How I Start Tattoos | 3 Minutes to Better Tattooing
Introduction
"I'm a big proponent of thumbnailing," says Jake Meeks in his conversational yet enlightening fireside video. This simple yet powerful technique allows tattoo artists to explore ideas quickly, addressing major shapes and flows on the canvas of the human body. In this blog post, we delve into the benefits of thumbnail sketching and how it transforms the tattoo designing process, keeping it authentic and creative.
This episode was made possible thanks to:
Get 10% off your Tattoo Trunk order with the code FIRESIDE at checkout
This episode ALSO was made possible thanks to:
Interview by By Jake Meeks —
Writing By Daniel Pushcarich and Gabe RIpley —
Topics: thumbnailing, tattoo design, positive space, negative space, design flow, body mapping, tattoo composition, visual balance, abstract shapes, custom tattoos, design fundamentals, tattoo layout, asymmetry, symmetry, airbrush techniques, design iteration
Mastering the Foundation: Why Thumbnailing Transforms Your Tattoo Designs
Getting Started with Tattoo Designs
Jake begins by questioning the conventional start to tattoo design. Rather than just pulling inspirations or copying, he emphasizes maintaining your unique style. And how does he recommend starting? By thumbnailing—a rapid iteration of ideas using basic shapes to solve design problems right out of the gate. "30 seconds to two minutes," he says, is all it takes to start working out these basic shapes and how they fit.
The Case for Thumbnailing
Thumbnailing isn't universally adopted, as Jake notes, despite its advantages. It helps in visualizing the major elements of a design and solving for problems that arise from fitting designs onto complex, and always unique, body surfaces. For instance, when working on a full chest piece of a peacock, Jake outlines his process of solving how the art would move across the body, "before even starting to think about the shapes that make up a peacock."
Why Thumbnail?
Establish Flow: Thumbnailing helps establish the natural movement of a design and how it interacts with the body.
Enable Flexibility: By not focusing on details too early, artists remain flexible to changes, ensuring the design will complement existing tattoos or personal preferences.
Visual Tension: As Jake points out, initial flow ideas can later influence dynamic compositions, such as counteracting movements to create visual tension and depth.
The Design Process
After the potential routes are explored with thumbnails, a transition into more detailed drawing is made. Jake shares his strategy on transforming a thumbnail into a compelling piece, likening it to an "overly rendered thumbnail". He moves from abstract shapes to the intricate features of the peacock once foundational placements are settled. Bold moves pay off, as it allows artists to use accurate references effectively and avoid over-reliance.
Bringing Designs to Life
"Forget about the reference," Jake advises initially; focus instead on simple shapes and flow to resolve design constraints imposed by the body's fixed elements. This mindset helps determine which parts of the reference are necessary, often needing less than anticipated, empowering the artist's original imaginative capacity.
Real-world Applications
Even after he begins applying these ideas onto the canvas, Jake remains attentive to maintaining harmony and balance in his client's design. He continually checks how existing tattoos and clothing choices will sync with the new design. His approach, refined over countless sessions, proves invaluable:
Flexibility with Attire: Keeping the design below certain necklines ensures clients can choose to showcase or cover tattoos easily.
Conclusion
Jake Meek's insights shed light on a process often overlooked. Thumbnailing might demand more upfront consideration, but the payoff is a design that fits perfectly, feels original, and delights clients. For tattoo artists wanting to evolve their design process, embracing thumbnail sketches can reveal a path to creativity, coherence, and client satisfaction.
Want to explore further? Jake offers resources, such as thumbnail templates and courses like 'fireside simplify', providing in-depth looks at his complete process. It's an opportunity to enhance your skills grounded in practical methods his experiences provide.
Join the movement—transform your designs!
This episode was made possible thanks to:
Get 10% off your Tattoo Trunk order with the code FIRESIDE at checkout
This episode ALSO was made possible thanks to:
Want more tattoo education and resources?
Check out our Fireside Articles catalog HERE!
And you can find all of the courses we offer HERE!
The Fireside Tattoo Network is home to the Fireside podcast, Fireside Technique video series and our Fireside Weekly blog.
The Fireside Tattoo podcast is hosted by veteran tattooer Jake Meeks, check out our episodes where we discuss, argue and wax philosophical, from tips for all levels of artists to trends in the tattoo world. Many guest artists have sat down for interviews and in-depth conversations and many more are planned…check back often!
Our Fireside Tattoo Overview video series offers informative, short, and detailed videos geared towards helping artists understand the science and nuances of tattoos and make more informed decisions to improve their work. We often take some of our more technical topics from our Fireside podcast and film an in-depth, narrated, time-lapse video showing exactly how Jake or our featured artists handle certain issues.
Support us while buying the stuff you need at the links below!
Get 10% off the Neuma 4 with code “Fireside” at checkout
https://neumatattoo.comGet 10 % off all S8 Tattoo products with promo code “Fireside”
https://s8tattoo.com/TattooNOW Website and Automation services at the link below
https://TattooNOW.com/FiresideGet 10% off your order from Raw Pigments with code “fireside”
https://rawpigments.co/
