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When I was in art school learning to be an illustrator we were taught to use a projector. When I traced the photos, It was my natural inclination to trace the shapes. Years later when I began working from life, I naturally went about it the same way, looking for shapes. When I discovered the Bargue plates (long before the book came out) I was amazed to see that mine was the same basic method as the academic approach used in the 19th Century.
Once I get my shapes down I find the next step for me is to garner an understanding from a structural point of view. Just getting the right part in the right place isn't really enough to convey understanding, which is the commonality I see in the work of all great masters.
I think there are many ways to skin a cat. Some people who eschew working from photos copy drawings. To me, both can effectively serve to train the eye. I think what you are doing is a valid start but we all have have a long path to traverse if painting mastery is our goal.
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