You most definitely need stabilizer. Non woven is better than woven.
If you can hoop your material very tightly you can sometime get away without using stabilizer. I've done it but the draw back is you are hampered by the size of the throat of your machine and have to keep rehooping. I usually start with a cloth cartoon, though some draw the outline on their material. There is no reason a photo print wouldn't work.
Go for it!
MaryKatherine