Yep, that's the tough part. You have to know ahead of time what shape you want. For camoflauge it isn't too difficult because pretty much anything close will work!
Frisket is very handy for that. It is available at most art supply stores. It comes in sheets and is translucent and self adhesive. You can lay it down (just don't pull the adhesive backing off), temporarily tape it in place, trace what you need, pull it back up, and cut the pattern out.