Hong Kong’s tourism industry brings in about $37 billion in revenue for the city each year, and many of the tourists who contribute want to get a picture with the beautiful Hong Kong skyline and Victoria Harbor in the background while they’re there.

But what are they supposed to do if their only chance to get that shot is on a hazy/smoggy day in Hong Kong? The government has the answer: giant fake skyline banners.

As you can see in these pictures, the plot seems to be working. Given no visually appealing alternative, tourists will pose in front of the tarp skyline and pretend they’re enjoying a sunny day on Victoria Harbor.

As long as the shot is framed right and you don’t happen to catch any of those obvious creases and cut-offs, you may even manage to fool your Facebook friends:

As you can see, not everyone is playing along. Some see it as a better photo-op to get a picture with both the tarp and the regular murky skyline, which might make for a more interesting composition.

The photos were taken by Hong Kong-based photojournalist Alex Hofford for ChinaFotoPress. To see more of Hofford’s work (including a beautiful shot of the actual skyline … or maybe it’s just a really good sunset fake) head over to his website by clicking here.

(via The Atlantic)

Image credits: Photographs by Alex Hofford and used with permission.