Just take a look at [this picture](https://www.looksmartmodels.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/lamborghini-huracan-performante-spyder_03.jpg), you can tell immediately that its a model car even though there is nothing in the picture to compare its size to. My guess is that the paint isn’t authentic to our eyes, but are there other reasons as well?
In: 980
My guess is that it has all the traits of what we recognize to be a model car. That’s something like a Matchbox car, and as children we notice that the little cars we play with lack the same amount of detail. Between that, and knowing how light looks at this scale, we can figure out that it’s a model car.
That being said, some very thin paint, a lot of attention to detail, and subtle lighting changes can make some models seem [quite convincing](http://speedhunters-wp-production.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/2004_0228_023410AA.jpg).
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