I'm new and I need tattoo knowledge

I'm 22 and have been doing various forms of artwork since I can remember. I would like to find the medium that best suits me. I strongly believe that tattooing is the route I want to take in my life as an artist. I just have that sort of classic tattoo style in my sketches, strong lines and shading are my biggest strengths (with pencil, Ink-pens, and paints), I really don't know the first thing about tattooing, but am dying to learn. This forum seems to have a lot of useful information about the things I would like to know. Please reply with any tips or advice that a basically clueless aspiring artist may want to learn about tattooing.

I'm 22 and have been doing various forms of artwork since I can remember. I would like to find the medium that best suits me. I strongly believe that tattooing is the route I want to take in my life as an artist. I just have that sort of classic tattoo style in my sketches, strong lines and shading are my biggest strengths (with pencil, Ink-pens, and paints), I really don't know the first thing about tattooing, but am dying to learn. This forum seems to have a lot of useful information about the things I would like to know. Please reply with any tips or advice that a basically clueless aspiring artist may want to learn about tattooing.

learn water color painting techniques, the color fades and gradients are nearly identical in tattooing, also get an apprenticeship under a reputable artist, these forums won't teach u what u need to know, helpful perhaps but we don't need u out there hacking up flesh making our lives more difficult fixing mistakes, so learn hands on before u purchase a kit online. please.

these forums won't teach u what u need to know, helpful perhaps but we don't need u out there hacking up flesh making our lives more difficult fixing mistakes, so learn hands on before u purchase a kit online. please.

Wow that's pretty negative and not really the kind of advice most people on here would give. Watercolours are a good medium to play around with but you cant really learn to tattoo without tattooing. If you can't get an aprenticeship but you want to learn some techniques there are MANY ways to go about learning.

Firstly get some CHEAP plastic skins they are really thin so learning to do some stuff on them without sticking the needle right through and tattooing the table underneath is a great way to start.
Second, once you have your depth sorted out get some pig skin (pork rind) and start practicing on that, as this is real skin you get to practice stretching techniques, its a bit tougher than human skin but it takes inks really well.
Thirdly, once you have spent a few months on each of these practice mediums move on to your own legs, if you're going to hack someone up best that it be yourself.*
All the while looking for an apprenticeship should that be your bag (most tattooists don't start their careers with an apprenticeship, much as they'd like you to think they did, but that route will lead to faster learning and better technique).

If you do have some questions please be more specific, most people on here are more than willing to help out, we all work slightly differently so you'll probably get a few different techniques to try out.

*At this stage you should already have learned about BBP's, sterilization etc and either invested in an autoclave or thrown the metal tips, grips and tubes that came with your kit away and bought some disposables.

Hey butterflyman:
I didn't say that I would learn to tattoo from reading shit on this site, dumbass. What I meant was that there are articles with information that has helped me to learn things that I may have never learned from the book or on my own. Since you know it all, where's your book? Why don't you have one published so that us newbs aren't "out here hacking up flesh". and for your information I asked for tips not smart-ass know-it-all comments that are just criticizing me. I know I'm new and I'm not just gonna start inking up people without knowing what I'm doing.

wow, nice attitude, i re- read my post and i admit it was a bit abrupt. my appologies. now not all artists write books, i've been putting ink in skin for 18 years so i have quite a bit of knoweledge in the field but i know far from it all. if u want to learn to tattoo properly i suggest an apprenticeship, or just hang around shops and get to know the people there or that come in and pick up as much information that way as u can. then if u so choose purchase some equipment and begin ur work.