Sidetracked by this Frankenstein texturing video, which shows an earlier version of Blender’s built in texture painting tool, which also performs cloning of photos right onto the 3D model.
Finally, I’ve realized I need help. Learning on my own can be painful as software is never perfect. There are going to be pitfalls (bugs) and IRC and Blender forums can help me save time navigating known issues. Going to linger on the #blender IRC channel for a few days to get a feel for the culture, before jumping in.