Different Tattoo Styles

A little piece of knowledge I feel like passing on today: the various tattoo styles. Tattoo artists often develop a certain style -and as you yourself decide on a tattoo, you should not just choose a design you like, but an artist who specializes in the particular style you prefer. Below, I'll take you through a couple of different tattoo styles. Let's say you want to get an eagle...

"Tribal"

Tribal tattoos are done in blank ink. They have a stencil look to them. 

It is a very simple design, and can sometimes be very abstract.  

"Naturalistic"

This tattoo resembles how an actual eagle would look in nature -it is not cartoonish. In the naturalistic style, an artist tries to make the tattoo as "life-like" as possible. 

A "sub-category" of naturalistic would be the "Portrait Tattoo" (below)

A very life-like and very beautifully done portrait of Heath Ledger as the Joker

"Simple"

Think of the simple style as an almost-not-quite naturalistic style. 

It has the major details, but not the little details of the natural style. 

In this example, it would be a cartoon version of an eagle.

"Traditional American/Old School"

Again, I've chosen some flash that includes an eagle to help you see the difference between the styles. 

Old School/Traditional tattoos are probably my favorites. (However I do not currently have any tattoos in this particular style).

"New School"

The new school style borrows a lot from the old school style. 

The two styles have the same bright colors, but the new school style is more detailed. 

...And there you have it! Some of the different tattoo styles you can consider when getting an eagle tattoo... or any tattoo. ;)