It's always beneficial to research an "artist" in the industry, as there is no quality control. Some people like to get tattooed by their friends regardless of the outcome and that's respectable in the sense that it is a personal decision and art is subjective. After getting my first tattoo I compared it to others on my friends and realized it could look better. Still being under the assumption that going to a tattoo shop meant a "professional" piece would be done I had it worked over. Disappointed again, understanding I hadn't figured it out the first time, I researched artists before having any thing else done. This was in '93, before the power of google. It's nice to not have to pay for the same tattoo 3 times. On a humorous note, when looking for Sean Degan in San Antonio at Perfection Tattoo in '94 to get something done well, I didn't know who Chris Trevino was. Because I didn't know who he was, and my previous disappoints, when he told me he had time to do my tattoo I told him, "that's okay, I'll wait for Sean, but thanks." haha!