Hi, I've been practicing digital painting and consuming a lot of information. I've stumbled upon a lot of comments about how people use references. I'm curious if anyone knows the general culture around using references as a professional. I've read instances where a photo of a building for example is pasted into photoshop. Some windows were added, a new door etc. The details of the bricks in some areas, and other things, remained intact from the original photo. Normally I draw from memory or with the reference to the side and practice until I get it right free-hand. I think my work would improve greatly if I traced, or sampled colors/textures from photos. What's the general culture around this in a professional setting? After learning more about how commonly references are loosely traced, colors/textures sampled etc. it puts some of the paintings that I felt like I could never do into a realm that seems a bit easier to reach than what I originally thought.