could be greyscale. Plus with the two pieces on my back being so large, and being companion pieces, they might just run into each other and be turned into one large piece. And so then I don't know that it would make sense to have a green or blue fog on one side and the other side be greyscale completely, so the color might go.

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I welcome any comments or suggestions on the above idea. And let me state that just because I mentioned Ink Master doesn't mean I watched the show and decided to get a tattoo. I'm sure some people do that and to each their own.

It's just that for the many years that I've been wanting the phoenix tattoo I've always kept my eye out for ideas or inspiration. So any art that sticks out at me I might save on my computer, get a pic of, or tuck it in the back of my mind.

Abe,

It sounds like you know exactly what you want but your also showing me exactly how new you are to the game..

If I could give you any advice it's simply this, find a artist who is YOUR style and remember that the tattoo process is all about compromise. This is the main reason you need to go to an artist you both respect and trust. Although the work is on your body it's essentially a 50/50 project between you and the artist, sometimes you simply have to allow them the leeway to do what will look best. Tattooists arnt desktop printers, they need creative control to an extent to do there best work. You will get a much better tattoo this way trust me..

The thinking and planning needs to go in before you select the artist, once found keep the process as organic as possible...

That's my two cents anyway,

Josh

Ambra,

Besides learning English, what styles of tattoo do you want/like?

I'm in the process of getting a Carthage verse Rome sleeve (hannibal v ceasar) on my left arm. I'm a massive fan of ancient sculpture and renaissance artwork.. I love Italy.

Josh

Abe,

What style of tattoo are you after?

Josh