Ultimate Tattoo Guide for Beginners: Techniques, Needles & More - How To Tattoo
Summary
This video provides a comprehensive guide to fundamental tattoo techniques, including lining, shading, and color packing. It details various needle types, gauges, and tapers, explaining their specific applications. The content emphasizes the critical relationship between hand speed and voltage, and demonstrates precise ink placement within the skin layers to avoid blowouts and ensure longevity. Several techniques for each tattooing discipline are illustrated with macro views, offering practical advice for both beginners and experienced artists.
Key Insights
Ink should be placed in the dermis, 1-2mm below the epidermis, for permanence and clarity.
Placing ink too shallow in the epidermis causes fading or unevenness. Placing it too deep in the subcutis leads to blowouts. The dermis, a leathery layer, is the ideal target.
Hand speed and voltage must be balanced to achieve optimal tattooing results and protect skin.
Hand speed is how fast the machine moves over the skin; voltage controls needle speed. Harmonizing them prevents weak lines (fast hand, low voltage) or skin damage (slow hand, high voltage).
Sections
Tattoo Needles Explained
Needle gauge (thickness) and count (number) determine line thickness and shading density.
The gauge number indicates the thickness of the needle at its thickest point (e.g., 8 for 0.25mm, 10 for 0.3mm). The number of needles influences line thickness and shading density; more needles result in thicker lines or denser shading.
Different needle types (RL, RS, Magnum) are suited for specific tasks like lining, shading, and color packing.
RL (Round Liner) needles are for precise line work. RS (Round Shader) needles are similar but straight and further apart, used for filling colors and basic shading. M1 (Magnum) needles are for filling large areas but can be aggressive if not rounded. RM/CM (Curved Magnum) needles offer better ink distribution and smoother shading.
Needle tapers (MT, LT, XDL, BP) affect ink delivery and skin interaction.
Tapers denote the needle tip's length and characteristics. Medium Taper (MT) is for outlines and filling. Long Taper (LT) is an all-rounder. Extra Long Taper (XDL) is for outlines. Bug Pin (BP) is for extremely fine lines. Longer tapers are gentler on the skin for tattooing longer, while shorter tips transport more ink but irritate the skin more.
Manufacturers typically use optimal tapers for corresponding tattoo needles.
While understanding tapers is important, manufacturers generally select the appropriate taper length for the intended use of each specific tattoo needle, simplifying the choice for the artist.
Ink Placement and Depth
Ink should be placed in the dermis, 1-2mm below the epidermis, for permanence and clarity.
Placing ink too shallow in the epidermis causes fading or unevenness. Placing it too deep in the subcutis leads to blowouts. The dermis, a leathery layer, is the ideal target.
Correct needle depth varies significantly based on skin type and body location.
The ideal depth ranges between 0.5mm and 1.5mm. Thinner skin areas (elbow, ankle) require shallower penetration compared to thicker areas like the thigh.
Signs of tattooing too deeply include scars, blisters, or inflammation post-procedure.
While not always apparent immediately, excessive depth can lead to adverse skin reactions in the healing process, indicating a need for adjustments in technique or depth.
Gentle needle entry and exit are crucial for smooth lines and avoiding unintended dots.
Abrupt insertion or retraction of the needle can create unintended marks or disrupt the flow of a line. A smooth, controlled movement ensures a clean and continuous line.
Hand Speed and Voltage Fundamentals
Hand speed and voltage must be balanced to achieve optimal tattooing results and protect skin.
Hand speed is how fast the machine moves over the skin; voltage controls needle speed. Harmonizing them prevents weak lines (fast hand, low voltage) or skin damage (slow hand, high voltage).
Two primary methods exist for maintaining consistent lines: adjust voltage or adjust hand speed.
Method 1: Adjust voltage based on needle size (thinner needle = lower voltage). Method 2: Adjust hand speed based on needle size (thinner needle = faster hand speed). Both maintain consistent ink deposit.
Lining Techniques
Consistent needle protrusion (approx. 4mm) and machine angle are key for most lining techniques.
For most lining, the needle should extend about 4mm from the cartridge. Holding the machine at a lateral angle (not too flat) is crucial to avoid blowouts. A technique pulling the needle towards the artist is favored for its gentleness and line definition.
Different hand orientations and movements accommodate various body contours and ink absorption.
Techniques include pulling towards oneself, using a lateral angle for curves, small back-and-forth motions for difficult areas like elbows/knees, and pushing the hand while the needle faces towards or away from the artist.
Deviating from the intended line requires stopping and repositioning rather than forcing completion.
If the needle strays from the intended path, it's best to cease tattooing that line and correct the hand position and angle before continuing to maintain accuracy.
Smooth exit and re-entry are vital when pausing and resuming a line.
To avoid discontinuities or marks when stopping and later continuing a line, the needle should be softly exited from and re-entered into the skin.
Tattooing curves involves rotating the entire arm while maintaining consistent machine angle and hand support.
For curved lines, the artist rotates their entire arm, using their guiding hand for support, while keeping the machine's angle consistent to ensure a smooth, uniform curve.
Shading Techniques
Different shading techniques like whip shading, stippling, and scumbling offer varied textures and gradients.
Push whip and pull whip shading create gradients by varying needle depth and movement. Stippling uses rapid hand movements with low saturation for a dotted effect. Scumbling involves small circular motions for texture.
Pull whip shading is less aggressive on the skin than push whip shading, allowing for less trauma.
Pulling the needle towards the artist is generally gentler than pushing it away, resulting in reduced skin irritation and damage, particularly beneficial for lighter shading.
Dot work shading relies on the distance between dots and needle depth to control gradient intensity.
This beginner-friendly technique uses small dots to build shading, with density and depth determining the overall darkness and smoothness of the shaded area.
Cross-hatching involves shading in two different directions, often with a pulling motion, to create a net-like, soft gradient.
This technique, which can be done with liner or magnum needles, uses overlapping passes in different directions for blended, soft shading, aiming to obscure visible needle structure.
Pendulum shading is a versatile technique for smooth, consistent shading in any direction, applicable with various needles.
Achieved through even, controlled back-and-forth movements, this method allows for long, continuous shading suitable for fine details and solid fills, and is often the artist's primary technique.
Color Packing Techniques
Color packing large areas typically uses a large Magnum soft edge needle with smooth, circular motions.
A 13 Magnum soft edge needle is recommended for large areas, using 8 volts and circular motions around 1.5mm deep. It's essential to maintain sufficient ink and avoid aggressive penetration.
Working on artificial skin requires more passes than real skin due to differences in ink absorption.
Artificial skin does not absorb ink as readily as human skin. While demonstrations might look blotchy, the same techniques on real skin would yield smoother, more solid results with fewer passes.
Controlled, even movements are critical for evenly embedding color and minimizing needle structure visibility.
Pushing the color ahead and working it into the skin with consistent, controlled motions ensures an even fill. Holding the needle slightly to the side can help minimize the visibility of the needle structure.
A two-pass system with breaks is recommended for solid color packing to allow skin to accept ink better.
The first pass opens the skin, and a short break allows swelling to reduce and plasma to emerge, enabling the skin to accept color more easily in the second pass, done in a different direction.
Edgework for color packing is best done with a smaller round shader needle for precision.
While Magnums are used for filling, a 9 round Shader needle is recommended for cleanly working along the edges, using long oval circular motions to achieve a smooth transition into the packed color.
Never perform more than two passes during color packing to prevent overworking the skin and causing scarring.
Excessive tattooing on the same area can lead to overworking the skin. Limiting passes to two helps ensure proper healing and avoids potential scarring.
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