Freeman began teaching photography and visual design in the early 1960's, primarily to small groups. His knowledge and presentation skills soon attracted notice, and by the early 1970's the demand for his instructional programs enabled him (with a teaching partner and staff) to establish a workshop program at Shampers Bluff. Eight ten-day courses were offered the first year, and all of them sold out (15 persons per course). He continued the program at Shampers Bluff for five years, then shifted its location to Grand Manan, later to Gagetown, and back to Shampers Bluff again in 1990. From the beginning participants came from all over North America, and from Europe, Africa, and Australia. In recent years the number of photographers from the Maritime provinces attending these courses has increased substantially.

Freeman made several visits to Africa between 1967 and 1983, three of them at the request of the Photographic Society of Southern Africa. As a result of these contacts and others, he co-founded (with Colla Swart) the Namaqualand Photographic Workshops in 1984, and travels to the desert village of Kamieskroon once or twice every year to teach three or four week-long workshops. This project has expanded so rapidly that Freeman now works with several other instructors and no longer participates in every program. Freeman has also given numerous, week-long workshops in the United States, New Zealand, and Israel and has completed lecture tours in the United Kingdom, South Africa and Australia.

Every year from 1973 to the present Freeman has received a large number of invitations to give teaching programs or all-day seminars to photographic groups, art institutions, and other educational groups and bodies. A very short list of those he has accepted includes invitations from the National Ballet of Canada school, the Music Teachers of Nova Scotia, the Canadian Society of Art Educators, the Science Teachers of Ontario Association, the Canadian Nature Federation, the University of Canterbury (New Zealand), the University of Utah, the Maine Photographic Workshops, Images Alberta, the National Association For Photographic Art, the Photographic Society of America, the North American Nature Photography Association, and the Photographic Society of Southern Africa.