Style reference photograph of a floral tattoo. This is not student work.
Home — Student Work
— GALLERY / STUDENT WORK —
Student Work Gallery
Fine line progress shows up in stages. First the practice sheet, then the design page, then the healed piece. Student work from our Melbourne academy will be shown in these three stages as students choose to share it, so you can follow how a steady line builds towards finished tattoos.
— 01 / THREE STAGES —
What the gallery shows
Each piece will be filed under the stage it belongs to. A drill sheet isn’t judged like a healed tattoo, and a design study isn’t judged like a line on skin. Each stage shows a different skill.
STAGE A
Line drills
Rows of straight lines, curves, circles and tapers on practice skin. Drill sheets show whether line weight holds steady and whether starts and stops stay clean.
STAGE B
Design studies
Sketches, stencils and placement plans. Design studies show composition and scale, and whether the detail is spaced to stay readable once the lines settle into skin.
STAGE C
Healed fine line pieces
Finished tattoos photographed after healing. This is the real test of fine line work: whether lines stay crisp and the spacing between them stays open over time.
— 02 / READING THE WORK —
Reference photograph above: a botanical design sketched on paper
What to look for in fine line work
— Even weight. A single line should look the same thickness from one end to the other, with no swelling at curves or corners.
— Clean starts and stops. No blobs where the needle went in and no dragged tails where it lifted out.
— Open spacing. Small detail needs room between the lines, or it can blur together as the tattoo heals.
— Placement that follows the body. The design should suit the shape and movement of the area it sits on.
— Fresh compared with healed. Fresh work always looks sharp. Healed photos show whether the technique really held.
For more on these standards, read How to Pull Clean Tattoo Line Work and Essential Fine Line Tattoo Techniques, or see how needle choice shapes the line in Needle & Technique Training.
— 03 / CONSENT —
Shared with permission
Student work belongs to the student. A piece will appear here only when the student chooses to share it, and any tattoo on skin will also need the permission of the person wearing it.
Pieces will be shared with the focus on the work itself, keeping faces and identifying details out of frame. If you ever appear in an image and want it removed, send a request through the contact page.
— WHAT EACH ENTRY WILL TELL YOU —
— The stage: drill, design study or healed piece
— The subject, in plain words, such as a single-line botanical stem
— Where it sits on the body, for pieces on skin
— The related course, so you can see the training behind it
With these details beside each piece, you’ll be able to compare work at the same stage and find the course that teaches the skill you want to build.
— 04 / BEHIND THE WORK —
Measure your next step.
Every piece shared in this gallery will come from one of our courses. Find the one that matches where your own line is now, then send an enquiry to start.
02 Beginner Fine Line Tattoo Course
03 Advanced Fine Line Training
04 Fine Line Tattoo Design Course
06 Needle & Technique Training
Not sure where to begin? Read How to Choose a Tattoo Course, meet our trainers or ask a question through the contact page.