Can you give our readers a little tattoo history about yourself and your background?

I fell in love with art, especially tattooing from a young age. I remember one day, watching my dad get tattooed and that was it, I knew I wanted to be a tattoo artist. I wanted people to have my artwork on their skin for the rest of their life. That really intrigued me. After that I dreamt of being a tattoo artist and I knew I would work my arse off to turn this dream into reality.

As a kid, what type of stuff did you draw and what art were you inspired by and why?

As a kid I always found myself drawing and painting, I used to draw everything from skulls, roses, animals and cartoons like Dragon Ball Z and Pokémon. I was forever drawing these in the sides of school books when I should have been working.

What was the first tattoo you ever inked and how much do you feel you have either improved or learnt over the years.

The first tattoo I ever did was a skull on my leg in my bedroom, not a good idea at all. From the skull I have improved heaps, learning through watching and talking to other tattooists, research and basic trial. I firmly believe that you never stop learning and I continue to further refine my skills every day.

Was there a particular style you picked up straight away or did you experiment a lot to find your niche. How do you describe your style and where do you feel it fits in industry?

I always find myself striving for more detail in my work, I love a challenge and early on I knew I wanted to focus on realism. I used to struggle with portraits and colour realism through practice but with further refinement of my artistic skills, I now confidently tattoo these on a regular basis. In saying that I also want to be as versatile as possible and capable of tattooing anything that walks through the door.

Depending on the concept you are working on do you go to your reference photos and design from there or are you more working freehand from a design in your head?

Focusing on realism requires good quality reference photos which are used to make the design. However, I do add some freehand elements depending on the design of the tattoo.

Can you please describe how you go about creating a tattoo concept to finished design?

I like to sit down with my clients and design their tattoos together, this gives me the chance to see how the design will flow with the body and also incorporate their ideas. I can then create a design that both fits and flows with the body, giving the client the best result.

Do you sometimes choose your clients by their own ideas?

It has crossed my mind a few times, however at the end of the day I see it as free advertisement for the subject and fan art for the client. For example Xbox utilised this to their advantage knowing there are a heap of Gears of War fans with logos and themed tattoos. So they created an event which I was lucky enough to be a part of, named ‘Gears of Ink’ to launch their latest game at the time, and live streamed Tattoo Artists around the world tattooing a Gears of War themed tattoo on a fan.

The detail in your art is incredible, do you sometimes pinch yourself when looking back at your earlier work and how far you have evolved over the years as an artist?

To a degree I definitely do, it is crazy to look back on how far my work has come and I can’t wait to see what the future holds. I feel like we never stop learning and as you have the drive, you will continue to progress and grow.

What artists have you looked up to over the years and how have they inspired you?

I feel that there are so many artists it would be hard to name them all, we would be here all day listing them. As a community there are so many talented artists that I am inspired by every day.

Where did you end up doing your apprenticeship and when did you join the team of InkInSkin Tattoo?

I have spent quite a bit of time with different people in the industry, I am lucky to have been influenced by many different artists helping me grow. I have now settled with the InkInSkin family for about a year now.

How did it feel being part of their team and how have you grown as an artist from it?

Being a part of the InkInSkin family is amazing. It goes beyond tattooing and work. We are a family and would go above and beyond for each other. Having that closeness at work is great, we all bounce of each other and the atmosphere is second to none.

Have there been any designs a client has brought to you that you have knocked back or changed it to more suit a colour scheme or skin tones?

Yes; there has, it’s not that will refuse to do the tattoo, I will always explain how the design might not work with the flow of the body or if the tattoo will not heal well. I can then work with the client to come up with something that works better.

Tell us the story of your most complicated and challenging tattoo you have done, please describe the tattoo detail including how many sessions were needed.

It’s hard to pin down a single tattoo that has been the most complicated and challenging. I would have to say that cover ups are always a challenge, coming up with the right design to flow with the body and also cover the tattoo. However, these are always the most interesting as I love a challenge and am always looking to better my best.