How do you shade tattoos?

Answer 1

This takes a good eye and experience for the tattoo artist. There are not many that can shade in a tattoo. It is an art and very difficult. Coloring in and shading are different. To shade you need to have a place where a light would shine then make shadows where they would be if it was a picture. Takes skill.

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I disagree that shading is hard. If you have any artistic tendencies and can visualise where things will be darker and lighter you can shade a tattoo. It's no different to where you would shade if you were drawing the picture on paper.

From a technical point of view, you need to adjust your machine to a longer stroke so it doesn't hit as fast, wind the voltage down, and use a wash set up to get your shade variations. There are a few different hand motions you can use to achieve smooth shading, circling usually provides the nicest and smoothest shade. It takes practice to get used to the speed and size of circling needed to achieve the desired shading. Practice a lot on yourself before attempting to shade a tattoo on someone else.