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I'm from Syracuse itself. I got tattooed by Sean Morgan for both of my tattoos, he did a good job. If you're into geometric designs, Nik Moore is your man though, his portfolio is really impressive. As for your complaint about not hearing back right away, that's pretty typical for the shop in my experience. I'm in the process of scheduling with Jamie Santos and I had to email her twice to get a response. The same with Sean Morgan. I don't know what the deal with that is, but I really like the shop otherwise and I'm fine with some slow communication getting in the door as long as I end up with a nice tattoo in a chill atmosphere, which is what you'll end up with if you go there :)

Hi! I just joined this site yesterday to recommend a shop to someone, but I also figured that it could be a helpful resource for me as I move forward with getting more tattoos. Currently I only have two, both on my ribs. One of them is the result of ignorance about how tattoos work and impulsively wanting a tattoo with "meaning," it's some lyrics in script across one side of my chest. The other is a big spray of flowers on the other side of my chest. I have actually just started the process of getting the lyrics covered up, I'm hoping to end up with more flowers. Not for any deep reason, simply because I like the way the flowers look and because the artist I'm going to is really talented and I really want a piece by her. Not going to post any photos of my ink because it's pretty identifiable stuff and I don't particularly want to be identified. My goal is to get my cover-up done and then start saving up for a big piece on my thigh. I'm not really into tattoos with "deep" meaning (that's what my lyric tattoo was supposed to be and I have pretty much come to hate it), I really just like the aesthetic of big, colorful, well-executed tattoos. Anyway, that's about it. I like talking about the experience of being tattooed (it's one of my favorite feelings) and to compare healing techniques, etc. Hope to talk to more people around here over time!

Hi, Tyler - I was stalking this forum for a completely different reason, but I saw your question and I had to respond. It's not often I see someone from my neck of the woods posting on a forum, so :P I highly, highly recommend Scarab Body Arts. I have had two tattoos there and the experience was awesome, the shop was insanely clean, the artist knew what he was doing, very professional. My tattoos healed perfectly, and I am actually heading back there to get another tattoo within the next couple of months. They also have an insane selection of quality jewelry if you're into body piercing, and when I had an issue with my tragus piercing that I got done in Philly, they let me just come in and one of their piercers took a look at it and gave me advice on how to make sure it healed properly. Love Scarab. I've heard mixed things about Halo. Some people have had a great experience there, some not so much. They definitely cultivate a certain image that sort of rubs me the wrong way, so I've always avoided them. I've never heard a single bad thing about Scarab, though.