Squaw Tattoo Photo #18615

These designs often highlight braided hair, feathered headdresses, facial markings, and natural settings. The subject requires sensitivity to avoid reducing a living culture to a costume.

Achieving lifelike results in skin requires mastery of light, shadow, and color blending. Realistic tattoos often look three-dimensional, with subjects appearing to emerge from the skin surface.

Forearm tattoos benefit from a natural canvas that follows the arm's long shape. Designs can wrap around the arm or sit on the inner or outer surface, giving flexibility in how the tattoo is displayed.