Murphy came to tattooing through his work as an airbrush artist when he was a teenager. While glimpses of his past can been seen in his tattoos, he mainly works in black-and-gray and photorealism—of the latter he describes himself as a “ninja duplicator.”

Little Mike makes up for his diminutive status with a large, funny, and sarcastic character (his friends affectionately refer to him as BLB: Belligerent Little Bastard). Similarly, his designs are big and bold with thick, sculpted lines and exaggerated highlights that make his tattoos pop.

The dreaded cover-up tattoo doesn’t make Jones nervous; rather, she shines in correcting scratchers’ mistakes. Her tattoos are often bright, colorful, and pinuppy. The badass mom has a big cheering section outside tattooing, made up of her seven kids and her roller derby team.

Matthews is a self-taught artist who respects the styles of traditional Japanese and American ink. Don’t expect him to back down from competition: He’s also a professional mixed martial arts fighter who will go toe-to-toe with anyone trying to take the title he thinks he should rightfully own.

Miller comes with a different outlook on tattooing. After having worked with numerous design firms on branding campaigns, she quit her thriving graphic de- sign and illustration career in order to ink. She aims to expand the medium and push the boundaries of what is considered tattoo art with her illustrative work.