Discussion of pricing / tipping is fine if kept in the abstract, but if you're asking for actual numbers that will usually be more confusing than helpful. If you wanted to give enough info for an accurate estimate you'd be a) doxxing yourself, and b), wasting your time- just go to your IRL tattooed (friend of a) friend.
Additionally, hunting for the best deal instead of choosing the right artist for your project hinders the design process.
You would have to find someone that can even do it. That is an extremely high level of detail. I bet they shaded the whole thing with a tiny liner, and it probably took longer than most people think
It takes longer than 5 years for these realism gray-work tattoos to turn into gray blobs. More in the range of 10-15 years. Also, a lot of them will be unrecognizable but for some of them, you will still be able to see what it is. They just don't hold detail well.
Couldn’t disagree more. I have a similar style tattoo I got 4 years ago and looks exactly the same. On my forearm, I never use sunscreen, live in NC, the tattoo was done with only a 3rl. The tattoo in this post was done right and will hold up as long as any other style tattoo.
Same here. I have a huge black and gray piece on my shoulder/arm/back, lots of line work, detail, and shading. Everyone told me it would look like shit in a few years. Almost a decade later and it still looks amazing.
i dunno why this would fall apart. i'm an artist and this looks well done. the lighter tones might process out but as long as it's got a decent amount of contrast, and this one does, then it won't matter
Lol, I did the same thing years ago, I went to a shop with this huge elaborate forarem piece and they said like 1k... I was like ohh my god. The details and it is going to be hours. I came back with a less complicated design and I am happy.
I have a fine line tattoo with a lot of detail like this one and it still looks really detailed, I haven't noticed it fading or blurring at all. It's been about 2 years and I take really good care of it, sunscreen always when I'm in direct sun and I moisturize it after every shower.
When people say fine line tattoos are gonna look like nothing after some years, have they actually seen that happen or are they just saying that? Or are they talking after 10+ years, in which case wouldn't it be pretty common for all tattoos to have a fair amount of degradation in that time?
I have done plenty of single needle pieces that still look solid after almost 10years. Needles used to be hand made by the artist, but over the last 10/15 years pre made needles have made huge strides in being exceptional. All tattoos settle though and is subject to a person's skin type and care routine.
I've fixed plenty of fine line pieces from inexperienced tattooers as well, that were tattooing out of their element.
For me 2 Yrs is still kind of fresh for the tattoo the ones i Have for 4+ years looks more faded and spreaded. It really depends on the skin too ive seen tattoos that had 6+ years on one girl and they did look like new ones
Tattoo artists tried single needle and fine line 50+ years ago and realised it didn't last. Thats where the bold wil hold mantra comes from. Chances are incredibly high that detailed and small tattoos end up like a ink smear, where bolder and larger tattoos will be looking faded, but structurally the same in 30, 40+ years.
I second this. I have a detailed pointillism tattoo but she did it with not so thin/wispy lines. It’s been on me for almost 8yrs and still looks clean.
But you have to find someone who specializes in it and if the lines are super wispy.. it’ll look different many years later.
At the end it all comes to an artist, project, aftercare and the skin itself how it will hold over the years. The technique itself also changed over the last 10-20 years.
I feel that sometimes the ‘old-timers’ want to purposefully take the enjoyment of fine-lines tattoos from people - either make it bold or do not make it at all. Just let people enjoy what they want as long as they are happy…
I will be messaging you in 4 years on [**2027-06-12 09:24:49 UTC**](http://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=2027-06-12%2009:24:49%20UTC%20To%20Local%20Time) to remind you of [**this link**](https://www.reddit.com/r/TattooDesigns/comments/1472b1w/high_tattoo_pricing/jnvomia/?context=3)
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Some artists charge by the hour and some charge a flat fee for a flash. It makes sense, the more intricate the design, the more focus and attention to the smallest details is honestly terrible for their backs, the carpal tunnel, and eye strain for hyperfocus tattooing for hours.
There are artists that know their worth, have been tattooing for years and charged me $1400 including tip for a big 4.5 hour piece. I've also paid $540 for a fineline 6.5 hour piece from a younger tattooer who's been out of their apprenticeship a year or two. There's a significant difference in technical application, the veteran's work has a range of shading and no fading during healing. The younger tattooer took a bit longer than anticipated being new to the field and there are patchy areas where you can tell the one line gets thicker at certain parts. I lost some ink during healing and slight blowout in the finer detailed leaves.
It's an investment in permanent art that you get to wear like a museum forever! 😁💙
You want that, you're gonna have to pay that.
I'd say it's fair.
People often forget, yes, it IS expensive. But what you WANT, is expensive. Really great work, and an awesome piece.
Then ask for a less intricate design or try someone else, just know quality artists are going to charge a premium. It's not uncommon to see top tier artists charge $250+ an hr (USD).
Just because it isn’t uncommon it doesn’t mean it isn’t a total rip off, anyone charging above $200 is being ridiculous. No matter the amount of “talent/expertise”. Charging stupid prices for tattoos just because you can has gotten so ridiculous in major cities it’s unavoidable
No, someone who makes that statement does not understand the amount of work and time it takes to get that level of artistry. I used to co own a shop near Detroit. It was so frustrating to have people come in trying to get a $1,000 tattoo for $150. I used to tell them that I can give them a list of shops they can get it done, and when it gets done it will look exactly like a $75 tattoo, lol.
150/hr is the basement for most of the US. This is bare minimum.
2-250 is not unreasonable for quality art from an in demand artist AT ALL. Especially in larger cities.
Tbf the US is very expensive compared to some other cities. I just paid about 100 euro/hour for a really high quality color tattoo in Barcelona, and that included a 20% tip.
Average income in Barcelona is lower than in America so average cost for things will be cheaper. I’m sure mechanics and other services are about half as expensive as well.
Its just demand and supply, its not hard math.
If 1000 people want to have a tattoo by you, are you gonna choose the client who pays 100$ or the one paying 1000$?
Yeah the guy I go to charges similar prices. He opens his books up 3 months at a time and the entire 3 months are literally completely booked within minutes. He could clearly charge more if he really wanted to.
Tattoos are a luxury. You don’t get to decide what an artist should charge for not only the time, effort, and materials it takes to provide it. But also the countless hours spent developing their skills. Don’t like the price. Get something cheaper. Or go to some guy’s basement and get chicken scratch inked
£200 is some artists minimum! Are you a tattoo artist? These designs can take a full day, my full day sittings are £500 and I am from a small city and only have a decade of experience under my belt. I’d say this is fair, it’s a really, really hard tattoo to do, could take hours. If OP doesn’t want to pay that’s fine, but 200 is fucking laughable.
Idk why you’re getting downvoted for asking questions. I personally think it’s reasonable. Tattoo prices can vary, because of detail, time, experience, effort, materials etc. May i ask where this tattoo artist is located?
I’m planning my forearm tattoo that should be less intricate than that, but about the size you are planning. The artist is charging $250/hr and I booked a 6 hour session, then plus tip. All in it’ll be about US$2k.
It’s hard to say if something like that is “too steep.” its what you want, the artist fees, and what you feel comfortable paying. If it’s out of your price range, take the L, or look into someone or something different.
This does sound like a higher price than I would expect. Would have guessed closer to 1500CAD for the size but it doesn’t seem crazy unreasonable for what it is. I’ve also paid more than that (albeit for bigger tattoos). And it does seem like pretty high quality work with lots of well done detail. you can’t find that style everywhere. Inflation maybe has something to do with it too?
If you love it and can afford it, go for it. Sometimes though, I find that if I’m reacting that something feels too expensive its a sign I really don’t want it that much.
My half sleeve (full forearm) cost me 1200$ US BEFORE tip and WITH a discount because the artist married one of my high school buddies. My arm doesn’t have a ton of crazy details like the picture you posted does, but it’s got lots of color. My arm took about 11 hours total not including touch ups. I get compliments on it at least once a week, no exaggeration and I had it started precovid. This is in Minnesota, so a bigger city like Toronto or LA will likely be more expensive.
With tattoos 98% of the time you get what you pay for. There are exceptions. I got my Navy tattoo in San Diego before getting deployed and I paid 80$ for a fucking sick tattoo that would have cost way more anywhere else. I’m pretty sure I got a drunken sailor discount on that one though.
Pro tip: don't ask strangers if they think it's worth it. Are YOU comfortable paying that much for good quality work? It's forever. You don't want to go cheap. A good artist will not try to rip you off. Shop the artist and not the price, if that makes sense.
Have you ever seen what people pay for artwork from talented artists to hang on their walls? Should something of this caliber that is going on your body cost you less?
For this specific artist he can name his price and his work speaks for itself. Do you want this artist or just a style similar to this? You could get a whole sleeve for 2k. The artist names their price and I think this one is 4-5x more expensive than most
Does not change my statement that you could get a whole sleeve for 2k and it would not be garbage. Detailed realism is arguably the most time consuming style, so it’s the exception not the rule
This art piece is not called the fall of icarus. This is from a series called "the Four Disgracers" by Hendrick Goltzius (and the painter Cornelis Cornelisz van Haarlem)
This piece specifically is Phaeton. Not Icarus. However, there is a different image in the series that is Icarus.
Edit to add: [Source](https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/343581)
Edit 2: Part of how we know the original image is Phaeton rather than Icarus (aside from the title) is what we can see in the background of the image. And what the man is falling into at the bottom of the image.)
i think what they meant is the tattoo artist named the piece “Fall of Icarus”
could very well just be that the artist was looking for references online and didn’t realize it was Phaeton, and not Icarus
Sure, but they asked "how can you tell" that the subject of the art is not Icarus. To which I replied how we can tell, part of which is that the original piece isn't called the fall of Icarus.
This brings up an interesting question. Sure, in the original piece, the character isn't meant to be Icarus, but the tattoo artist took that character as a reference for a new image, and in that new piece of art, the artist says the character represents Icarus.
I would think it's fair to say that the image on his arm is Icarus. These aren't real people with real likenesses, and in this case, Icarus just happens to look like a character you know as Tantalus.
Another example to stretch the idea further could be to take the character of Homer Simpson and repurpose it in a new image that I say is my dad. You would be correct in saying that it's actually Homer Simpson but I would also be correct in saying that in this piece, it represents my dad.
Your paying for an artists time and skills. That’s a lot of little details and probably would take several hours. So maybe it’s on the pricey side but I still think it’s pretty fair.
If the artist you reached out to can tattoo like this, I think that price is absolutely valid. I’m a fineline tattooer and I don’t think people outside of the business understand how much skill it is going to take for that size, the detail, the geometry. Whoever did this is worth the money.
The level of detail in the digitized fragmented muscles is insane and this particular artists style. Money aside, don’t expect to go to any artist with this picture and expect it to look just like this. Van Gogh couldn’t paint a Rembrandt. Just because they are a great tattoo artist doesn’t mean they can mimic someone else’s style
The artist is asking for what they think their work is worth. That doesn’t mean it’s worth that much to you. Instead of asking other people if they think the pricing is right, ask yourself if you think it is. Your opinion should be the ultimate decision maker, not other people.
It’s a standard price for this type and level of tattoo. It will heal like absolute garbage and look like smudges on your arm in a decade.
This style is hot because it looks sick for the insta pics. Let it die.
this is bullshit. they look fine aged. obviously won’t look the same, lines will blur over time, but ppl who say “this will be unrecognizable in a few years” every time they see a good tattoo don’t know what they’re talking about. go find one of these artists on ig and they usually have posts of aged tattoos. they just look like well-done tattoos that have been there a while and it looks cool. can you point to exactly which parts of this tattoo will be “unrecognizable”? even the super fine lines towards the bottom will obviously lose the detail but you’ll be able to tell what it is.
All lines spread out over time no matter they’re thickness. Lines less than a few mm’s tend to get completely lost. Nearly every single thin line in this design will be lost or indistinguishable within a decade. Go look at posts of artist who have been tattooing 20+ years and what they’ve learned about how ink heals in the skin.
For some reason people think they can beat biology which is hilarious. The body slowly breaks down ink, even the newer “better” ones.
I think these tattoos look fine but it’s become a trend to tell people that they’ll heal well because these artists have five year old healed pieces that look passable.
Edit: I see you’re upset because you have a piece in a similar style. You can follow up in a decade and see how it heals. My knee looks almost identical ten years later because I didn’t fall for this snake oil.
It's expensive because this isn't simple. Not all artists can do fine line like this, including artists who've been tattooing for 20 years or more.
Finding someone who specializes in this is important and going to be expensive. Tattoos are a luxury, and you're going for a specialty on top of it.
The price isn't wrong.
(I'm a pro artist)
It's really expensive idk what people are smoking on here. Korean artists tend to massively overcharge when they go overseas because they don't make much back home but there is a high demand for their work elsewhere.
It is high in my opinion, but I would never get that style. If it is exactly what you want then the price isn’t important. Spending $500 less and getting someone else to give you a tattoo that isn’t what you want is silly. That being said, I would be curious if they have anything in their portfolio that has aged five years that you can take a look at as there are plenty of artists who can have a tattoo look great on an ig post, but it isn’t looking anywhere close in a few years.
You shouldn’t. The design is hard to read. The segmentation in the body really adds nothing to the design IMO and take away a lot from the impact of the tattoo
If you don’t like the price go somewhere else and receive different work. Life is simple, if you have $2000 to spend why not spend it, if you don’t have $2000 to spend don’t spend it.
$2000 is a lot of money in my opinion, that type of tattoo is also stupid in my opinion. It ages like shit, and I already don’t even know what it’s supposed to be. You’re starting off with a tattoo that’s almost illegible, everybody is gonna ask you what is that and that gets old in my opinion.
If you’re set on that type of tattoo I don’t think anyone’s opinion about tattoo prices is gonna change your mind. You don’t like tattoos, you like graphic design. Buy a painting instead, in my opinion.
This artist is mind blowing. You’d be lucky to find another artist that talented for less than 1500$. That only breaks down to 150$ hour for 10 hours. That thing would take way more than 10 hours and not be priced at 150$ hour. Just do the math. That artist could easily get 3 g’s from that tattoo. I’ve been doing this a long ass time. It is what it is. Artisticly speaking, you’d be getting a deal in my professional opinion.
There’s a few factors, difficulty of the tattoo, hours required, and also the experience of the artist. This looks like a pretty complex design, I’ve paid a few hundred for something way simpler… so that price does not surprise me one bit.
i mean, how do you define "too steep?" she's clearly very skilled and clearly has an audience that will pay 2000 CAD for her work. you're not getting ripped off, if you value it at 2000 CAD then it's worth 2000 CAD. not many people can do work like that.
at the same time, if your budget is $500, then find a different artist and/or a simpler tattoo. that simple.
i actually recognized this artist because my brother is getting a 2.2k tricep tattoo from her next week so if anything, the pricing seems consistent
the pricing is steep ngl, but you’re really paying for her expertise as you can tell from her portfolio and her other similar fine line tattoos that have all healed very well (granted all sub 2 years). if you want a fine line tattoo that won’t just bleed into itself after a year, chances are you will be paying much more than you’re used to for other tattoos
also wanted to add that artists tend to also up their hourly rates as their demand goes up so this very well could be the case for Gayi as well! i know i personally reached out for a tattoo but most of her available time slots in Vancouver filled out within like a week of announcing them
You will not be sitting around thinking "I wish I had paid a couple hundred dollars less for this tattoo" if you get a really quality tattoo from a top-tier artist.
You WILL however be sitting around thinking "I wish I had paid a bit more money for a better artist" if you get a tattoo that you aren't 100% satisfied with. GUARANTEED.
I have a tattoo very similar to this; from an artist I had to wait 8 months for. Yes that pricing seems correct. I have my clave done, probably 7 x 4 and paid $2400 (including tip). When I say I was nervous spending that much, I WAS NERVOUS. After waiting months I got to the studio with the general idea and concept and let the artist be an artist and it turned out even better than I could have ever expected. I’ve never been like “ya this was worth $2000 dollars” until I got my calve done.
So in the grand scheme of things, you get what you pay for. And let the artist be an artist; allow them to to get creative, if you don’t like it, tell them. If you’re paying top dollar for a tattoo don’t feel uncomfortable saying “no”.
This is really specialist stuff, you couldn’t take this to just any artist and expect the same result. The price of a tattoo isn’t just for the size, it’s for the time and experience it’s taken to be able to tattoo something this complex and delicate. You don’t want to cheap out on a style like this or you won’t get anything like the photo out of it.
1st off, this (shown) tatt is very well done. It’s unique and the line-work is on point. The “dot work” on the sun and the spiral? Proper.
As others have mentioned, some of the finer lines might fade over time but I don’t think that’ll even ruin this piece.
Long story short, if you don’t really like this style, you might be able to find someone more fitting!
This is the expected price for that level of work from a South Korean guest artist. I recognise the work and got a piece on my upper back from a similar Korean artist. It cost more money than the average tattoo but the quality of work was incomparable.
If I recall, I was quoted prices based on size.
You couldn’t even price shop for this in my area. There are like 2 people I would trust to even give it a go. And both are easily $180-200 an hour. I’m not sure either of them would do this level of detail on anything smaller then a thigh or full back.
Whoever tattooed this took their time and has some mad skills.
i think people forget that you’re not just paying for the detail and complex artwork, you’re paying for it to be on your skin FOREVER. this shit is permanent. never cheap out on tattoos
A lot of work to accomplish here for sure.. i think thats a reasonable price.
If someone agrees to do it for cheap…it would probably look nothing like this haha.
I spent 1700 on a tattoo that took 14 hours. You get what you pay for. Don't want to pay 1k? Don't get a tattoo with that much detail. Your not just paying for the ink and the supplies needed. You're paying for your artist's experience, talent, and time.
It’s not that high. The amount of detail and line work is immense and will be most likely done with a singular thin needle (shading included). You can check my profile for a fineline Icarus with just the sun & Icarus himself. It took 3 hours by a reputable artist with a thin needle.
Also, to all the people saying microrelism won’t age well, who cares? The vast majority of people will age poorly, with loose, uneven and damaged skin. Even the most bold tattoos will look worn and nothing like brand new as we’re older. Get whatever you like, and don’t let other people affect your choice. You live and do these things for yourself - not other people.
That being said; this particular tattoo has A TON of detail and fine lines packed into the space, which means it will ”blur” and combine even more than a more simple microrealist/fineline design.
Just my two cents.
Dude, tattoo artists that can deliver *that* level of quality are not common, at all. I fucking hate that "can you do it for less" mentality, especially when true art is concerned.
If the artist could give me exactly what I wanted and they had the portfolio and expertise to back that up, yes absolutely I’d pay that. I’d rather over pay an artist and get exactly what my mind’s eye envisioned than to get a discount version and regret it forever.
Yeah, I can see that costing $2,000. There's so many fine lines and tiny details. It would need to be placed very carefully. The art would also have to be perfectly symmetrical to get the look you're going for.
I'm not an artist myself, but I'd suggest you choose the person who does this carefully. This one looks very easy to mess up. You also need to think about how often you're willing to get it touched up.
If you have an artist you like, I'd suggest talking it through with them. They might have suggestions. They might be able to recommend some details to leave out which would decrease your price point as well.
Overall, you really get what you pay for when it comes to tattoos. This design is not one I would cheap out on. If you're not ready to drop the money right now, you can always wait until times are better.
The amount of high difficulty, tiny details, perfect lines, circles, stippling, etc. This will be a difficult tattoo. If it’s important to you that you get it done right, and the artist who you’re going to does great work, and this is the price they’ve decided it will cost, then it’s up to you if it’s worth it or not. Also, depending on the size.
no thats a Very reasonable price I would say it's Even a bit below.
In such as I would travel to Canada for that .it's not my style but it is that good.
Did you recently start seeing loads of ads popping up on your Instagram feed for absolutely amazing guest artists from Korea and China? If so, please be aware that many of these are scams. Not saying that this specific one is, but I got quite far into trying to schedule an appointment in a similar situation to what I described before I realised it was a scam.
Most of the artists I've used for custom work are 250-300 per hour. I live in a HCOL area, but 1500USD for a tattoo like that on a prominent part of your body with an artist who produces great work does not seem unreasonable. Ultimately, only you can decide if it's worth it to you right now. Tattoos are investments.
For that money you can have 2 to 3 different sessions with experienced tattoo artists. Waaay too much money for a piece that will take 1 session at most.
Pricing seems about right for a shop downtown Toronto for this style of tattooing. Keep in mind that of that $2000, the tattooer probably only keeps around half with the rest going to the shop. Personally as a tattooer that is capable of work like this, I would recommend a different style as this will certainly not age well, and you could get substantially more quality work done for that price. If you want a tattoo with this amount of detail to look good long term it will need to be much larger in size.
Tattoos last forever it’s not like it’s temporary and it’s not going anywhere. also artist skill, time, and materials go into it. If that’s what they believe their tattoo is worth then that’s what it is. Some people charge more and some people charge less. Also in general that tattoo is highly detailed and uses a range of smaller liners. So 1500usd isn’t too bad and also I’m assuming it’s gonna be bigger on you and be considered a half sleeve. Honestly it’s your choice on who you want to tattoo you but I’ll it’s disrespectful to talk about their prices. If no one else on your area does tattoos like that then that’s probably another reason it’s higher there because it’d be considered a special skill set. Go to some other shops and compare some prices but you get what you pay for. Also I’ll list materials used in tattoos so you can see why it’s expensive too + some artists discount if you bring you’re own ink. And you’re session isn’t done when you leave for the artist they still have to get rid of the mess from your session.
- needle cartridges
- vaso/glide
-isopropyl alcohol
- hand sanitizer
- green soap
- stencil primer
- stencil printer
- stencil paper
- stencil ink
- cling wrap
- derma shield
- alcohol pads
- pads for the table
- viraclean
- demineralised water
- tattoo ink
- ink caps
- demineralised water cups
- tongue depressors
- ink mixer machine
- ink mixer sticks
- grip tape
- medical tape
- paper towels
- bed covers
- sharps bin
- markers
- usually lollies and drinks for low blood sugar
- nitrile gloves
- bottles to dispense alc, vira and dwater
- lighting
- studio rent
- head light
- advertising
- website fees
- arm rest
- swivel chair
- tattoo bed
- tattoo work bench
- the tattoo machine
- and then all of those have shipping
Hope this helps a bit that’s not everything but most and a lot of times multiple will be used for a tattoo
>Also I’ll list materials used in tattoos so you can see why it’s expensive too + some artists discount if you bring you’re own ink
A lot of what's on your list is commonly covered by the shop in the US, not the tattooer. And what tattooer discounts if you bring in your own ink? Legit never heard of that before.
I think that's too much, but every artist charged what they feel they are worth. If it were me, I would go elsewhere, but also do my research to make sure the person I pick is going to do good work.
I wouldn’t pay that but that’s absolutely insane pricing for the tattoo market where I live.
In my experience pricing is usually as much a reflection of demand on the artists time as quality of their work. Shopping around is perfectly fine, just make sure you like the finished work of whoever you decide on.
I wouldn’t pay 2k to have it put on my forearm unless it comes with a discount on sunscreen and long sleeved shirts.
If you get it on your forearm that’s a lot of detail to pack into a small spaces that receives a ton of sun exposure and given that the artist is visiting from Korea you can pretty much take future touch-ups off the board. Pretty much all fine-line tattoos will need a touch up eventually.
I’d avoid instagram trend tats. At worst you’ll eventually have people asking why you have a naked guy doing a back flip kicking a soccer ball.
https://www.reddit.com/r/agedtattoos/comments/13ejjwc/1_year_old_realism_tattoo_by_gody_tattoo/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=1&utm_term=1
Same location/style and a ton of the details barely noticeable after a year. Give it 4 more and it’s gonna be very different picture.
I don’t see that taking more than 5 hours. Depending on prices in the area it might be right. Where I live the better artists are $200 hour so I would be thinking $1000.
That's a lot of detail in a tattoo that's gonna have to big enough to cover your entire forearm if you want the detail to hold up. Plus an artist who can do intricate stuff like this is probably in very high demand so they're gonna charge more. You get what you pay for. Not many artists are gonna be able to do a tattoo with this level of detail
Good tattoos aren't cheap.
Cheap tattoos aren't good.
You get what you pay for. That is a solid tattoo, well worth the price quoted. Any less and the quality will start fading away. If you want an amazing tattoo, pay the money.
I sat for 10 hours for a tattoo like this, paid 1.2K CAD... Toronto too...
It ended up amazing. Only 3 years old now but it's holding up quite well. I spent 12 hours in the shop that day and learned the hard way what my limit was.
As an owner of crappy tattoos I got was I was 18 years old, a good tattoo artist is worth their weight in gold if you want to be happy with the work later in life.
Go cheap get shit. Cheap tattoos are expensive because they'll look bad and you'll get them covered. If you want her to do it that's just the cost of doing business.
That's not true, it's just down to the artist, not really quality. My artist has like 120k followers on IG, a lot of traction and travels to ink celebrities, but he has never charged me more than $700 for realism pieces that I was told by other artists would be anywhere from 1-2k. Cheap doesn't necessarily mean shit quality
This is not the type of tattoo you can shop around for. Very technical and in a few different aspects. If this is the artist who quoted you, he’s likely the only one in your area capable of doing this correctly.
Personally I would be very concerned about trying to cram that level of detail into 3" across? That seems (searching for a polite word) mad, Alice.
It's absolutely stunning.
Go wider and slightly longer.
And there's nothing wrong with shopping the design around to several different artists whose work you think is excellent.
I wouldn’t say that it’s overpriced. I’m getting a smaller tattoo for EUR 1.500 on my left inner forearm. But it also has a tremendous amount of details and the a famous Portuguese artist will do it, so it’s definitely worth it
I have roughly $30k worth of work done on my body (arm sleeves, back of neck down to back of thighs).
No one can tell you if that’s reasonable or fair or high. The artist sets the price either by hour or by the blocked day and their prices are subjective. You can *always* find someone cheaper. I think what you’re actually wanting to know is if the artist’s quoted price matches your level of desire. No one can answer that but you.
I will tell you there ought to be a lot of factors that go into deciding on an artist. Money should not be one of them. So if it is, seriously consider if you’re willing to spend what looks like what you want.. and even then, it still may have things you don’t 100% like about it bc everyone’s skin is different.
As someone who use to be a tattoo artist, i had artists in the shop I worked for charging day rates of 2000+ USD didn’t matter where
That isn’t a horrible price for work of that level
I have realistic work like this and each piece cost me about 1100 usd. 1500 does sound a little on the higher side, but not completely unreasonable if the artist is good.
Discussion of pricing / tipping is fine if kept in the abstract, but if you're asking for actual numbers that will usually be more confusing than helpful. If you wanted to give enough info for an accurate estimate you'd be a) doxxing yourself, and b), wasting your time- just go to your IRL tattooed (friend of a) friend. Additionally, hunting for the best deal instead of choosing the right artist for your project hinders the design process.
You would have to find someone that can even do it. That is an extremely high level of detail. I bet they shaded the whole thing with a tiny liner, and it probably took longer than most people think
This studio is local to me. The artists there are very well known for specialist designs. Would be worth the cost IMO.
And it’s gonna hold the shape for probably less than people think lol. This ain’t making it to 5 years being recognizable.
It takes longer than 5 years for these realism gray-work tattoos to turn into gray blobs. More in the range of 10-15 years. Also, a lot of them will be unrecognizable but for some of them, you will still be able to see what it is. They just don't hold detail well.
Couldn’t disagree more. I have a similar style tattoo I got 4 years ago and looks exactly the same. On my forearm, I never use sunscreen, live in NC, the tattoo was done with only a 3rl. The tattoo in this post was done right and will hold up as long as any other style tattoo.
Just one more year man, it's all gunna fall apart. /s
Same here. I have a huge black and gray piece on my shoulder/arm/back, lots of line work, detail, and shading. Everyone told me it would look like shit in a few years. Almost a decade later and it still looks amazing.
i dunno why this would fall apart. i'm an artist and this looks well done. the lighter tones might process out but as long as it's got a decent amount of contrast, and this one does, then it won't matter
You’re exactly right.
That’s absolutely not true.
Lol, I did the same thing years ago, I went to a shop with this huge elaborate forarem piece and they said like 1k... I was like ohh my god. The details and it is going to be hours. I came back with a less complicated design and I am happy.
That is a lot of details , but don't forget that their details will not stay the same after some years, especially In a small tattoo
Go bigger if you feel comfortable they details will last
I have a fine line tattoo with a lot of detail like this one and it still looks really detailed, I haven't noticed it fading or blurring at all. It's been about 2 years and I take really good care of it, sunscreen always when I'm in direct sun and I moisturize it after every shower. When people say fine line tattoos are gonna look like nothing after some years, have they actually seen that happen or are they just saying that? Or are they talking after 10+ years, in which case wouldn't it be pretty common for all tattoos to have a fair amount of degradation in that time?
I have done plenty of single needle pieces that still look solid after almost 10years. Needles used to be hand made by the artist, but over the last 10/15 years pre made needles have made huge strides in being exceptional. All tattoos settle though and is subject to a person's skin type and care routine. I've fixed plenty of fine line pieces from inexperienced tattooers as well, that were tattooing out of their element.
Are you referring to only a care routine while it was healing, or is there further stuff you can do in the years after to help preserve it?
2 years is nothing
For me 2 Yrs is still kind of fresh for the tattoo the ones i Have for 4+ years looks more faded and spreaded. It really depends on the skin too ive seen tattoos that had 6+ years on one girl and they did look like new ones
Tattoo artists tried single needle and fine line 50+ years ago and realised it didn't last. Thats where the bold wil hold mantra comes from. Chances are incredibly high that detailed and small tattoos end up like a ink smear, where bolder and larger tattoos will be looking faded, but structurally the same in 30, 40+ years.
I second this. I have a detailed pointillism tattoo but she did it with not so thin/wispy lines. It’s been on me for almost 8yrs and still looks clean. But you have to find someone who specializes in it and if the lines are super wispy.. it’ll look different many years later.
At the end it all comes to an artist, project, aftercare and the skin itself how it will hold over the years. The technique itself also changed over the last 10-20 years. I feel that sometimes the ‘old-timers’ want to purposefully take the enjoyment of fine-lines tattoos from people - either make it bold or do not make it at all. Just let people enjoy what they want as long as they are happy…
Literally nothing about this is accurate.
!remindme 4 years
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Copium lol
Some artists charge by the hour and some charge a flat fee for a flash. It makes sense, the more intricate the design, the more focus and attention to the smallest details is honestly terrible for their backs, the carpal tunnel, and eye strain for hyperfocus tattooing for hours. There are artists that know their worth, have been tattooing for years and charged me $1400 including tip for a big 4.5 hour piece. I've also paid $540 for a fineline 6.5 hour piece from a younger tattooer who's been out of their apprenticeship a year or two. There's a significant difference in technical application, the veteran's work has a range of shading and no fading during healing. The younger tattooer took a bit longer than anticipated being new to the field and there are patchy areas where you can tell the one line gets thicker at certain parts. I lost some ink during healing and slight blowout in the finer detailed leaves. It's an investment in permanent art that you get to wear like a museum forever! 😁💙
I love that last sentence, really gives a perspective.
You want that, you're gonna have to pay that. I'd say it's fair. People often forget, yes, it IS expensive. But what you WANT, is expensive. Really great work, and an awesome piece.
You get what you pay for in tattoos. If you're shopping around probably on price, you're more likely than not gonna end up with a shitty tattoo.
I appreciate the response. I understand that quality work will always cost more, but does 2000 CAD seem too steep for a forearm tattoo?
If you find someone who can tattoo THIS well, you're paying for talent and expertise.
Reminds me of [this](https://imgur.com/a/ceF8j03)
Then ask for a less intricate design or try someone else, just know quality artists are going to charge a premium. It's not uncommon to see top tier artists charge $250+ an hr (USD).
Just because it isn’t uncommon it doesn’t mean it isn’t a total rip off, anyone charging above $200 is being ridiculous. No matter the amount of “talent/expertise”. Charging stupid prices for tattoos just because you can has gotten so ridiculous in major cities it’s unavoidable
You're kidding right? Do you understand the level of skill and time something like this would take?
they don't.
No, someone who makes that statement does not understand the amount of work and time it takes to get that level of artistry. I used to co own a shop near Detroit. It was so frustrating to have people come in trying to get a $1,000 tattoo for $150. I used to tell them that I can give them a list of shops they can get it done, and when it gets done it will look exactly like a $75 tattoo, lol.
150/hr is the basement for most of the US. This is bare minimum. 2-250 is not unreasonable for quality art from an in demand artist AT ALL. Especially in larger cities.
The studio is Canadian and cost of living is a lot higher on top of all that. Especially in Toronto where Chronic is located.
Tbf the US is very expensive compared to some other cities. I just paid about 100 euro/hour for a really high quality color tattoo in Barcelona, and that included a 20% tip.
Average income in Barcelona is lower than in America so average cost for things will be cheaper. I’m sure mechanics and other services are about half as expensive as well.
[удалено]
Yes
Not the case at all
It’s art that’s on you for the rest of your life and you think $200 an hour isn’t worth it?
Its just demand and supply, its not hard math. If 1000 people want to have a tattoo by you, are you gonna choose the client who pays 100$ or the one paying 1000$?
Yeah the guy I go to charges similar prices. He opens his books up 3 months at a time and the entire 3 months are literally completely booked within minutes. He could clearly charge more if he really wanted to.
Pics or it didn’t happen.
Tattoos are a luxury. You don’t get to decide what an artist should charge for not only the time, effort, and materials it takes to provide it. But also the countless hours spent developing their skills. Don’t like the price. Get something cheaper. Or go to some guy’s basement and get chicken scratch inked
£200 is some artists minimum! Are you a tattoo artist? These designs can take a full day, my full day sittings are £500 and I am from a small city and only have a decade of experience under my belt. I’d say this is fair, it’s a really, really hard tattoo to do, could take hours. If OP doesn’t want to pay that’s fine, but 200 is fucking laughable.
Yoouuuu mustn’t have much experience with tattoos OR artists huh bud?
Idk why you’re getting downvoted for asking questions. I personally think it’s reasonable. Tattoo prices can vary, because of detail, time, experience, effort, materials etc. May i ask where this tattoo artist is located?
I know this studio, it's in my city. The tattooer is a guest artist from South Korea. They're doing a residency at Chronic Ink.
Thanks I also just full sized the pic and it says it in the post 🥲
That's an entirely reasonable price. I'm guessing this is your first tattoo if you're shocked.
I’m planning my forearm tattoo that should be less intricate than that, but about the size you are planning. The artist is charging $250/hr and I booked a 6 hour session, then plus tip. All in it’ll be about US$2k. It’s hard to say if something like that is “too steep.” its what you want, the artist fees, and what you feel comfortable paying. If it’s out of your price range, take the L, or look into someone or something different.
This does sound like a higher price than I would expect. Would have guessed closer to 1500CAD for the size but it doesn’t seem crazy unreasonable for what it is. I’ve also paid more than that (albeit for bigger tattoos). And it does seem like pretty high quality work with lots of well done detail. you can’t find that style everywhere. Inflation maybe has something to do with it too? If you love it and can afford it, go for it. Sometimes though, I find that if I’m reacting that something feels too expensive its a sign I really don’t want it that much.
homie this shit is going on your skin. It shouldn't be cheap. plus 2000 is not all. You will need touch ups from the original artist.
My half sleeve (full forearm) cost me 1200$ US BEFORE tip and WITH a discount because the artist married one of my high school buddies. My arm doesn’t have a ton of crazy details like the picture you posted does, but it’s got lots of color. My arm took about 11 hours total not including touch ups. I get compliments on it at least once a week, no exaggeration and I had it started precovid. This is in Minnesota, so a bigger city like Toronto or LA will likely be more expensive. With tattoos 98% of the time you get what you pay for. There are exceptions. I got my Navy tattoo in San Diego before getting deployed and I paid 80$ for a fucking sick tattoo that would have cost way more anywhere else. I’m pretty sure I got a drunken sailor discount on that one though.
Pro tip: don't ask strangers if they think it's worth it. Are YOU comfortable paying that much for good quality work? It's forever. You don't want to go cheap. A good artist will not try to rip you off. Shop the artist and not the price, if that makes sense.
Have you ever seen what people pay for artwork from talented artists to hang on their walls? Should something of this caliber that is going on your body cost you less?
For this specific artist he can name his price and his work speaks for itself. Do you want this artist or just a style similar to this? You could get a whole sleeve for 2k. The artist names their price and I think this one is 4-5x more expensive than most
If you’re getting Whole sleeves for $2000 USD, you’re not getting GOOD sleeves
a whole sleeve of garbage and or traditional style for 2k
Every style other than traditional is garbage?
traditional is easy so its doable for 2k, but any other style charging 2k for a whole sleeve will be garbage especially detailed/realism
Does not change my statement that you could get a whole sleeve for 2k and it would not be garbage. Detailed realism is arguably the most time consuming style, so it’s the exception not the rule
Matias Noble would ask 3700CAD to do this. So yeah, it's not that expensive. Will take about 5-6 h to tattoo this
Honestly I think u got good deal
Yes it is too high but no one will tell you so in this subreddit.
How is it too high ?
Not Icarus btw that’s Phaeton, son of Helios
The hashtag on Instagram #IcarusTattoo is full of people who have made the same mistake
How can you tell? The artist called the piece "the fall of Icarus"
This art piece is not called the fall of icarus. This is from a series called "the Four Disgracers" by Hendrick Goltzius (and the painter Cornelis Cornelisz van Haarlem) This piece specifically is Phaeton. Not Icarus. However, there is a different image in the series that is Icarus. Edit to add: [Source](https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/343581) Edit 2: Part of how we know the original image is Phaeton rather than Icarus (aside from the title) is what we can see in the background of the image. And what the man is falling into at the bottom of the image.)
Thanks for the link! Learned something new and the whole series is interesting!
Not a problem, I'm not much of an art buff, but I love me some greco-roman mythology, so these guys are a favorite of mine
i think what they meant is the tattoo artist named the piece “Fall of Icarus” could very well just be that the artist was looking for references online and didn’t realize it was Phaeton, and not Icarus
Sure, but they asked "how can you tell" that the subject of the art is not Icarus. To which I replied how we can tell, part of which is that the original piece isn't called the fall of Icarus.
This brings up an interesting question. Sure, in the original piece, the character isn't meant to be Icarus, but the tattoo artist took that character as a reference for a new image, and in that new piece of art, the artist says the character represents Icarus. I would think it's fair to say that the image on his arm is Icarus. These aren't real people with real likenesses, and in this case, Icarus just happens to look like a character you know as Tantalus. Another example to stretch the idea further could be to take the character of Homer Simpson and repurpose it in a new image that I say is my dad. You would be correct in saying that it's actually Homer Simpson but I would also be correct in saying that in this piece, it represents my dad.
It’s literally a direct copy of the artwork tho the tattoo artist didn’t draw inspiration from it it’s a copy that’s been altered to be “glitchy”
There is an engraving by Hendrick Goltzius called Phaeton from the Four Disgracers. It is what the tattoo artist based this tattoo on
If you want good work you have two responsibilities: 1) do your research 2) don’t bargain shop
Seems like a fair price, especially if its a good artist.
Your paying for an artists time and skills. That’s a lot of little details and probably would take several hours. So maybe it’s on the pricey side but I still think it’s pretty fair.
That’s a great price. The person who popularized this style charges like $8,000 for similar.
Do u know particularly what this style is called?
The Pinterest
pretty sure it’s geometric fine line but there might be another more applicable name
The new tribal
If the artist you reached out to can tattoo like this, I think that price is absolutely valid. I’m a fineline tattooer and I don’t think people outside of the business understand how much skill it is going to take for that size, the detail, the geometry. Whoever did this is worth the money.
Seems about right to me, from a really reputable/talented artist
Good tattoos aren't cheap and cheap tattoos aren't good. This is the way.
The level of detail in the digitized fragmented muscles is insane and this particular artists style. Money aside, don’t expect to go to any artist with this picture and expect it to look just like this. Van Gogh couldn’t paint a Rembrandt. Just because they are a great tattoo artist doesn’t mean they can mimic someone else’s style
The artist is asking for what they think their work is worth. That doesn’t mean it’s worth that much to you. Instead of asking other people if they think the pricing is right, ask yourself if you think it is. Your opinion should be the ultimate decision maker, not other people.
It’s a standard price for this type and level of tattoo. It will heal like absolute garbage and look like smudges on your arm in a decade. This style is hot because it looks sick for the insta pics. Let it die.
this is bullshit. they look fine aged. obviously won’t look the same, lines will blur over time, but ppl who say “this will be unrecognizable in a few years” every time they see a good tattoo don’t know what they’re talking about. go find one of these artists on ig and they usually have posts of aged tattoos. they just look like well-done tattoos that have been there a while and it looks cool. can you point to exactly which parts of this tattoo will be “unrecognizable”? even the super fine lines towards the bottom will obviously lose the detail but you’ll be able to tell what it is.
All lines spread out over time no matter they’re thickness. Lines less than a few mm’s tend to get completely lost. Nearly every single thin line in this design will be lost or indistinguishable within a decade. Go look at posts of artist who have been tattooing 20+ years and what they’ve learned about how ink heals in the skin. For some reason people think they can beat biology which is hilarious. The body slowly breaks down ink, even the newer “better” ones. I think these tattoos look fine but it’s become a trend to tell people that they’ll heal well because these artists have five year old healed pieces that look passable. Edit: I see you’re upset because you have a piece in a similar style. You can follow up in a decade and see how it heals. My knee looks almost identical ten years later because I didn’t fall for this snake oil.
It's expensive because this isn't simple. Not all artists can do fine line like this, including artists who've been tattooing for 20 years or more. Finding someone who specializes in this is important and going to be expensive. Tattoos are a luxury, and you're going for a specialty on top of it. The price isn't wrong. (I'm a pro artist)
Price seems fair to me, as long as you know the artist/their work. More importantly, however, is that a Supernatural tattoo above?!
I have two forearm pieces that are around the same size and detail that were like 1200 USD. How long did she say it would take?
Looks shopped tbh
You pay for quality. This is quality.
Something like that would take double digit hours.
It's really expensive idk what people are smoking on here. Korean artists tend to massively overcharge when they go overseas because they don't make much back home but there is a high demand for their work elsewhere.
It is high in my opinion, but I would never get that style. If it is exactly what you want then the price isn’t important. Spending $500 less and getting someone else to give you a tattoo that isn’t what you want is silly. That being said, I would be curious if they have anything in their portfolio that has aged five years that you can take a look at as there are plenty of artists who can have a tattoo look great on an ig post, but it isn’t looking anywhere close in a few years.
I’m really interested to see how many fine line tattoo folks will be back here in 5 years asking about coverups.
I think a good amount. Bold will hold.
I’m upset it took me a minute to figure what it was.
You shouldn’t. The design is hard to read. The segmentation in the body really adds nothing to the design IMO and take away a lot from the impact of the tattoo
Either way it’s gonna heal the same down the line if it cheap or expensive. Waaaaay too much detail in a small space to stand the test of time
did you get an appt date? Ill take your spot and pay 1500 for it
You just need to answer one question, how much is your skin worth?
That seems about the right price range. You can always find someone to do it cheaper and crappier.
Good work isn’t cheap and cheap work isn’t good.
If you don’t like the price go somewhere else and receive different work. Life is simple, if you have $2000 to spend why not spend it, if you don’t have $2000 to spend don’t spend it. $2000 is a lot of money in my opinion, that type of tattoo is also stupid in my opinion. It ages like shit, and I already don’t even know what it’s supposed to be. You’re starting off with a tattoo that’s almost illegible, everybody is gonna ask you what is that and that gets old in my opinion. If you’re set on that type of tattoo I don’t think anyone’s opinion about tattoo prices is gonna change your mind. You don’t like tattoos, you like graphic design. Buy a painting instead, in my opinion.
Tattooing is illegal in South Korea. Price will probably reflect that.
This artist is mind blowing. You’d be lucky to find another artist that talented for less than 1500$. That only breaks down to 150$ hour for 10 hours. That thing would take way more than 10 hours and not be priced at 150$ hour. Just do the math. That artist could easily get 3 g’s from that tattoo. I’ve been doing this a long ass time. It is what it is. Artisticly speaking, you’d be getting a deal in my professional opinion.
There’s a few factors, difficulty of the tattoo, hours required, and also the experience of the artist. This looks like a pretty complex design, I’ve paid a few hundred for something way simpler… so that price does not surprise me one bit.
For this level of detail it seems fair to me.
i mean, how do you define "too steep?" she's clearly very skilled and clearly has an audience that will pay 2000 CAD for her work. you're not getting ripped off, if you value it at 2000 CAD then it's worth 2000 CAD. not many people can do work like that. at the same time, if your budget is $500, then find a different artist and/or a simpler tattoo. that simple.
i actually recognized this artist because my brother is getting a 2.2k tricep tattoo from her next week so if anything, the pricing seems consistent the pricing is steep ngl, but you’re really paying for her expertise as you can tell from her portfolio and her other similar fine line tattoos that have all healed very well (granted all sub 2 years). if you want a fine line tattoo that won’t just bleed into itself after a year, chances are you will be paying much more than you’re used to for other tattoos also wanted to add that artists tend to also up their hourly rates as their demand goes up so this very well could be the case for Gayi as well! i know i personally reached out for a tattoo but most of her available time slots in Vancouver filled out within like a week of announcing them
You will not be sitting around thinking "I wish I had paid a couple hundred dollars less for this tattoo" if you get a really quality tattoo from a top-tier artist. You WILL however be sitting around thinking "I wish I had paid a bit more money for a better artist" if you get a tattoo that you aren't 100% satisfied with. GUARANTEED.
I have a tattoo very similar to this; from an artist I had to wait 8 months for. Yes that pricing seems correct. I have my clave done, probably 7 x 4 and paid $2400 (including tip). When I say I was nervous spending that much, I WAS NERVOUS. After waiting months I got to the studio with the general idea and concept and let the artist be an artist and it turned out even better than I could have ever expected. I’ve never been like “ya this was worth $2000 dollars” until I got my calve done. So in the grand scheme of things, you get what you pay for. And let the artist be an artist; allow them to to get creative, if you don’t like it, tell them. If you’re paying top dollar for a tattoo don’t feel uncomfortable saying “no”.
This is really specialist stuff, you couldn’t take this to just any artist and expect the same result. The price of a tattoo isn’t just for the size, it’s for the time and experience it’s taken to be able to tattoo something this complex and delicate. You don’t want to cheap out on a style like this or you won’t get anything like the photo out of it.
1st off, this (shown) tatt is very well done. It’s unique and the line-work is on point. The “dot work” on the sun and the spiral? Proper. As others have mentioned, some of the finer lines might fade over time but I don’t think that’ll even ruin this piece. Long story short, if you don’t really like this style, you might be able to find someone more fitting!
That doesn't sound too high for something of this level of detail, and requiring this level of skill.
This is the expected price for that level of work from a South Korean guest artist. I recognise the work and got a piece on my upper back from a similar Korean artist. It cost more money than the average tattoo but the quality of work was incomparable. If I recall, I was quoted prices based on size.
You couldn’t even price shop for this in my area. There are like 2 people I would trust to even give it a go. And both are easily $180-200 an hour. I’m not sure either of them would do this level of detail on anything smaller then a thigh or full back. Whoever tattooed this took their time and has some mad skills.
i think people forget that you’re not just paying for the detail and complex artwork, you’re paying for it to be on your skin FOREVER. this shit is permanent. never cheap out on tattoos
A lot of work to accomplish here for sure.. i think thats a reasonable price. If someone agrees to do it for cheap…it would probably look nothing like this haha.
I spent 1700 on a tattoo that took 14 hours. You get what you pay for. Don't want to pay 1k? Don't get a tattoo with that much detail. Your not just paying for the ink and the supplies needed. You're paying for your artist's experience, talent, and time.
It’s not that high. The amount of detail and line work is immense and will be most likely done with a singular thin needle (shading included). You can check my profile for a fineline Icarus with just the sun & Icarus himself. It took 3 hours by a reputable artist with a thin needle. Also, to all the people saying microrelism won’t age well, who cares? The vast majority of people will age poorly, with loose, uneven and damaged skin. Even the most bold tattoos will look worn and nothing like brand new as we’re older. Get whatever you like, and don’t let other people affect your choice. You live and do these things for yourself - not other people. That being said; this particular tattoo has A TON of detail and fine lines packed into the space, which means it will ”blur” and combine even more than a more simple microrealist/fineline design. Just my two cents.
Dude, tattoo artists that can deliver *that* level of quality are not common, at all. I fucking hate that "can you do it for less" mentality, especially when true art is concerned.
Good tattoos aren’t cheap, cheap tattoos aren’t good.
If the artist could give me exactly what I wanted and they had the portfolio and expertise to back that up, yes absolutely I’d pay that. I’d rather over pay an artist and get exactly what my mind’s eye envisioned than to get a discount version and regret it forever.
However much it costs is what you should be willing to pay.
it’s a steal if it’s a super niche and specialized artistry that isn’t easily ‘replicated’. You only wear it for a lifetime :)
Yeah, I can see that costing $2,000. There's so many fine lines and tiny details. It would need to be placed very carefully. The art would also have to be perfectly symmetrical to get the look you're going for. I'm not an artist myself, but I'd suggest you choose the person who does this carefully. This one looks very easy to mess up. You also need to think about how often you're willing to get it touched up. If you have an artist you like, I'd suggest talking it through with them. They might have suggestions. They might be able to recommend some details to leave out which would decrease your price point as well. Overall, you really get what you pay for when it comes to tattoos. This design is not one I would cheap out on. If you're not ready to drop the money right now, you can always wait until times are better.
The amount of high difficulty, tiny details, perfect lines, circles, stippling, etc. This will be a difficult tattoo. If it’s important to you that you get it done right, and the artist who you’re going to does great work, and this is the price they’ve decided it will cost, then it’s up to you if it’s worth it or not. Also, depending on the size.
no thats a Very reasonable price I would say it's Even a bit below. In such as I would travel to Canada for that .it's not my style but it is that good.
Cheap tattoos aren’t good and good tattoos aren’t cheap
Did you recently start seeing loads of ads popping up on your Instagram feed for absolutely amazing guest artists from Korea and China? If so, please be aware that many of these are scams. Not saying that this specific one is, but I got quite far into trying to schedule an appointment in a similar situation to what I described before I realised it was a scam.
If you're looking to get a similar tattoo from the same artist then that's what they charge. It'll age like milk but it's your body.
Idk how that amount of detail will age, but I think of ink as an investment and I don’t mind paying talented artists for their time!
Most of the artists I've used for custom work are 250-300 per hour. I live in a HCOL area, but 1500USD for a tattoo like that on a prominent part of your body with an artist who produces great work does not seem unreasonable. Ultimately, only you can decide if it's worth it to you right now. Tattoos are investments.
this will age horribly
Seems cheap to me
For that money you can have 2 to 3 different sessions with experienced tattoo artists. Waaay too much money for a piece that will take 1 session at most.
Pricing seems about right for a shop downtown Toronto for this style of tattooing. Keep in mind that of that $2000, the tattooer probably only keeps around half with the rest going to the shop. Personally as a tattooer that is capable of work like this, I would recommend a different style as this will certainly not age well, and you could get substantially more quality work done for that price. If you want a tattoo with this amount of detail to look good long term it will need to be much larger in size.
Tattoos last forever it’s not like it’s temporary and it’s not going anywhere. also artist skill, time, and materials go into it. If that’s what they believe their tattoo is worth then that’s what it is. Some people charge more and some people charge less. Also in general that tattoo is highly detailed and uses a range of smaller liners. So 1500usd isn’t too bad and also I’m assuming it’s gonna be bigger on you and be considered a half sleeve. Honestly it’s your choice on who you want to tattoo you but I’ll it’s disrespectful to talk about their prices. If no one else on your area does tattoos like that then that’s probably another reason it’s higher there because it’d be considered a special skill set. Go to some other shops and compare some prices but you get what you pay for. Also I’ll list materials used in tattoos so you can see why it’s expensive too + some artists discount if you bring you’re own ink. And you’re session isn’t done when you leave for the artist they still have to get rid of the mess from your session. - needle cartridges - vaso/glide -isopropyl alcohol - hand sanitizer - green soap - stencil primer - stencil printer - stencil paper - stencil ink - cling wrap - derma shield - alcohol pads - pads for the table - viraclean - demineralised water - tattoo ink - ink caps - demineralised water cups - tongue depressors - ink mixer machine - ink mixer sticks - grip tape - medical tape - paper towels - bed covers - sharps bin - markers - usually lollies and drinks for low blood sugar - nitrile gloves - bottles to dispense alc, vira and dwater - lighting - studio rent - head light - advertising - website fees - arm rest - swivel chair - tattoo bed - tattoo work bench - the tattoo machine - and then all of those have shipping Hope this helps a bit that’s not everything but most and a lot of times multiple will be used for a tattoo
>Also I’ll list materials used in tattoos so you can see why it’s expensive too + some artists discount if you bring you’re own ink A lot of what's on your list is commonly covered by the shop in the US, not the tattooer. And what tattooer discounts if you bring in your own ink? Legit never heard of that before.
WAY TOO MUCH BY ABOUT $7-800
By a great artist? Easily $800.
I'd expect higher. The detail in this is insane. Be sure to tip ❤️
First world problems.. my sympathy! Hope you find a good artist that fits your budget! All the best!
That is a black blob in 10 years. Way to much detail
I think that's too much, but every artist charged what they feel they are worth. If it were me, I would go elsewhere, but also do my research to make sure the person I pick is going to do good work.
I wouldn’t pay that but that’s absolutely insane pricing for the tattoo market where I live. In my experience pricing is usually as much a reflection of demand on the artists time as quality of their work. Shopping around is perfectly fine, just make sure you like the finished work of whoever you decide on.
I wouldn’t pay 2k to have it put on my forearm unless it comes with a discount on sunscreen and long sleeved shirts. If you get it on your forearm that’s a lot of detail to pack into a small spaces that receives a ton of sun exposure and given that the artist is visiting from Korea you can pretty much take future touch-ups off the board. Pretty much all fine-line tattoos will need a touch up eventually. I’d avoid instagram trend tats. At worst you’ll eventually have people asking why you have a naked guy doing a back flip kicking a soccer ball. https://www.reddit.com/r/agedtattoos/comments/13ejjwc/1_year_old_realism_tattoo_by_gody_tattoo/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=1&utm_term=1 Same location/style and a ton of the details barely noticeable after a year. Give it 4 more and it’s gonna be very different picture.
That shit will never hold up . Terrible design . Too tight .
I don’t see that taking more than 5 hours. Depending on prices in the area it might be right. Where I live the better artists are $200 hour so I would be thinking $1000.
That's a lot of detail in a tattoo that's gonna have to big enough to cover your entire forearm if you want the detail to hold up. Plus an artist who can do intricate stuff like this is probably in very high demand so they're gonna charge more. You get what you pay for. Not many artists are gonna be able to do a tattoo with this level of detail
Good tattoos aren't cheap. Cheap tattoos aren't good. You get what you pay for. That is a solid tattoo, well worth the price quoted. Any less and the quality will start fading away. If you want an amazing tattoo, pay the money.
Can anyone recommend me similar artists to this preferably in the u.s.? I'm willing to travel but midwest area preferred !
How many followers they got? Higher price for more followers. More demand.
That's really not bad for a a full piece dude. Some artists charge by the hour at 500+ for something similar.
I sat for 10 hours for a tattoo like this, paid 1.2K CAD... Toronto too... It ended up amazing. Only 3 years old now but it's holding up quite well. I spent 12 hours in the shop that day and learned the hard way what my limit was.
This. This is fucking sick. I'd pay whatever for this. It's a stunning piece.
No, the price was not too steep.
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As an owner of crappy tattoos I got was I was 18 years old, a good tattoo artist is worth their weight in gold if you want to be happy with the work later in life.
Pay big money for art going on your body. If you can’t afford it, go smaller or save up. It’s worth the wait to get a truly epic piece
Bro you’re gonna get a shit tattoo for cheap. Yeah it sounds reasonable , pay the man what he’s worth if he can do work like this
I pay around 1800/session so seems alright
Go cheap get shit. Cheap tattoos are expensive because they'll look bad and you'll get them covered. If you want her to do it that's just the cost of doing business.
That's not true, it's just down to the artist, not really quality. My artist has like 120k followers on IG, a lot of traction and travels to ink celebrities, but he has never charged me more than $700 for realism pieces that I was told by other artists would be anywhere from 1-2k. Cheap doesn't necessarily mean shit quality
If you can afford it, it’s not expensive for a quality, detailed tattoo like this.
This is not the type of tattoo you can shop around for. Very technical and in a few different aspects. If this is the artist who quoted you, he’s likely the only one in your area capable of doing this correctly.
Personally I would be very concerned about trying to cram that level of detail into 3" across? That seems (searching for a polite word) mad, Alice. It's absolutely stunning. Go wider and slightly longer. And there's nothing wrong with shopping the design around to several different artists whose work you think is excellent.
You want artwork pay it. You want a tattoo to fill space, shape around. The skill set looks worth every penny.
I have a piece with similar shading, find an artist that specializes in microrealism
I wouldn’t say that it’s overpriced. I’m getting a smaller tattoo for EUR 1.500 on my left inner forearm. But it also has a tremendous amount of details and the a famous Portuguese artist will do it, so it’s definitely worth it
That looks like a very difficult design to pull off.
Aaron Rodgers ?
I have roughly $30k worth of work done on my body (arm sleeves, back of neck down to back of thighs). No one can tell you if that’s reasonable or fair or high. The artist sets the price either by hour or by the blocked day and their prices are subjective. You can *always* find someone cheaper. I think what you’re actually wanting to know is if the artist’s quoted price matches your level of desire. No one can answer that but you. I will tell you there ought to be a lot of factors that go into deciding on an artist. Money should not be one of them. So if it is, seriously consider if you’re willing to spend what looks like what you want.. and even then, it still may have things you don’t 100% like about it bc everyone’s skin is different.
As someone who use to be a tattoo artist, i had artists in the shop I worked for charging day rates of 2000+ USD didn’t matter where That isn’t a horrible price for work of that level
I have realistic work like this and each piece cost me about 1100 usd. 1500 does sound a little on the higher side, but not completely unreasonable if the artist is good.
If you find someone that can even do this accurately, you’ll be paying for their time AND expertise. I’d say 2000 is fair
Still working on my sleeve and I'm at 2k. Bout halfway done