Planet Tutorial [GIMP **]

[ZeldaMaster#1#1]

There are three type's of planets in the universe. Oceanic, Rocky, and Gaseous. There are three types of planets you can make in GIMP. This is a tutorial on how to make them all!!!


Note: If you don't like reading a lot, use the links below for a tutorial with images

Oceanic Planet Tutorial-ZM#1#1

Rocky Planet Tutorial

Gaseous Planet Tutorial

Final Tutorial- Spherifying

Part 1/4

Oceanic Planet
Make it like Earth with water and land, and depth!!!

OK, start out with a 1000x500 pixel canvas. If it doesn't fit your size, use a canvas with the same aspect ratio. (EX: 500x250, or 2000x1000). It's a plain white canvas. To get a feel of actual land in the canvas, we first have to add a gradient.
Go to Filters>Renders>Solid Noise. Set the setting as:

X Size: 6.0
Y Size: 4.0
Detail: 15
Make it tileable.

You have your gradient on now. Leave this alone for now. Go to Colors>Brightness/Contrast. Put contrast up all the way. Mess with the brightness until you're satisfied with it. You should have black blotches on a black white background.
Take a pencil tool and make it white. Use it on the top and bottom to get rid of the black blotches around the top and bottom. These are your poles for your planet.
Add an Alpha Channel. Layer>Transparency>Add Alpha Channel
Ok you can take a small break....................................


Break is over!
Starting from your black blotches, on white, we will add water. Since you added an Alpha Channel you can take your Color Picker (Select) tool. Click on a white area and Clear it. Edit>Clear It should have black blotches on a transparent background. With the Color Select tool, click on a black blotch. Now it is essential that you did not use a filter between the gradient layer and now. Press Ctrl+A to get the black filled with that gradient. Time for land. Now, go to Colors>Colorize Change the color to a color of your choice. I picked green, because it's land! Go to Filter>Map>Bump Map
Ok, for beginners use these settings:

Azimuth: 135.00
Elevation:29.14
Depth: 47
X offset:0
Y offset:0
Waterlevel:0
Ambient:122

For experienced users, set them to how you like 'em. Click OK.

Now shrink the selection. DO NOT SHRINK FROM THE BORDER.
To do this go to: Select>Shrink and by 1 Px. Uncheck the box labeled: Shrink from \
border.
Inverting time! Select>Invert. Press Ctrl+K and invert it again.
Using the Color Select tool, again, get a color for your transparent part of the image. This will be your water or whatever you want there. Edit> Fill with FG color.
Save your image and go to part 4/4!

(I will add each part when I'm done typing them all up) *at mods*

Rocky Planets

These planets are much simpler. It probably only requires 5-10 minutes to make.

Same size, use the aspect ratio thing.
Do the same Solid Noise as the first tutorial, with the same settings.
Change the color to a better color, gray is boring... (Colors>Colorize)
Filters>Bump Map. Use the same values as part 1/4.

That was pretty quick, eh? Simple too. 2/4 is finished.


EDIT: I might as well make 3/4 here, to not triple post. =P

Gaseous Planets

Though a Rocky Planet was simple? This is even simpler!

Same canvas size, use aspect ratio. (1000x500).
Get a gradient tool with jillions of lines. Flare Rays size 1 is good for an example.
Set it to Bilinear and drag from the middle of the canvas (use the X,Y indicator if you need go), all the way to the top. Shift+Ctrl might help also.
Colorize it and change it to your color.

Save. Reason that you did is this tutorial has two parts. The second part is optional because you can have storms/turbulence or none at all.

Optional:

Filters>Distorts>IWarp (Not iPod) And use a Swirl CW to make little turbulence. Every so often use the Swirl CWW to change the "wind" direction. This takes awhile. (Grab a pizza while your at it =P)
Filters>Map>Bump Map With these values:

Azimuth: 135.00
Elevation: 49.32
Depth: 4.00
X offset: 0
Y offset: 0
Waterlevel: 0
Ambient: 122

You can always change them if you know what you're doing.
Press Ctrl+F and save. You are done!

In my opinion, I think the Oceanic Planets look better. [/offtopic]

Time for the final part, making it into a planet.

Sphereifying the Planet

Although sphereifying isn't a word, we are going to do just that!

It's real simple. Possibly simple than the actual planets themselves.
To start off, open a planet thing.
If you skip this step, you will get an oval planet, not a sphere.
Go to Image>Scale Image If you try to change the size now you will get not what you wanted. So you have to click on the chain image next to the text boxes so it will change with your numbers.
Set each side to an equal amount, 500x500 if you used a 1000x500 canvas. It will ugly once you do it but you will be one step-closer to spheredom!
Ok, now you do a map again: Filters>Map>Map Object. On the top drop down menu click Sphere.
Click OK. Wait until it is loaded and you have a sphere planet!

Now if you have anything wrong with it, go back and change it, if you can. Add sparkles for stars. Add a background color to simulate space. Add a gradient flare for a sun. DO what you want to create a space effect. Put each planet together to get a small galaxy.

Now, there is a way to make a sun. With everything in the Gaseous tutorial change one thing: The color. Make it a color of a sun. Smudge it to make sunrays. (I have not done the sun yet)

I have added all parts to one post.

Show your results, I would love to see them.

My results:

http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...1/Xnavieus.png
http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...ockyPlanet.png
http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/d...1/Xylonius.png

Since the gaseous planet is better than I though it would be, I like it more than the rock planet, but less than the Earth-like planet.

[musical zombie.]

It'd be nice if you included some images on how to do it, rather than just putting text. :/

[ZeldaMaster#1#1]

Sorry, I will get that done soon. It is kinda confusing to type too.
If I added any pictures to the tut, it will get kinda long.

[musical zombie.]

Well, despite the somewhat incompleteness of the tutorial, I love the results, and I'd like to see someone do something like this in Photoshop. The gaseous planet (which I'm assuming is the first image) is my favorite.

[ZeldaMaster#1#1]

Yes, you are right. It is quite simple to do.

[sugarpoultry]

The images no longer work... like, at all. Neither does your sick. Something tells me your photobucket hates you.

[ZeldaMaster#1#1]

Originally Posted by sugarpoultry

The images no longer work... like, at all. Neither does your sick. Something tells me your photobucket hates you.

You know what?

I actually deleted a lot of images on my account. So, I might have to redo them.