I will NOT freehand:

Pieces with lots of components
Things involving geometric shapes (unless it’s a circle)
Technical designs like objects or things that need to look exactly like the subject/photograph

I love to Freehand:

Large pieces

Plants and flowers and mushrooms
Animals!
Working around other tattoos (fillers)
Organic shapes, flow-y designs

Some Freehand Process Photos!

I often do a concept sketch ahead of time (usually day of).

This one is a combo of stencil (fern) and drawn on (flower).

No sketch, just drawn on!

Most floral stuff I will have a reference photo on hand, but I’ve done so much like this it’s how I prefer to do all floral/plant work these days!