Some people view tattooing as a craft, some as a trade, some as an art.  They are all correct. It is all of these things and more.  It’s challenging, it's frustrating, it’s rewarding, it is a way of life. Getting a tattoo is a lifelong commitment, Becoming a tattooer is as well.  It will take you the rest of your life to master it and as soon as you think you have it figured out there is another aspect that you have to learn.  The beginning is the biggest learning curve and an apprenticeship is the traditional and most widely accepted process for learning. But how does this work?   If you commit to learning to tattoo, you commit to a relationship with a mentor that could last years. This is not a process that happens overnight.  Expect a two to three year time commitment to get to the point where you can make a decent living doing tattoos (of course its possible for this to happen faster) and a possible additional commitment to remain at the studio you learned at for another couple of years as well.