If you're finally ready to get that tattoo you've always wanted or just wanting to add to your collection, you've been thinking through your options and all the ideas that would best suit you.
If you love comic books, you might have been thinking about Batman tattoos lately. With all the awesome movies out in the past decade or so, Batman, Wonder Woman, and Superman tattoos have gained popularity in recent years.
If you're interested in showing your dedication as a Batfan, you've got some amazing choices out there.
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What Is A Tattoo?
Technically speaking, a tattoo is a form of body modification created by using needles inserted into dye, ink, or other permanent pigmentation.
For a long time, Western culture has seen tattoos as uncivilized and inappropriate for people of "standing," partially because of the long history of using tattoos as a form marking slaves, criminals, those of unsavory occupations, and other negative connotations.
In the past century, however, this attitude towards tattoos has gradually disintegrated among most Westerners, though those still living from previous generations may still regard tattoos as a symbol of "wrong living" in some way.
Types Of Tattoos
There are five recognized types of tattoos.
Traumatic Tattoos
Traumatic tattoos are tattoos that occur naturally through events of a person's life. Examples of a traumatic tattoo could include something like a coal miner developing a black mark from coal dust infiltrating an open wound. The wound eventually heals around the coal dust and the miner is left with a black mark.
Other injuries, like motorcycle accidents that leave permanent black markings from the asphalt, or injuries caused by pencil leads, are also considered traumatic tattoos.
Amateur Tattoos
Amateur tattoos are created by non-professionals. A common example of these are prison tattoos.
Cosmetic Tattoos
Cosmetic tattoos are things like permanent makeup. You can get these tattoos at various boutiques around your area. Be sure to check out the better business bureau rating and Yelp reviews before entrusting your face into the hands of someone who's going to permanently put on some eyebrows or eyeliner.
Medical Tattoos
Medical tattoos are actually used to treat various illnesses. For example, after someone has breast cancer treatment including a mastectomy, tattooing may be used to replace the areola which was removed during surgery.
Medical tattoos have also been used in times of war, to mark soldiers and others with their blood types, and other pertinent information that might affect their medical treatment if found unconscious.
Professional Tattoos
Professional tattoos are applied by professional tattoo artists, whether by hand or machine.
Styles Of Tattoos
Generally speaking, tattoos can be any of three styles of tattoo: decorative, pictorial, or symbolic.
Pictorial Tattoos
Pictorial tattoos depict specific people, events, or items. This would include things like a tattoo of Marilyn Monroe, Superman, the sword of William Wallace, the Justice League Watchtower, or the signing of the American Constitution.
Symbolic Tattoos
Symbolic tattoos have very specific meaning to the person wearing the tattoo.
This might include something like someone discovering his Jewish heritage and getting a tattoo of the Star of David to symbolize his acceptance and unity with his ancestors.
Decorative Tattoos
Decorative tattoos have no specific meaning or symbolism for the wearer. That could be something like someone getting a rose tattoo, simply because they're pretty, or wearing a tattoo of an eagle just because the image looked cool.
A Brief History Of Tattoos
Tattoos have been around since about 10,000 B.C.E. They've taken on many forms throughout history, and meant different things for different people over those years.
Throughout history, tattoos have been used to symbolize any of these things:
Various other cultures and types of markings have existed over the years, including very specific, famous tattoos, such as the Tā moko markings of the Maori indigenous peoples of New Zealand, and the Marquesan tattoos from the Marquesas islands in the South Pacific.
A History Of Superheroes And DC Comics
The first superhero was created by Nathaniel Hawthorne, the author of the famous The Scarlett Letter, and The House of the Seven Gables. His superhero, the Grey Champion, came to light in 1835 when his adventures first appeared in the New England Magazine.
Two years later, The Adventures of Obadiah Oldbuck was published in France and is believed to be the first comic book in existence.
From there, comic books such as Fortunes of Ferdinand Flipper, The Adventures of Mr. Tom Plump, and Journey to the Gold Diggings came about, and crossed the decades leading into what most of us would consider the golden era of comic book history, starting in 1928 with Buck Rogers, reaching to post World War II with the various characters we all know and love.
Batman In DC Comics
The Batman comics first started hitting the newsstands and store shelves in 1939, when he made his first appearance in the Detective Comics #27. The first dedicated Batman comic appeared one year later.
The first Batman film to be released was in 1943, produced by Columbia Pictures. The film was simply titled Batman and starred Lewis Wilson.
Since that time, Batman has appeared in something like 14 Batman films and DC Comics related films, including the Suicide Squad and the Justice League. There have been a large number of animated films and television shows about Batman since 1933, and a few live action television shows.
A large number of well-known actors have starred as Batman throughout the years, including Christian Bale, Michael Keaton, Adam West, George Clooney, Val Kilmer, and Ben Affleck.
Most folks have a favorite actor as Batman, though the sidekicks, secondary characters, and villains have had at least much impact on the popularity of a given film or television show.
Batman Tattoo Ideas
Because of the vast number of images, stories, actor portrayals, rebirths, and retooling of the various Batman characters, there are probably literally millions of options for awesome Batman tattoos available.
You could search sites like Pinterest, and tattoo image sites, but it could take hundreds of hours to narrow down a list of ideas to the right one for you. To help you out, we've done a load of scouring, and come up with this list of the most awesome Batman tattoo ideas around.
Batman Characters
These major, secondary, and minor characters may help give you some ideas for finding and getting your ideal Batman tattoo(s).
Collage Tattoos
Some ideas combining characters and themes from Batman include:
Villain Tattoos
What superhero is worth telling tales of without some awesome villains? Batman has some of the most interesting ones of all the comic book heroes. If you're more feeling the dark side of Batman's tales, you could try some villain themed Batman tattoos.
Couple Tattoos
Whether you're into Batman and Vicki Vale making it, or think the Joker and Harley Quinn have something special, you can always look into romantically themed tattoos.
Some clever images include everything from placing Harley Quinn on one arm and the Joker on the other, forming a bloody "hand heart" across your raised forearms, to classy images of Batman and Catwoman wrapped in an embrace.
Batman Symbolic Tattoos
A simple option is picking a symbol from any of the Batman comics or films.
Artistic Tattoos
If you don't want just any old tattoos, try looking for images in other artistic styles.
Many of these more artistic options won't be super commonplace, but there are tons of ideas online. If you're not sure where to look, try Deviant Art.
Batman Quotes
Whether you're into Batman's quotes, Alfred's zingers, or any of the one-liners from the Joker or the Riddler, you've got a plethora of options here.
If you're not totally sure which quotes to consider, or can't remember the precise wording, try a Google search for "the best Batman quotes," or "the best Riddler quotes." Something awesome will definitely come up for you.
Finding The Right Images
For your best bet finding the perfect Batman tattoo, you're going to want to visit some sites like Deviant Art and Pinterest to find the most amazing images possible. Be sure to print out a full color copy of your desired tattoo, and take it into a trusted local tattoo artist to see if he or she is capable of pulling it off.
Check out a few different artists, and look at images of their previous work to know the quality they offer. And always be clear on whether or not you'll take an interpretation of the image you offer or if you want a close copy.
For The Absolute Most Awesome Batman Tattoos
Whether you decide to do the Batman symbol, the Riddler's question mark, a full-figured image of the sultry Poison Ivy, or a tattoo depicting the Justice League, you've got tons of options.
The most awesome Batman symbols, images, and caricatures can be found plastered across the web on sites like Deviant Art and anime sites. Check them out, find your image, and print out a high quality, full-color copy. Be sure to shop around for an artist before plunging in with that permanent dedication as a Batfan.
