Tattoos. Magnificent temple adornments of bold outward self-expression. When applied correctly and with honest integrity, your indelible illustrations will last slightly longer than you. That’s why it’s so damned important to see an artist’s healed tattoos. Nearly any jackass with a $50 Amazon tattoo “gun” and a functioning hand can scratch an image into your skin that could look almost passible upon completion. This goes for some “tattoo shops” as well. The dollars made fixing and covering chicken-scratch botch-jobs is huge chunk of our bottom line, so no complaints here in theory. However, we are also here to steer you, our fantastic, noble clients and friends away from the cliff of regret and year-round long sleeves.
So we pose the question: Why do so many artists focus on only showcasing fresh work, often ignoring healed tattoos altogether? And what the hell is with all the filters and enhanced images? Misleading bullshit we say. Here’s why it’s essential to see healed tattoos in an artist’s portfolio and how to spot the digitally manipulated tomfoolery.
Why Healed Tattoos Matter
Most of the tattoos you'll find in the average portfolio are pictures snapped just after the last bit of blood trickled from the pores. The reason? We want to show off the work we just spent hours on and often we may never see that tattoo again. Or, f we do, it could be months or years down the line. Sometimes, fresh pics are simply the only option. However, the difference between a fresh and a healed tattoo is like Metallica and Miles Davis. Fresh tattoos look vibrant and sharp—super loud and in your face—but as they heal, the colors fade, lines soften, black spreads, and the design settles into the skin like smooth jazz. The skin tone of the wearer will tint the tattoo, often lowering contrast and shifting color. It’s a natural process, but it means that what you see on day-one is never what you’ll have a few months down the line. Not to mention after years of sun, fun, and the natural reality of getting old. Liver spots, wrinkles, scars, oh my.
When we show our healed work, we’re offering transparency and honesty. It’s a sign that we understand how our work will heal and age and we want to set correct, realistic expectations. In the spirit of honesty: this takes years to figure out. Fucking years. And once you think you’ve got it you’ll see a tattoo you made years ago and completely change how you tattoo right then on the spot in a shake--nervous cold sweat. Over time this makes for a skilled tattoo artist that knows how to create designs that look great immediately and years later. Sure, we could only show fresh tattoos, but that isn’t the whole picture, not by a country mile. By displaying healed tattoos, we prove that our work has integrity and longevity and that our tattoos can handle the challenges that come with different skin types, healing, and the steady march toward degeneration and death.
The Issue with Digitally Manipulated Images
In today’s digital age, it’s super easy to be fooled by the multitude of money-grubbing insta-humping clowns that manipulate every tattoo image they post; sneaky fuckers. Many tattoo artists edit their photos using filters or software like Photoshop to enhance the colors, sharpen lines, or blur imperfections. While these edits might make a tattoo look more appealing online, they don’t reflect what the tattoo really looks like or how it will look like once it heals. It’s a farce. Propaganda to conceal lack of technical proclivity and to hustle you out of your hard earned money with false expectations. It’s groping for vomit-inducing likes and follows and exposes the grim reality of no back-bone, ethics, or respect for tattooing or the clients duped.
So, how can you tell if an image has been digitally altered? Start by looking for overly vibrant colors that seem too good to be true—especially neon or extremely saturated shades. Look at the tattoo of the pharaoh mummy in the image below. Both are the same, fresh tattoo photograph. The left is unaltered and just how we posted it; looks great, real, authentic, and much truer to reality. The right begrudgingly looks better but…well, it’s super duper shit-boxed faked with darkened shadows, bumped contrast and saturation, and a slight gaussian blur on it. About 2 minutes of editing in the iPhone. Another red flag to look for is if the skin looks unnaturally smooth or if the pores are missing or blurred; manipulation station! In real life, no tattoo will never be as bright as it appears in edited photos, or as it ages like fine wine for that matter.
Finding a Reliable Tattoo Artist
To avoid disappointing your mom and yourself, simply take the time to research your tattoo artist. Check their portfolio for a mix of both fresh and healed tattoos, as this shows they’re not hiding anything. Look at their photos and see if they look too good to be true; too saturated, bright, crisp, etc. A reputable artist will often post healed photos taken weeks, months, or even years after the tattoo was made, giving you a realistic idea of their work’s durability and illustrating the reality of how tattoos look when settled. A real artist will never mislead you by promoting heavily manipulated and altered examples of their work.
If you’re interested in working with a particular tattoo artist, don’t be afraid to ask for healed photos during a consultation or in communications prior to your appointment. A genuine professional will have no problem sharing their healed work and will likely appreciate your attention to detail. If you get ghosted on this request, take your money and run!
Remember, a tattoo is a lifelong mark. Make sure you’re decorating your temple with an artist(s) who has respect for you and tattooing and who will ethically create not just a work of art, but a technically sound application of your skin illustration so you can go to your grave looking cooler than a wind-snapped January evening in Indiana.
Further Reading:
The Science of Tattooing, Hannah Wolf & Dr. David Warmflash
Buy the Book: https://www.thescienceoftattooing.com/store
Instagram Accounts to Follow:
Joshua Chatwin, tattooing since 2010, owns Fox & Sparrow Tattoo with his wife and fellow tattooer, Samantha Chatwin. They live in and love Muncie Indiana with their daughter, Olivia, and two Papillon dogs, Honey Bear & Maple Wolf.
Give him a good book, a good cigar, and a glass of bourbon and he's happier than a pig in shit.
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