In order to make a 3D tattoo design seem to be “on top of the skin” the tattoo artist must be careful to use the correct lighting. If the shadow and the highlight appear to be created by different light sources, the 3-dimensional effect would be lost. This 3D tattoo of a ladybug shows how the highlight and shadow are both created by the same light source, allowing the 3-dimensional illusion to exist. To make the highlight brighter, the tattoo artist has used white tattoo ink. This will fade to a yellow color over time, but can be re-inked to make the design bright and 3-dimensional once again.
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3D Tattoos Add a New Dimension to Tattoo Art
Most tattoo designs are 2D (2-dimensional). This means that they are flat images, with no depth in the tattoo design. The terms “3D tattoo” or “3-dimensional tattoo” refer to tattoos that have an extra dimension, a third dimension. These tattoos interact with the skin, giving the illusion of being above the skin or within the […]