Animals are more forgiving than a human face: a tiger has to look like a tiger, not like one specific tiger.
Fur is the part that separates a good animal piece from a flat one. It is built in layers of grey in the direction the coat actually grows, not drawn as strokes.
A tiger head on a thigh took eight hours in one sitting. Bigger cats with a background take more, and a full back animal is a multi session project.
Yes. Send a sharp photo taken at the animal's eye level in good light. Photos taken from above are the most common reason a pet portrait does not look like the pet.
Layers of grey following the direction the coat grows, with the contrast concentrated where the light actually breaks. Drawn strokes read as drawn.
Either works. Both have strong shapes and enough contrast to still read clearly once the tattoo has settled.
Requests go straight to Federico, not to an agency inbox. He answers from his own address.