Portfolio
Healed realism tattoos
How Dylan’s realism looks once it has settled: photographed weeks, months and years after the session, not just on the day.
Healed and fresh, side by side
The carnival back piece
One pass on a clown back piece, filmed half healed and half fresh.
The timeline
From the chair to years later.
Day one
Fresh
Red, shiny and a little swollen. It looks darker and slightly blurred.
Weeks one to four
Healing
It flakes and can look cloudy or patchy. That's normal: don't pick or scratch.
About eight weeks
Settled
The contrast is back. Time for a healed photo in natural light.
Years on
For life
Sunscreen and moisturiser keep the blacks solid and the highlights bright.
More in fresh vs healed, the aftercare guide and realism that lasts.
Why it matters
Fresh photos only tell half the story.
Any tattoo looks good in a photo straight after the session. Healed photos show whether the work was put in properly: whether the blacks stayed solid, the grey wash stayed smooth and the highlights stayed bright once the skin settled.
That’s why Dylan asks every client for a healed photo, and why this page exists.
Healed one of Dylan's pieces?
Send a healed photo.
Eight weeks after your session or ten years later, take a photo in natural daylight, straight on and without a filter. Send it to Dylan with roughly when it was tattooed, and it may end up on this page.
Questions
Common questions
Fresh skin is inflamed and holds extra ink and plasma near the surface. As it heals, the top layer flakes away and the true contrast shows through.
Most tattoos look healed on the surface after two to four weeks, but the skin keeps settling for a couple of months. Send Dylan a healed photo at around eight weeks.
All tattoos soften over many years, but realism designed with strong contrast and looked after with sunscreen holds up well. The blacks keep the composition together.
Send a clear photo in natural light once it has settled. [Dylan: touch-up policy.]
Healing and aftercare
Have a piece in mind?
Books open a few times a year. The waitlist hears first.