Radii, curves, consists, & modeling...

Well, you could have a "scale" 10-degree curve in O scale (radius of around 12 feet), but it would eat up an awful lot of space. I agree that it is probably impossible to create a truly to-scale panoramic scene in any space that's likely to be available. Now, if we could build a model railroad inside an entire abandoned steel mill, there might be a chance .....

In the larger scales such as O (at least in a typical room-sized home layout), the focus has to be on the trains themselves.  You would have a better chance modeling sweeping panoramas like this in HO, or especially N-scale, where the trains are only a small part of the "scene."

That being said, it seems that if you were to bring the track away from the wall in a gentle curve, and represent a partial view of the mill as a backdrop, you could have something that recreates the key elements of the photo in your imagination (and in the minds of others who are familiar with the locale.)

My $.02.

Every miniature train and layout--whether you call it toy or scale--is a series of compromises, cheats, and compressions.  Some of us are willing to accept more of those compromises, cheats, and compression than others are, but none of us can avoid them.

It is therefore quite futile to sneer at the fellow who accepts more than you do or direct sour grapes at the fellow who accepts fewer. 

I understand compromises and compressions, but what do you mean by "cheats"?  I don't think my compromised and compressed layout purports to be anything other than what it is -- a model or a toy -- therefore there are no cheats. 

As I muse further on this, each of you, B Smith, Ted Sowirka, & Palallin, has contributed interesting pertinent points. Here's another cropping of the original photo, concentrating on a couple of the long consists. They amaze me and boggle my little pea-pickin' mind.

As kids, we used to slide down that dirt hill you can see in the upper left corner, right next to that pedestrian/vehicular bridge, and watch the trains bump and bang.

B Smith posted:

I understand compromises and compressions, but what do you mean by "cheats"?  I don't think my compromised and compressed layout purports to be anything other than what it is -- a model or a toy -- therefore there are no cheats. 

One common cheat is forced perspective, a way of cheating the eye into seeing distance where little or none exists.

Another, different kind of cheat is use of electric motors in steam engines; another is the use of light bulbs to represent fire.