Designing my first tattoo (movie character based)
 

So I'm not in school at the moment, but my field of "study" is graphic design. I want to get into character design, modeling and rigging and possibly go on to game design. If anything I think I could make some sort of career in advertising/web design/stage fx but as for right now I'm not too sure what direction I'm going to take it in.

This is the idea for my tattoo, currently it's a bunch of images stuck together in MSPaint. I am going to draw my own expressions on the characters when I am ready to sit down and design it, but this is the idea I am going for:

Are you ready for how fucking awesome this is going to look?



It looks like shit because it's just how I want the layout to look. Soon I will sketch it up, blend it together and make it flow and look great. I DO have some artistic ability:







I imagine this would be on my right shoulder and arm, and when I finally do get it I will post the end result.

I haven't gone into designing it because I'm torn on the context of the characters. I think that Ash Williams could be involved but I don't want to go more than three characters. If I did switch him with someone it would probably be Bill the Butcher even though he's probably my favorite. Mainly because the whole tattoo theme would then be "B Movie Badass Protagonists" whereas Bill the Butcher is not only a villain but he is far more recent than Snake Plissken and Johnny Rico.

Other characters have come to mind and when it comes down to it I want to make a choice that I won't regret 40 years down the line. Not so much "this is fucking stupid" more along the lines "fuck I shoulda got bruce lee"

Other characters I've thought of are Tron which I don't think would fit at all, Major Dutch (arnold from Predator, the only thing that would distinguish this character from his other characters is a cigar), Wray from Planet Terror (Freddy Rodriguez) and one I think would be great is Wikus Van De Merwe (face half transformed, prawn eyeball showing) from District 9. And no I'm not thinking about The Joker.

I've never really been the kind of person to see a design or a slogan and think "yeah man I want that on my body forever" because I know i'd feel like shit about it in 2 years. This however is something I want to put alot of thought into before I go permanently marking myself up. So since this website is devoted to B movies, action, horror and 80's style badassery, I'd love to hear suggestions towards the future of this tattoo.

I don't know why but I always find it hilarious whenever somebody puts pictures of bodies on their body.

What you are attempting to do is precisely why I don't have any tattoos. I refused to get one unless I designed it myself, and that never worked out because I would grow to hate whatever I settled on a month after I designed it.

This is only personal taste, but I would never put something with too much shading or detail. For me, the minimalist approach is essential. Make something simple and impacting that will catch the eye and be easy to understand. Whenever I see someone with really fancy tattoos on their bodies it just looks like a mess of colors until I stop and take a good look at it. I hate that. Go for thicker, higher contrasting lines, and try to limit yourself to less than 5 colors/shades. No gradients. All of your examples would work very well if you just increased the contrast between the lights and darks, or just used solid shapes to construct them.

That's just personal preference though. I like a minimalist approach to most designs.

I understand, but the end product will either have VERY dark colors or just be in black in white. Not sure yet.

I never got a tattoo, and once a coworker who did tattoos on the side asked why I wouldn't get one. I told him because what if I get a tattoo and then years down the road I am not into whatever it is, or it goes obsolete. The more I thought about it the more I realized the only 2 things I could ever get a tattoo of and not have to worry about that were pizza and pussy

I'm debating whether to get the 007 tattoo or an agent 86 tattoo now. I usually come up with something I like then wait about a year before getting it.

What about a different set of two colors (black/red, black/blue, etc.) for each character? Also, once you have the final design make it your desktop wallpaper or something where you see it everyday.
Then you can see if you still like it in a year or so.

Wow, an Agent 86 tattoo with a shoe phone would be great! :lol


Actually, Zomboid's awesome Godzilla tattoo is the probably the first one I've ever seen that I thought I could live with.

I usually just get whatever I think would be funny. Or maybe a tattoo to fuck with someone. Like the tattoo I got of my friend's drawing that he was ashamed of and hid from me. I got an artist to make it look good and tattoo it on me. Then I showed him how it would look if someone knew how to draw.

The only sort of tattoo design I could live with would be something along the lines of markings rather than images.

On the radio I heard someone say they wanted a tattoo of Hervé Villechaize.

I :lol'd

Thrash0- despite our rivalry, you do have chops.

We have a rivalry the same way a boot has a rivalry with dog shit.

And the edge of the porch step that you're scraped off with is your own jokes.

That's nice, Thrash0.

At least I don't think that if I show everyone my secret video game sites they won't beat up on me even though I'm an unrepentant douche every chance I get.

Also, the index finger of a hand does not bend that far behind the middle finger at that particular angle when the fingers are crossed. Learn human anatomy. It will only help you later on. Cross your own fingers and observe how they look. The kinematics of your knuckles are such that there is esistance past a certain point in the joint. Because of the strength of the muscles and tendons in your hand you would have to actually break your forefinger to position it the way that you are depicting.

One finger can not physically go through the side of the other one, either. ;) Don't forget the eraser!

*edit: resistance, not esistance. Fuck off, I'm tired.

Your fatigue does not account for your sucking in general though

I have my moments.

Alright, I'm calling foul on myself for not realizing that Thrash0's second drawing is of a left hand (from the artist's perspective). No wonder I couldn't bend my fingers like that. Dyslexia is wiley, like that, it sneaks up on ya.

Sorry, Thrash.

On the other hand, my point about paying your dues still stands. Look at my join date. I've been trying for years... Not everyone makes it in. Consider yourself lucky to have snuck in while everyone was focused on demeaning me.

Thanks for the tips Pram!

Here's a few for you:

1. Sculpt some flower pots because that's the only thing made out of clay that anyone would ever buy.

2. Nevermind, just kill yourself.

Mmmmmm, backhandedy.

He's on to you pram. Leave this place. Better yet, leave Oregon and live off the grid as a school janitor. That way you can still take a look at all the 'tasty treats'. Your words, not mine.

What are you babbling about now?

Nice frame-job though, I'll give you that. Second year Photoshop user too?

When I was lurking here I saw the videos this dildo posted. I also remember this quote "I despise sex". Yeah I'd hate it too if I never got laid.

Do you also hate respect and laughter?

That was a character, you knob.

Far as respect and laughter, no, I don't hate those things. I do hate you for having what I should, though. You're a tourist.

What? Some pictures of cartoon pickles? Get a fucking life shithead.

So anyway.