Tattooing.Black Shading

Black Shading
This Will be one of the chapters that most people will turn to first. There seems to be a certain fascination to the black shading of a tattoo that really attracts the eye. Tattoo artists love black shading, it presents a challenge on every design and a chance to really .show your tattooing skill. Customers are drawn toward it because ofits dynamic and highlighting effects. It seems to really lift the design right off the skin. Well done black shading either makes or breaks a tattoo, and its feathered type effect looks extremely professional, somewhat reminding one that it has been laid down with an artist s airbrush instead of a tattoo machine,
Black shading is used to highlight and/or recess parts of a design to make it appear three-dimensional. A tattoo on skin or paj>er is two-dimensional and proper shading will give the impression that the design is standing out in light and appears more realistic than it really is.
The art of shading is more than just black feathoringagainst a line. It's the science of light and shadow. Where there is a lot of light, there is white. Where there is no light, there is black. In between the spectrum are values of grey and these are shading. Shading and shadowing depict a light source (in relation to the design, not the light bulb over the table). Its teaching is beyond the scope of this chapter, and for more knowledge in ihis field, some good art books on light source, shadowing or rendering will be a great benefit to follow up this with.
SHADOWING
Source
of
Light?
Gix)d tattoo shading requires experience and is an acquired skill. Diligent practice pays off here because sometimes tattoo artists are judged solely by their peers on the quality of black shading that they do. If done too light, it will not stand out. If not feathered right, it will appear blunt and the shading looks as if it ends abruptly. This is called "dead-heading" and is undesirable
SHADING EXAMPLES

Light Head" shading
Shading shading

Shading must be mastered because, not only does it really make a tattoo stand out, but many tattooing errors and tattoo cover-ups can be hidden and corrected by proper shading. Black shading is the next step in the tattoo processafteroutlining. All the black work must be done before any color can be put in.
The tattooing spectrum goes from dark to light. That is black first, then the next darkest color, etc., and the lightest colors for last. If not done in this order, the dark colors mix with the lighterones in the poresalready made from the machine and a bad smudged mess will result So, all the black work must be done first, and after the outline is finished, that means the shading is next.
Black shading can be so attractive that some tattooists use this style exclusively. They feel that a black tattoo (one done only in black ink, no color) is the only way to show a tattoo and that the addition of color only hinders the design. With some of the quality work out nowadays, especially single needle tattoos, it’s not hard to appreciate this point of view. Black tattoos take on an aged “patina" with time, and after a few years, if the tattoo is retouched up with more black, a certain quality is obtained which cannot be reproduced in any other way.
The tattoo machine should have the four or six needle shader bar set-up properly with the corresponding shader tube. Let the needles stand out about I /32 inch. The two outside needles should touch the sides just enough to eliminate any side to side motion but not enough to make them tight. Check it running and adjust so there is no side quiver (see Machine Set-Up Section for solutions). Now the artist is set-up to do the black shading. Start by washing the outline with green soap and apply another very thin coat of Vaseline over it. Dip the tip of the machine in the ink cap that was used for outlining (being refilled when need be) without letting the needle points hit
against any side of the cap. The machine tube tip will fill up and the ink will gravity flow down the needles and enter the holes your shader needles are making in the skin and at the same time putting in the black.
Begin the tattoo by working on the portions of the design that are to be solid black. Let the machine do the work and do not press down on it. just guide the machine and move the tip in small circles, letting the needle points enter the skin where you want the black ink to go. Never try to run out of ink and try to keep the needles continuously wet with flowing ink. Don’t waste time by tattooing without ink or doing a tattoo that is bleeding excessively. Always work off the points of your needles for best results.
Learn early in your career how to put in solid black (or color) where it is needed. The tip must be kept moving in small circles, slowly covering the desired area, Wipe occasionally with tissue to keep an eye on how it is coming along. Do not over do it because the skin can only handle just so many of those small holes. Remember, all those holes have to heal later Some people think that the deeper you go, the better the results. This notion is unfounded. If continuously grinding and pressing the machine, theskin will rip and excessive scabbing will occur which will reject ink from the body. If an area is covered way too rapidly, unshaded areas will be left and a very basic rule will be broken, and that is that a tattooist should not go back over what has already been done. Do it the first time right. The skin has to be stretched tightly and the needles should be going into theskin evenly with abouta45“ angle measured between the skin and the tilt of the needle and tube









With all these small holes being made in the skin, some bleeding is quite natural and should be expected. If it is overly excessive, double check the needle depth and check the needle points. TVy a slower power on the machine. Bleeding would be called excessive when it drips down the arm or when an area is finished and the only thing that can be seen when the tattoo is wiped off is blood.
As sections of the tattoo are completed and wiped, a thin coat of Vaseline might help the situation. Occasionally, carefully wipe away the bottom of the tube tip where excess ink and Vaseline tends to accumulate. Some customers bleed a lot regardless of how well the machine is tuned. Some body parts tend to bleed more than other parts due to differences in skin texture. Bleeding must be accepted and do the best possible job, wiping a lot,
To shade properly, make sure the bridge is set and stable (consult Chapter on Holding Machines) as should be always done. With the machine running, set the needles down gently in the skin along the outline. All four or six needles should be in line with skin surface at all times. No one side should be any deeper than the other side, With the machine running and the needles riding against the outline, make sure the tip of the tube is touching the skin before starting. Right at this point, the machine is swept away from you with a flick type wrist motion, This sweeping motion brings the needles up anti away from the skin.
When this happens, the needles go from full depth in the skin to gradually getting shallower and finally out of the skin at the end of the motion. Hence when at full depth, full strength black is inserted and while the needles are swept away, the black ink gets toward the surface of theskin and creates grey tones That beautiful effect is called feathering or shading, If the shading is to be light, the sweeping motion should be quicker paced. Don't let the machine dwell on the outline for any length of time, if it is to be dark, a slower motion is needed. How much shading is achieved or the quality of feathering is determined by the -speed of the sweep and the angle of the machine which is being "whipped*' out of the skin II does require a certain feel or touch, and many hours of practice are needed to fully acquaint oneself with the results that are desired.
You can manipulate a .shader in any direction. In shading, you always work off the needles. You must control the action and location of the needles. This is done by attentive looking at what direction is being taken. Black shading can begin on any part of the tattoo, but usually it is best to start at the top ami work down, or from the sitle. As work progresses downward, the hand and bridge will be resting on unshaded skin and not get all inked up and bloodied.
When all the shading is done and you and the customer are completely satisfied, give the tattoo a green soap spray and gently wipe. Coat with a thin layer of Vaseline and take a short break. Thoroughly wash the black ink out of the tube and off the needles and bottom of the tube tip. Hold the tube under hot running water, this wilt knock out all excess ink in the tube tip. Run the machine on folded tissue until the needles hitting the tissue show only water. This must be done or any black ink left in the tube will ruin your colors. Just the force of real hot water going into the tube tip does a fine cleaning job,
Wash the tube and needles described above after each color being used so one color does not mix with the next one,?


Upward
flick
motion
Notice: angle of tube tip and
direction

machine

Back it out and lift,
increasing speed?
EXAMPLES OF SHADING


Shading Tips and Tricks
- Black ink goes in much easier than colors.
- You might have to run a shader a little faster than an oulliner.
- Grey shad i ng a Japanese sky is gaining popularity. This is accomplished by havinga
cap filled with black ink diluted with distilled pure water. The more water the weaker the tone, creating a light, washed out grey effect. Another way of achieving this grey effect is by using undiluted black in the machine, and usingd'istilled water on the skin. Vou basically wet the area (using a soft brush) before you sweep across it. This is a good way on larger pieces such as the back. Practice this, like in anv technique, elsewhere to perfection before doing it on a customer. '
- Single needle and outline needles are used to make fine hair and wispy effects Dotting effects are also achieved by this method.


EFFECTS?
- Shading or feathering also work well with some colors too, especially red and brown.
- On human figures, use brown or tan shading to show form, curves or muscle bulges. Use the natural skin tone as a highlight and shade to enhance the natural skin.
- Most of the commercial design sheets have designed shading on them. It is an individual matter to change shading by adding or subtracting to suit one's artistic tastes. This should be done anyway to put an individual stamp on each tattoo.
- Just like the outliner. the needle bar loop must be snug on the armature bar nipple. The shaft of the needle bar cannot come in contact with inside of the tube.
- When you change shader needle bars, you will see a series of grooves in the tip. File these out before putting in a new set of needles. A good tool for this is a specially designed mini file available from Spaulding & Rogers Mfg., Inc. By doing this, it doubles the life of the shader tip.
- When moving the needle bar shaft up and down manually, it should feel smooth and free. If you feel a rub, correct it. The needles may be off to one side and not parallel to the tip or not spread correctly. Another rubber band may also correct this problem. Needles may be bent slightly down to hug bottom of shader tip. Never bend the needle bar.
- You may also wish to experiment with a round shader. These are also available from your supplier and hold as many as 14 needles. In appearance they resemble an outliner with a large tip. They have advantages in that they are not prone to cutting the skin up too bad and they can put in a lot of ink at a rapid pace. You will not get the shading effect with the round shader that you will get using a flat one.
Brush Shading
This is a type of shading that is not familiar to everyone in the tattoo business as is common sweep shading. The reason is it's quite a hard technique to master and requires a lot of practice. It also takes a super running tattoo machine. The effect you can get with brush shading on a tattoo is very outstanding and puts the artist in a separate class of his own. After you have accomplished this technique, other artists not so fortunate will look up to you with envy. Some will even want you to teach them how to do it. The most unique thing about brush shading is that you don't have to stand on your head or get in a bent-out position to do it. You can work your shading forwards, backwards or to the side and get all the same effects with little effort. You can practice with a pencil on paper or ifyou want to be real technical, you can fasten a pencil to the tube on a tattoo machine. This way, you will have the weight of the machine in your hand the same as if you were actually tattooing. The technique is all in the movement of your wrist as is sweep shading, but the brush shading is done from a very slow movement to a very fast movement. As you pick up the needles from the skin, you must turn your machine sideways, moving slowly, and putting the black in solid to start with. As you want to feather out the shading, you pick up the speed of your wrist movement back and forth and at the same time, picking up on the machine while going away from the solid black area. This can be accomplished by going in a forward or reverse position but must be done fast to get the effect desired. Use a low power on your machine, and if you must go over it again, be very careful because you can get too much black into it and ruin the effect of the whole tattoo. Refer to diagrams.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Coloring
The actual process of coloring a tattoo is a relatively simple one if you always remember and apply a few key rules and regularly practice them. The technique is the same for solid black tattooing as it is for solid coloring. Actually, black tattooing is a little easier as black ink seems more readily accepted by the skin than colored ink The motion is a circular one. and coloring a tattoo is done in small circular steps, a little at a time. If a constant pace is maintained, a lot of area can be covered in a small amount of time. Each circle just barely overlapping the last circle until the areas are covered solid in just two sweeps. Never do an area more than once or twice over. Just small, constant, flowing circles covers an area smooth and efficiently, and alway s working off the dps of the needles.

Small
tight
circles

Don’t press hard and don’t slay in one area repeatedly criss-crossing or try to color the skin in like with a crayon or pencil This will turn the skin to hamburger and create a bad scab or possibly, leave scars, the ultimate error. While the needles are in contact with the skin, keep the machine moving, never hold it still or that will cut the skin. Don t go back over any work just {lone. Get it right the first sweep through. It will look better with the fcwestamount ofholes in the skin. The more holes, the more bleeding, the more scabbing, and the more ink will be absorbed out in the scab. "Packing it in“ wont get you anywhere so let the machine do the job and pay attention to the work being done- A little area is done and then wiped to be inspected. Continue in this fashion and monitor the results. Any adjustments can be quickly made when done in this manner. The color of the tattoo will not be any more colorful or brighter when you try to hammer the color into the skin.
When applying color to a tattoo, puddles of ink will get all over the skin, sometimes totally obscuring the outline. It's not good to be in such a hurry as to not take the time to continually wipe the excess away. Tattoos are ruined by running the color over the outline. By continually wiping away all the excess color, strict attention can be paid to what one is doing and where one is going. When inspecting work in progress, the skin must be stretched tight (as if tattooing) so any mistakes will be readily picked up. If the color is solid when the skin is stretched, it will be solid when relaxed in a normal position.
If the area that is to be a solid color has skin showing through, (it is not solid, but is sketchy looking and has pockets of skin that aren't colored) something must be done to correct this problem. The easiest solution is that the tattooing circles are not small enough. Make littler circles, cover a smaller area and slow down a bit. Another reason is that the needles are not in contact with the skin at all times. This means that in all the tattooing excitement, the machine is not kept steady and the needles are being lifted up off the skin in some areas. This doesn't mean to press harder, but to just keep the needles in the skin. Let the machine sink the needles, you keep the machine in line. Another reason for 0|>cn pockets in the coloring is that the color itself was not properly mixed. Be sure to shake the bottles of ink good before using. This will maintain an even color value within the bottle. Stick to the small flowing circles, letting the machine take care of the tattooing and good results will be obtained. When you come across tiny areas that can't be done with a shader, use a three or five needle outliner.
For the coloring process, the needle tips should hang out of the tube end just so you can feel them and ought to extend out of the tube around 1/16 inch when the machine is running. This setting will keep the color flowing in but won't really plow into the skin. Over zealous tattooers can get carried away and this machine setting is extra insurance against scarring and bleeding. Later on in your career, the setting can be changed to a longer stroke, but only when the feel of coloring is totally familiar and confidence is assured that you have everything under control.
Every time a different color or shade is used, the tube and needles of the machine must be thoroughly cleaned. Haphazardly dipping intocolors can't bechanced because sloppy and muddy mixes will be the result. The only way just pure color can be obtained is to have 100 percent clean needles and tubes each time. Clean out the tube between colors by running the machine under hot water until the machine basically washes itself clean. Be sure to run the needles across a tissue in reverse motion to remove all excess water from the tube tip Never do this in a forward motion because it will pick up pieces of paper tissue between the needles. Get in the habit of doing this every time in between color applications and it will ensure good clean color tones. After completing every color on a customer, spray the area with a green soap spray, wash and apply over the area a thin coat of Vaseline. The Vaseline will fill some pores and keep other colors from entering the holes and spoiling the color.
When putting in color, a certain sequence must be followed in order for a tattoo to come out the best possible. If it is not followed, muddy mixtures will appear, clouding up the tattoo and spoiling it with dull tones. The basics for the sequence are simple. Colors must be applied from the darkest tones to the lighter ones. This is why black shading is the first thing done after the outline. All solid black and the black shading is the darkest color and must be applied first. The color sequence after this is as follows:
l) Dark purple. 2) Blues. 3) Greens. 4) Light Purple 5) Browns. 6) Reds. 7) Orange. 8) Yellow. 9) White.