Portrait Tattoos: A Tribute to Carry Through Life

Portrait tattoos are deeply personal, each carry their own meaning for the person carrying them. They can be a tribute for a loved one lost, a celebration of someone who has impacted your life, or even a way to show your respect and admiration for an individual. Portrait tattoos tend to be considered as one of the hardest styles of tattooing as it take a strong understanding of realism tattooing to create a proper portrait.

Black and Gray or Color? What to choose?

There are two main ways to go about making a portrait tattoo. Either in Black and Gray, or with full color. Both methods are great choices for portrait tattoos.

Black and Gray

One of the most common ways to create a portrait tattoo is with black and grey. The monochromatic style of black and grey allows for artists to create the portrait and details through playing with contrast. This style also allows for the portrait itself to have it’s own appeal, looking like something out of an old film camera. Black and Grey tattoos also tend to age better, because of the contrast still holding on even through fading. Although if you’re looking to have a portrait look as real as possible, the monochromatic color may not be the right fit.

Color

Color brings portraits to life, with aim of capturing the person as realistically as possible. The use of full color allows artists to fully capture the person’s details, skin tone, hair colors and all into the portrait. Allowing for a whole new level of lifelike detail. Although to achieve this level of detail, color portraits will take more time to complete, and long term aftercare of the tattoo will be even more important as brighter colors are more sensitive to fading.

References are important

It goes without saying, but references for tattoos are important. They are especially important for portrait tattoos. To get the best quality portrait, you need the highest quality picture you can find. High resolution digital photos will be extremely helpful for artists in making their designs for the portrait tattoo. If you only have physical photos, scanning the photos will also be helpful for artists in making their designs.

Placement and Size

Placement and size are two important things to consider when making a portrait tattoo. A helpful way to figure out what placement will fit is through your references picture. Is the orientation of the picture portrait, landscape or as a square? This will be important as it will influence which areas are suitable for the tattoo. You can also consider areas with less movement, such as the upper arm, forearm, thigh, or back, which tend to hold details better over time. Keep in mind that tattoos on areas with a lot of movement like hands or feet, may blur or fade more quickly. Sizing will also play a part in the amount of details that can be fit into the tattoo. The smaller the design, the less details that can be fit in. Even with artists that are experts in micro portraits, there are even limits to how small a detailed portrait can be.

Finding the Right Artist

This is, without a doubt, the most important step. Not every tattoo artist specializes in portraits. Choosing the wrong artist can lead to a portrait that can miss the mark. Look for an artist who specializes in realism, check their portfolio, and read reviews. A great portrait tattoo artist will have a strong grasp of shading, contrast, and proportions. They will also understand what can or cannot be done from the reference images and work with you to create a strong portrait design.

Caring for Your Portrait Tattoo

Once you've got your tattoo, proper aftercare is crucial to maintaining its detail and vibrancy. Follow your artist’s instructions, which will likely include keeping the area clean, moisturizing it with a recommended lotion, and avoiding direct sunlight during the healing process. Long-term care includes using sunscreen to prevent fading and moisturizing regularly to keep the skin hydrated.

Final Thoughts

A portrait tattoo is a deeply personal piece of art that carries significant meaning. When done right, it can be a stunning and emotional tribute that lasts a lifetime. While it may seem straight forward to make one, considering the reference, placement, size and the artist will be important to making a quality portrait that will last a lifetime.

Here at Golden Hours, we are happy to help you with a new piece. Send us a message on our contact page or message us through the contact information below to schedule a consultation and booking. We’d love to have you in!