Painting dilemma (long). What would you do?

You need to learn to see the flaws in the body. read up on guide coats, block sanding. You can see flaws by wetting the car, and looking at the panel from an angle. It will never look right until you can see what needs work. 3K for a paint job is fair, if they are fixing problems too. The main thing with paint, I think, is if it's not coming out right, STOP! figure out what you're doing wrong before proceeding. And, why are you fixing dents with a slide hammer after the car was painted? All the body work should be done to perfection first, before you ever think about laying paint. Considering this, I personally think you need to cough up the bucks, and pay someone. Consider how much it will cost to build the spray booth, paint materials, proper bondo, time, aggravation,etc. Paint and bodywork is an art. some can do it, and some can't.