This time I used a small old photo for a reference, instead of a blown up high resolution photo like I did the first time. But WHAT was the difference? Why did my mother’s face pop out at me right away with this one, yet was so frustratingly impossible to capture in the first? Simple. FLASH photography. For a good reference, you need natural lighting. Indoor, outdoor, doesn’t matter, but throwing a light directly into a face makes it easy for you to see, but VERY hard to get a good likeness.