White tattoo pigments contain zinc or titanium oxides, similar to the particles used in sunscreens.

White pigments often turn dark gray when they are treated with a Q-switched laser and then can be difficult or impossible to get out-meaning lots of treatments to remove them.

The problem with white pigments (or tan ‘cosmetic’ make-up tattoos, often including lip-liner, eye liner or eyebrow tattoos) is that they can be hidden within tattoos, and only visible using a special head lamp or on close examination.

Clues that there is a lot of white pigment within a tattoo are light blue, green or purple (light green/blue/purple is usually made by mixing those pigments with white ink), and white in the eye of a character or some small area of a tattoo which may be a hint that it’s present all over a tattoo to lighten the colors.