Not quite on topic, but I really value it when the film is shot in the place where it is set. The first episode of The Last of Us took place in Texas, but since it wasn't shot on location the trees were all wrong. Same thing with X. The article mentions films that take place in LA but are not shot there. What a waste.
Mike Myers put into words what I'd been thinking since watching Star Trek, where every outdoor scene on an "alien planet" looked similar: "You know what's remarkable? Is how much England looks in no way like Southern California." - Just my way of agreeing with you.