wildchild

Grats to you for sticking to it and listening. Met with the criticism you could have thrown a bunch of attitude back or run away crying to the Dominican republic.
Life isn't traveled on only one rail and being able to switch tracks to get to your destination will serve you well

Thank-you so much for the advise.
Haha Thank-you!
Can I see some of your art unrelated to tattoo art? pig skin is very different from people skin, but it does help you get used to having a machine in your hand.
Sure, but keep in mind I'm still learning. Thanks for the advice on pigskin and all the other responses. I definitely will not be tattooing people for a few years, I'll just take everything in and keep improving my art skills.

since youre already into it might as well keep on going with learning. pig skin is a joke and contracts are as well. just learn what you can and if your art is worth a shit you will probably be pretty good... i hope. A dude that i work with got started the same way as you are at this little custom shop that we are bot hin now.. not having any tattoos.. he has been learning for 3 years now and is just starting to get pretty descent.. but its not a walk in place and he doent get to do the important stuff like script as much as he should.. good luck on becoming an ill custom tattooer.

well, i do think , this still takes guts, to step out from your own freakin comfort zone and just walse in a shop and be all like :'' yea i w ant to do this, will you have me?''' People should more often DO what they dream of, instead of becoming old bitter grandpas /grandmas by mid 30ies with all these unfinished business :''Ohh i wanted to be a ballerina, so i hate all this modern dancing''
Do what you feel passionate about
Believe me, if you will be reaaly bad in it, people will let you know, and will find something else.
whoop whoop!

I checked their website as well and I didn't think any of the work was atrocious , I even thought some of it was pretty good ( not my style at all though) but the lines and colour seemed pretty clean , I don't agree with the tattooing after 3 months thing but hey you're your own person and you don't have to listen to anyone, good luck for the future

Guess not. I feel like people don't have as much respect for each other as they should. There was a guy who used to tattoo at our shop and he left for a year. Now we find out that he's renting a tattoo shop a few stores down from us. I'll be honest I was kind of hoping he wouldn't pass inspection, but he did. It's not the fact that I fear of competition, I simply think that it is an asshole move.

There is no such thing as the best rose. Its not a competition, more of an appreciation, repulsion, or somewhere in between. My personal fave is Henry Goldfield, He rules the rose in SF His chest piece is a giant rose from Oakland's Shakey Jake done in the early 60's I believe. Many tattooers and their families wear Henry's roses. I don't have photos available right now , but I wear one and my wife has a 3/4 sleeve of 3 roses from Henry. When I got mine, he gave me the drawing which proudly hangs in the shop. Next to the rose it says" Dean, here's your rose. Follow the rose in life and you'll never go wrong. Good luck to you." Most of the roses I see today are very well done in a variety of styles. I like rose tattoos with a black outline made by people over 50. But hey, whatever you're into, there's room for it all.

easy, I'd pick Grime. I have a piece in progress from him and I have no room for anything else.
I'd like to have Jeff Gogue do my whole head because he's accessible to me but if I could have anyone in the world do it, it would be Filip Leu since Jeff has already tattooed me...

That's good that they had you sign a contract, hopefully that means that they're taking their end of the deal seriously too. Admirable painting volume, keep it up! That rules! I think at the end of the day, it all just comes down to you. What you want and how you go about it. I really really do wish that I had started my apprenticeship learning how to make tattoo equipment and learning how to paint well. There are no words for how much understanding your equipment and designs help your technical ability to apply a tattoo.
Well since you're in it full swing at this point, my last piece of advice is to hold off on putting needle to skin for the first year. Build up your work ethic and craft skills first.
Good luck in all of this! Really looking forward to watching you progress and contributing to the forum. Cheers!

Guess not. I feel like people don't have as much respect for each other as they should. There was a guy who used to tattoo at our shop and he left for a year. Now we find out that he's renting a tattoo shop a few stores down from us. I'll be honest I was kind of hoping he wouldn't pass inspection, but he did. It's not the fact that I fear of competition, I simply think that it is an asshole move.

I've been painting my ass off for the last three years now I'm working on flash. I normally can do three or four sheets a day. I'm just trying to improve my skill. Thank-you very much for the advice. It's definitely difficult to hear some of what you said. You definitely got me thinking... I do absolute love flash and the ideal of walk-ins and focusing on the craft.
An older tattooer gave me the same advice, don't go to the first shop that will take you. But I do honestly think that the shop will teach me the right way, not sure if I'm sure right or just too dam hungry. But I do know that I'm going to be with this shop for at least a year, I signed a contract and made a commitment to the owner. They treat me like family and the head tattooer is pretty amazing. The other two apprentices there do amazing work too.

http://www.lastsparrowtattoo.com/forum/tattoo-101/1733-inkmasters.html
I am actually watching it now simply out of boredom. I personaly think it is pretty terrible, but not far off of what I expected. Over dramaed TV garbage. The only part that really got to me a bit was that all the tattoo artists competing were more excited that the rock dude was there over the other tattoo artists, especially Oliver. Being someone who was actually a part of a MTV production (Spike is close enough) I know they purpously go o out of their way to get these "personalities", hence the reason why the piliot I was a part of got dropped.
We shall see if it get any better. (Oh yea and timed tattoos are kinda stupid, artwork should not be rushed in my opinion).

Welcome to LST! So my apprenticeship experience was not too different from what it sounds like you're about to get yourself into. Solid advice: jump ship now, get like 10-20 more tattoos, paint your ass off, and try a better shop. Ideally, a street shop with walk-ins, tons of flash, and artists versed in several styles who do large and small work on a regular basis. I understand that this is rough advice to hear, but I can guarantee that you will have a much easier and much more fun time in your tattoo journey if you take that advice. I fully get what it's like to be young and hungry for it(still am), but you will benefit tenfold throughout the rest of your life if you start out the right way with the right information at your foundations.
Or you can do what I did, which is apprentice at the first shop that will take you, start tattooing right away, fuck a lot of people up, not learn shit about your craft, leave half way through your apprenticeship, and then get another job at whatever shop will take you as you figure out how you're going to get good information and further yourself on your own.
In the end, whatever you choose to do, it is all going to be difficult. What it mostly comes down to is are you willing to spend the time right now to learn the right way, or do you want to spend the next 5-10 years unlearning what you've been taught and figuring out what's what. Having someone tell you that they will teach you how to tattoo is the most exciting thing in the world! The fact remains that the time spent in a shop for 2 tattoos is not enough time to let you know if it's really something you're ready to be a part of for the rest of your life.
Anyway.. sorry for being so preachy. You will decide what's best for you and your life. I wish you the best of luck on this incredible journey that is tattooing and getting tattooed.

This.
Welcome to the site though, and best of luck to ya!