Plan the look. Ryan creates many different designs and gets inspiration from nature and movies (like The Nightmare Before Christmas). Get your own inspiration (a tree or Martian maybe) and try out your look on paper. Remember, Ryan's makeup focuses on the eyes.
Get the right products. Stage makeup lines like Ben Nye, Kryolan or Mehron are best to recreate his look. If you can't afford these professional lines, MAC has good theatrical-like colors and products. Also, liquid eyeliner may be harder to use when drawing designs around your eyes, but it lasts much longer than pencil liner.
Use the right colors. Ryan uses mostly black, red and green for his looks, which include bat themes and spidery tree branches.
Paint on the base mask with a professional grade colored pan makeup. Though there are different themes Ryan uses, many start with a base from temple to temple in an inch and a half wide strip. With fingers or a sponge, spread a thick layer of pan makeup across the top of your face, going a little above and below the eyes and across your nose.
Choose a pattern and design to draw on top of the base portion. For example, to create a wing-tipped look draw dramatic wingsaround your eye with black liquid eyeliner, on top of your painted area.
Research Ryan Ross to get ideas for his many stage looks. Find concert footage or magazine photos of his costume makeup and recreate them.