Japanese tattoo ideas

839 photos and flash · Upper arm most common

What will it cost? Try the tattoo cost calculator
Full back tattoo of a colourful phoenix with roses, cherry blossom and wave motifs in Japanese style, shown on the back of a person with dark hair.
Phoenix and roses across a full back
Neo-traditional skull tattoo with pink, teal and yellow shading, a cigarette in its teeth and a smoke scroll on black, on the forearm.
Gradient skull smoking a cigarette on a forearm
Black and white photo of a man seen from behind, showing a large Japanese style back tattoo of an eagle, waves and clouds, with script lettering and tattoos on his upper arms and forearms.
Full back piece with eagle and waves
Two hands with a colour nautical star on the back of one hand, LOVE on the knuckles, and Japanese-style dragon and koi tattoos on the arms and legs behind them.
Nautical star and Japanese sleeve on hands
Full arm sleeve tattoo of a koi carp with chrysanthemums and clouds in Japanese style, shown from three angles on an upper arm.
Koi and chrysanthemum arm sleeve
Black line drawing of a snarling cat with a scaled body, clawed paws and blossom flowers, in a Japanese style tattoo design.
Snarling cat with scales and flowers
Colour tattoo of a kokeshi doll in a teal kimono with pink cherry blossoms on a person's upper back.
Kokeshi doll and blossoms on upper back
Three-panel photo of a black linework wave tattoo covering a shoulder and upper arm, in a fine line style with Japanese-inspired curling waves.
Stylised wave tattoo across shoulder and upper arm
Pink cherry blossom branch tattoo with black outlines wrapping over the shoulder and upper arm.
Cherry blossom branch on a shoulder
Colour tattoo of a cherry blossom branch with pink flowers and black and grey limbs, wrapping across the upper arm in a Japanese-inspired style.
Cherry blossom branch across an upper arm
Neo-traditional tattoo of a black cat with green eyes and a pink tongue, surrounded by cherry blossoms, on an upper arm.
Black cat and cherry blossoms
Blue line drawing of a symmetrical panda face flanked by two koi fish and lotus flowers, in a dotwork and Japanese-influenced style, shown as a tattoo design on a cream background.
Symmetrical panda with koi and lotus
Pen and coloured pencil drawing of two koi fish circling a blue circle filled with white swirls and water splashes, a tattoo design with no body placement shown.
Two koi fish around a swirling wave circle
Full back tattoo of a colourful Japanese-style phoenix with flowing feathers wrapping around the back and side of the body.
Colourful phoenix back piece
Flash sheet of bold black Japanese-style dragons and kanji characters labelled wealth, wisdom and love, with small red accents.
Dragons and kanji flash sheet
Black and grey Japanese style phoenix full sleeve tattoo covering the shoulder, upper arm and forearm, shown in three side-by-side photographs.
Phoenix full arm sleeve
Black and grey realism tattoo of a geisha with a lotus flower and a butterfly on the upper arm and shoulder.
Geisha portrait with lotus on upper arm
Design of a skull in a samurai helmet with crossed katana, pink flowers and an oni mask, in a Japanese style.
Samurai skull with katanas and flowers
Black and grey peony and botanical tattoo covering the lower legs from the knee to the ankle, shown on both legs in a Japanese-influenced floral style.
Peony and flower leg sleeve on both legs
Two-panel image: above, a healing raised scar on skin; below, a red and black cherry blossom branch tattoo on the shoulder covering that area.
Cherry blossom branch over a scar
Back view of a woman with a full Japanese-style back tattoo showing a geisha in a kimono, cherry blossom and a lantern, against a pink wall.
Japanese geisha back piece with cherry blossom
Colour Japanese style sleeve tattoo on an upper arm and shoulder, with orange tiger lilies, purple flowers, green leaves and grey waves.
Lily and waves sleeve tattoo
Fine black linework and blue-green wash form a curling wave tattoo on an upper arm, with small dark marks above it.
Blue-green wave tattoo on an upper arm
Japanese style fish tattoo with red scales and black linework on a calf, with a black paisley sneaker resting on a metal rail.
Fish tattoo on a calf
Black ink line drawing of a koi fish swimming upward, with detailed scale pattern and fins, in Japanese tattoo flash style, with no body placement shown.
Koi fish line drawing design
Back view of a woman with a full Japanese style back tattoo of a geisha among flowers, with tattooed sleeves on both arms.
Full back Japanese geisha piece with sleeves
A man with full-body Japanese style tattoos in green, red and cream, showing a koi fish and peony flowers on the torso and arms, with his hands clasped in front of white underwear.
Japanese koi and peony tattoos on torso and arms
Pen drawing of a tattoo design on a woman's torso in a bikini, showing a Japanese style dragon and mermaid along the ribs and hip.
Dragon and mermaid design on a torso
A leg resting in a green bath shows a colour floral tattoo sleeve of red peonies, pink roses and dark leaves on the calf and thigh.
Floral leg sleeve with peonies and roses
A colourful Japanese-style tattoo sleeve covering a leg from thigh to calf, with a yellow creature, a red fish and green clouds.
Colourful Japanese-style leg sleeve
Black and grey circular tattoo of stylised sea waves with hatched linework on the inner forearm.
Circular waves on a forearm
Black line drawing of a coiling Eastern dragon with swirling clouds, in a Japanese-influenced style, shown on a white background.
Eastern dragon with swirling clouds
Pencil sketch of a woman with eyes closed and a bonsai pine tattoo design across her shoulder and upper arm, drawn in a Japanese-inspired style.
Woman with bonsai pine tattoo design, pencil sketch
Full body suit design of a red Japanese dragon with yellow claws, chrysanthemums and clouds across the back, arms and thighs.
Red dragon full body suit design
Two arms show black and grey full sleeve tattoos with a samurai warrior and skull on the left arm and ravens, swords and a skull on the right, both covering the upper arm and forearm.
Samurai and skull full sleeves
Black and grey Japanese-style tattoos of clouds and swirls cover both calves, with orange canvas trainers on a wooden floor.
Japanese-style leg tattoos on calves
Two large cat tattoos on a pair of calves, a colour tiger on the left leg and a black panther on the right, both in a bold Japanese and traditional style.
Tiger and panther on the calves
Back tattoo of a red cherry blossom branch running from the shoulder down the spine and onto the upper arm, with dark branches and soft shading.
Cherry blossom branch down a back
Black and grey Japanese-style wave tattoo inside an inverted triangle on the forearm, with fine outlines and shaded water.
Wave inside an inverted triangle on a forearm
Coloured Japanese-style dragon tattoo with red cherry blossoms across the upper back, with a small set of symbols to the right.
Dragon and cherry blossoms across a back
Japanese style full sleeve tattoo of a purple octopus with pink suckers and grey waves across the shoulder and upper arm, with a green anchor near the lower arm.
Octopus and waves full sleeve
Two forearms lie side by side on white bedding, one with a black koi fish tattoo and the other with a red koi fish tattoo, both in a brush-like Japanese style.
Black and red koi tattoos on forearms
Black brush-ink enso circle with a stylised lotus flower inside it on a grey background, drawn as a possible tattoo design.
Enso circle with lotus flower
Black and grey Japanese style leg sleeve on a seated person, with a hannya mask on the calf and a scaled creature with fangs across the thigh.
Hannya mask and clouds leg sleeve
Colour Japanese style tattoo of a maneki-neko lucky cat with a red bell and pink cherry blossoms on a calf.
Maneki-neko lucky cat and cherry blossoms on a calf
Black and grey Japanese style tattoo of a mermaid with cherry blossoms and swirling waves on the upper arm.
Mermaid with blossoms and waves on upper arm
Woman's arm with a colourful Japanese-style sleeve tattoo showing a red peony, a female figure and blue swirls, photographed in a mirror selfie.
Japanese-style sleeve with rose and figure
Bare back with a colour Japanese tattoo of a cherry blossom branch over the shoulder and upper back, and koi fish among grey pebbles on the lower back.
Cherry blossom and koi across a back