Hi res photography is the key to a photo real pipeline. I used to be against the concept of using photography to "paint" textures, but I have dicsovered it's the best solution for creating a high res character. We need to accept that textures are the key to a high quality look. Procedural shaders and complicated material nodes do not look as good as high res textures. We need to look past the technical solutions and look towards the artistic outcome....the BEAUTY of a photo real character.