Quote:
Originally Posted by PAWNJOB
Of course it's out of my house, just like a lot of good established artists started out.
I appreciate all of the kind words about my pics, I know that they're not very good tattoos. Tattooing has by far been the hardest medium for me to learn by a long shot.
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PawnJob:
When the two tattoos you've posted are examined closely they are soon revealed to be the work of someone who is inexperienced... You've yet to learn the medium... it will take years if you do learn it... At least you've learned tattooing has a measure of particular difficulty... Rather steep the tattoo learning curve is grasshopper...
The outlines on the faith tattoo are wobbly, scratchy, inconsistent and grey. It's easy to see you're struggling with the medium and technique. The lack of confidence in the line work is telling. The repetition, and working the lines several times is writ large in the work. As for the color fill... the black is at best blotchy and in this photo; grey... a far cry from black. If the client wanted grey letters they got blotchy letters. If they wanted black lettering they got scratches. This tattoo is a testament to the need for folks to train with knowledgeable tattoo artists.
The black and grey Queensryche tattoo shows railroad track outlines with multiple passes. (And yet the lines STILL have railroad tracks...) The blowouts and hesitations are the result of a lack of knowledge; of machines, needles, hand speed and... again... a lack of confidence which would tend to improve with guidance from someone who knows how to tattoo spending the appropriate time with the learner. The shading on this tattoo will also heal splotchy. It takes TIME and practice to render great black and grey with smooth transitions... Something which should be initiated
after one is good at line work and solid fill...
Both of the tattoos are massive failures as adequate and well rendered. They're typical of folks working at home... and working without supervision.
Pawnjob... it's obvious you want to tattoo. Lots of folks want to tattoo. If you continue to pursue a dream it may be realized, but... mark this... it's a life, a way of thriving as an artist... very different from a "job." It's a calling. You will, if you persist, spend 80-120 hours a week at it as an artist. If you want it, you cannot do anything less and be successful. I urge you to beat the pavement and work every contact to find someone to teach you proper tattoo technique. Learning at home, on your own, will require a massive amount of relearning and a necessary jettisoning of inevitably crappy technique; if you ever do find a teacher... There are many who never do; unlearn crappy technique... or find a teacher... Then there are those whose conceit won't allow them to look for a proper teacher.
Until the time you find an exquisite and knowledgeable mentor/teacher: Quit tattooing PawnJob... send the folks who want a tattoo to a proper tattoo artist. (Unless they're like my friend Jim, a punk musician, who only wants s&!tty tattoos and seeks out scratchers. No PawnJob, I've never tattooed Jim. He wouldn't let me... even when I was in my first year of tattooing...)
Try to take this as genuine criticism. Reaction will only f@#k up your heart, your head and ultimately; screw up your relationships with folks who may help you learn something... on the other hand... you might need to screw up your relationships... Are you compelled to step into transference with every authority you've ever come across?
Tala