Black and grey is Soulraven’s signature, and it is the right choice for most of the work that comes through the door. Colour has its place. Here is the difference in practice.
How black and grey is made
Black ink diluted to a range of greys, layered from the darkest shadows to soft mid-tones and highlights left as bare skin. It is essentially drawing with light and shadow, which is why it suits realism, portraits, florals, statues and anything with depth. It heals predictably and reads clearly from across a room.
How colour is made
Colour pigments are packed more densely and usually need more passes, which means more time in the chair and a slightly longer heal. Saturated colour needs a strong black structure underneath it to hold its shape over the years.
Skin tone
Ink sits under the skin, so your skin tone is a filter over every colour. On deeper skin, black and grey gives the highest contrast and the cleanest read, and it is why so much of the studio’s work is black and grey. Rich, dark colours such as deep reds, purples, blues and greens can look excellent; pale yellows, pastels and white tend to disappear. A good artist will tell you honestly what will show on you, not what looks good on a screen.
Ageing in the sun
UV breaks down pigment, and Jamaica has a lot of UV. Black is the most stable pigment; colours fade faster and unevenly. A colour tattoo here needs sunscreen for life and is likely to want a refresh sooner. Black and grey with solid blacks will still look like itself in twenty years.
Which suits your design
- Portraits, realism, animals, statues, florals with depth: black and grey.
- Traditional and neo-traditional imagery, botanical colour, anything where the colour is the point: colour, planned with a strong black outline.
- Cover-ups: usually black and grey, or dark colour, because darkness is what hides the old ink.
- Undecided: black and grey with a single accent colour is a proven middle path.
Tell the studio which you have in mind, or ask, when you send your idea. See the black and grey work first.
Keep reading
How to choose the right tattoo placement
Pain, visibility, ageing, clothing and the shape of the design itself all pull in different directions. A practical way to decide.
How tattoo cover-ups work
What can and cannot be covered, why cover-ups are bigger and darker than people expect, and how the studio plans one across sessions.
Tattoo aftercare in Jamaica’s climate
Heat, sweat, sun and the sea are the four things that spoil a new tattoo here. How to manage each of them through the first month.
Kingston, Jamaica
Have something in mind?
Let’s talk about it. Tell Soulraven the idea, the placement and the size, and send your references in WhatsApp.