I like Sarah Schor's work, she's definitely on my list. I actually saw an owl head on this site done by Stefan Johnsson which is pretty much what I'm looking for with some minor changes. Thanks again for the replies.
Thanks for all the replies. I'm pretty familiar with local tattoo artists but I'm always open for more suggestions. I'm in CT but always willing to travel a couple of hours if needed. Obviously NY is loaded with good traditional style artists but not as many do the newer traditional I think. I've thought about Erick Lynch in Mass ans Justin Weatherholz in NY. I may go with an owl head but since my arms get a LOT of sun I wanted to stay away from real bright colors because I down't want them to fade. I thought about keeping darker colors and maybe some black and reds to match the german eagle above.