General guidelines

Please do not send screenshots. Screenshots cannot be used as a reference for tattoo as they degrade the quality of the image.
Existing tattoos as photo references. We will not copy another artist’s work. If you like an existing tattoo, it can be used as inspiration but will not be copied directly.
We work from photo references. The quality of the reference directly impacts the quality of the tattoo.
Combining photos. We can combine photos to create compositions, but lighting is key to making something look correct. Combining two or three people (or objects) together in one tattoo is not possible if the lighting is different for each one (ie, one lit from the right, one lit from the left).

Photo quality

Whenever possible, high resolution images that are sharp and detailed make the best reference photos. Images that are low resolution, pixelated, blurry, or poorly lit will be rejected.
Professional type photos are always preferred over snapshot quality. We often receive candid snapshot type references. While we understand the sentimental nature of these types of family photos they rarely, if ever, make for good tattoo references. Often they are small, blurry, and lack detail. We can’t tattoo what we can’t see.
Photos that have key elements, such as hair cut off or blending into backgrounds will make for awkward tattoos. This also applies to photos where you may only want one person out of a group of people. We may be able to crop the photos to make this less noticeable. But keep in mind we cannot tattoo what we cannot see.