Quote - Catharina Harders (Mec4D) use photographs for texture, can't you see it? Of course the easiest way to achieve photorealism is just to use a photograph.. ;)

Actually I don't think that's the case, because the lighting won't be quite right, and properly made bump/displacement maps will still be needed to make a rendered image look right. It's also quite likely that unless the rest of the image is well matched, a part with a real photo is going to stand out and/or highlight the lack of realism in the remaining image.