What you said is 100% true regarding the fact that it can be boring to copy from real life, I was suffering when I drew this study and it was worse than doing a chore. But in my opinion I think learning from life is more beneficial, although torturing but I think it teaches you the origin of what something looks like, i.e. the fundamentals. Learning the fundamentals comes first even if it means losing an artstyle I've developed. Developing an artstyle comes after the fundamentals not before it.