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Please help me photoshop my Tattoo


A

///Audience

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Hello guys and gals, this is my first post here but i was scouring the web looking for help on adding color to my tattoo and this place seemed to be my best hope.

I recently had this work done but feel as though theres something still missing from it. Heres the tattoo...

TATTOO!!.jpg
* i have links to photobucket that make the image much larger but i cant post them as my post count is too low.

What im looking to change is adding some color to the tips of the black/empty lotus petals. I would also like to do something to the third eye on the paintbrush in order to make it really stand out from the rest of the art.

Here is an idea of the areas i would like modified...
Tattoosketch-1.jpg

Here was my attempt. I like the green, but im open to any other color choices that you feel will work in that area. I dont really like the way the eye looks with the green but still feel it needs something.
Tattoo green.jpg

I would be more than happy to repay someones help with advice on mobile/home electronics as thats been my career for the past 4 years.

Thanks again,

-Taylor
 
///Audience said:
Here was my attempt. I like the green, but im open to any other color choices that you feel will work in that area. I dont really like the way the eye looks with the green but still feel it needs something.
Click to expand...

Did you do that in Photoshop?
We can throw some ideas your way but the point of this forum is to help members improve there own skills.
 
im definitely open for suggestions on improvement, but i do not own any photoshoping software. That was done roughly by using Paint on my work computer. (I dont even have paint on my personal computer - Mac).

If you have suggestions on a free program for Macs that i could use to edit the image myself, that would be great!
 
gimp would be able to do this no problem, it's basically the same thing as photoshop, only missing a buch of features, and not nearly as streamlined, but it gets the job done

it's what i learned with before i had photoshop
 
well i was able to poorly edit the tattoo in GIMP, but i can only save it as an .xcf. Is there a way to convert this to .jpeg? I cant upload it to the forum nor host it to facebook or photobucket in order to show it to my tattoo artist.

edit: figured it out...

Tattoo Teal.jpeg

More so than looking for help with photoshop, what im really looking for on this forum is an artistic eye who can recommend a good color choice to this piece of art. I figured a photoshop forum would be full of people who have a knack for improving the beauty of art.
 
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I like the green you chose for the outer lotus petals. As for the eye, the complimentary colors for a yellow or yellow-orange would range from purple to blue, so either purple, blue, or a purple-blue would stand out the most.

tattooblue.png

tattoopurple.png
 
Sorry I don't have anything useful to add other than me pointing out that is an awesome tattoo from one body modder to another.
 
Wow Manda Burns! that looks insane! Sadly, i dont believe he can add yellow back over red and have the yellow show up very well or i would LOVE to have that done. I think you perfectly nailed the color on the eye and petal though. thanks a ton.

Thanks Frey! feel free to send me pics of yours. I never tire of looking at ink
 
Oh , I thought you had a little non inked skin space around the red a bit. So I filled it with yellow.
 
Hi Audience, welcome to the forum. Thanks for coming here for help. Stick around and check back. There will probably be a few more ideas. Not that you need anymore. I agree with Jessicayla. Complimentary colors when placed adjacent to each other really pop. So oranges on blues, violets on yellows, and vice versa.

It is a fantastic tat. Please do come back after you have it updated and share a pic with us. And enjoy Gimp.


BTW, are you planning to put color into the lotus-like background. To me it is just calling for color, including some of the dark shades that are in the medallion behind the bottom of the caduceus.

Did I tell you I like your tatoo? lol :rolleyes:
 
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Hey Clare, thanks for the suggestions on complimentary colors! As for the empty lotus, my tattoo artist wants to leave it but im always open for artistic interpretations if you think of any great ways to fill it!

And the middle is actually Alex Grey's Vajra Brush rather than a caduceus. Very similar structure though
 
Manda Burns said:
Oh , I thought you had a little non inked skin space around the red a bit. So I filled it with yellow.
Click to expand...

There is a bit of empty space around the edges of the flame but i dont feel like theres enough space to make it look as good as your 'shop, especially if the yellow wont show up when placed over the red.
 
///Audience said:
As for the empty lotus, my tattoo artist wants to leave it but im always open for artistic interpretations if you think of any great ways to fill it!
Click to expand...

OK. I can see why. It's a nice counterpoint to the deep colors of the Vajra. I think, however that the "medallion" of dark grey has changed the color dynamics and balance of the image overall. The styles seem at odds with each other.

I can see where you wouldn't want it to get too busy, but I think using some of the dark color in one of the bands of the lotus or as a border would help the balance. Anyway, just my thought. You mess too much with that tattoo artist's recommendations and lord knows what you'llget when your back is turned (just a little joke).
 
Nice tattoo, the outer Celtic star needs the outer edge to be the same colour as the bottom circle with the Celtic flowers in it.
Maybe break up the block yellow it would have by spilling bursts of orange into it, a bit like the bottom circle as, also the snakes need some sort of scale pattern to it.
What would have looked really nice would have been to 'rope twist' the outer border of the Celtic star.
Just my 5 cents worth mate.
 
ibclare said:
OK. I can see why. It's a nice counterpoint to the deep colors of the Vajra. I think, however that the "medallion" of dark grey has changed the color dynamics and balance of the image overall. The styles seem at odds with each other.

I can see where you wouldn't want it to get too busy, but I think using some of the dark color in one of the bands of the lotus or as a border would help the balance. Anyway, just my thought. You mess too much with that tattoo artist's recommendations and lord knows what you'llget when your back is turned (just a little joke).
Click to expand...

It might be hard to see in the picture, but the purple that makes up the primary band is the primary color for the Flower of Life (Medallion) at the bottom. this purple fades into a lighter blue with an orange/gold surrounding. It actually blends quite well when seen in person :)

Manda Burns: I agree that some color in the outter design would really tie it together but i cant find a color scheme that fits well into the design with out being distracting. I like how you filled the middle band in, but im not sure about the green with red background. Im thinking about maybe leaving it empty and having him put some shading on the outside of the border in order to 'raise' it off the skin and give it some depth and dimensionality
 
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