Unfortunatly, this is the only way to edit a picture so that the ground matches between the two planes.  In Irfanview, how in the world do I crop just the plane so I can insert it into another picture?

Well I'll be damned! He made one! Good for you, M8! Don't worry, there are plenty of guys here who can answer your questions! 

Irfanview doesn't have the capability to do a cutout, M8! You can only do "global" editing with it. You can't select specific areas to modify and you can't work with layers. You can only tweak things which affect the entire image all at once.

That said, don't be discouraged! You can really do a lot with it and you can have a major impact on an image. It's also a good way to get grounded in some of the basics before moving on to a more complex editor.

You know, things like contrast, gamma, brightness, color balance and saturation are all quite important to learn to work with. In addition, Irfanview has quite a fewl filters now. Ya gotta learn that stuff some time so you might as well start now! 

Here's a tip. Spend a lot of time setting up the capture and THEN you will have something to work with where Irfanview can have a big impact. What do I mean by "setting up the capture"? Whatever sim you are working with, learn to use the lighting in it! Dawn, dusk, night, diffuse cloud cover, etc.. Fly the plane around in different directions until you see some lighting that you like! When you see something interesting, pause the sim. Move your view around the plane and look for something juicey!

You can use time of day to get nice colors and dramatic highlights and then "accentuate the positive" using Irfanview. You can get dramatic backlighting! Don't forget about nav lights and landing lights! They can really add a lot of punch to an image.

Look at Eno's most recent image and how he used the moon and lights in it!

If you get onto setting up for a good capture, that will stay with you and give you a big advantage when you start working with a more complex editor. The basics don't change. Learn to set up a good shot so that you don't have a big hill to climb! Set things up so that the sim itself does the basic work for you. I've always used time of day, weather, etc., in the sim as a form of editing! It works! You can make some really killer, dramatic images that way!

Great job, M8! Keep on keeping on! There are plenty of guys who really know their stuff here so take advantage of that. In no time at all you'll be making masterpieces! 

You know, M8, you can do a lot with just one plane. Again, look at Eno's most recent offering. Just one plane and it's a killer image!