Cars spoiling pictures of ancient surroundings

I used to do the odd wedding, and cloning became a real friend. One good example was during the signing of the register, when the groom kept blinking and realising this, I shot off a volley of shots, and yes, would you believe it, the only decent shot of the groom not gurning or with closed eyes had the bride looking decidedly odd. So, I used his "good" head and replaced one of his bad ones leaving the happy couple looking both attractive and very happy. It truly was impossible to detect, but a purist would probably dismiss my editing as blatant deception. 

At another wedding where I was a close friend of the family of the bride I cloned myself onto the group shot. Nobody ever remarked on it.  

Thanks Paul. 

Sorry I have not been able to get on for some time.

Cloning, manipulation, dodging and burning and any other type of enhancement to a shot has always been present it is just a case of it has become easier with software like PS. You do not need the skill it took in a darkroom. Things move on and it is not always liked by all or takes time to be excepted. Remember when auto focus appeared, what did you think about that? Modern mirrorless with eye detect, live view so you can see what you are going to get and image stabilisation are not to everyone’s taste but they are here and at some stage will be looked on as old technology that people reminisce over.

Back to the original topic. Does it not depend on what car is parked in your composition? Would you rather have a Silver Shadow in an old street shot rather than a modern Ford or a bright green Lambo? 

I agree with you, Darrell. I think it does depend on the model of car, and also the number of cars in the scene. A row of ordinary cars (all looking very similar) parked nose to tail in an ancient thoroughfare is unlikely to make a pleasing image, whereas a single classic car parked in a similar setting might be very much more appealing.

I also agree with Rod's sentiments about the technical improvements in cameras and lenses. There is little excuse for wrongly exposed or out-of-focus images these days. The skill comes in having an eye for composition, lighting, and being in the right place at the right time.