Down to Earth Ways of Creating Planets in Photoshop

In what is planned to be a weekly feature, Photoshop LinkLove will scour the net for tutorials that are tied together by a common theme, and deserve props and recognition. If you have any ideas on a feature you’d like to see, or an external tutorial you especially enjoyed, why not request it?

This week’s feature is entitled Creating the Masses. Designing your very own planet is great fun, as the final results can seem breathtaking. There are many techniques on creating your own balls of gas or sediment - some using textures, others brushes. A few tutorials below are unique in that they using real images of cities - either satellite photos or street level. Some tutorials listed below will present a challenge, others are great for beginners. Even if you aren’t in the mood for creating a planet now, just browse the tutorials to see what stellar creations have been made in Photoshop!

	Making a Planet - V2 - by Tozzie This is the most realistic planet tutorial I have come across! The clever utilization of real cloud pictures also makes the final planet come alive. The final result will depend on what images you use during your initial composition. If you want to follow the tutorial exactly, I recommend grabbing the images with a screenshot. However I think it’s funner if you look for your own textures to play around with, so you can make your own unique planet!
	Basic Fiery Planet - by Photoshop Point This planet effect is achieved through some brushing. This technique produces a decent planet, and I recommend this one for beginners.
	Urban Planet Tutorial - by Alpha-Leader Want to create your own continents? Plunk cities onto that land? This tut is pretty neat in that it allows you to REALLY customize your planet, by determining land and sea boundaries. You can leave it pristine and forested, or overrun by cities - it’s up to you.
	Making a Photo-Realistic Planet - by Tutorial Site This tut is another one great for a beginner. It also uses brushes, but you need to create those brushes yourself! Nice walkthrough into adjusting brush settings and applying the to an image.
	Creating a Planet Using Photoshop - by Photoshop Nerds This planet is HOT! Make a sizzling mass through use of several filters. Also a nice one for Photoshop newbies, and it leaves you with something which could easily be burning a sun.
	Exploding Planet - by Tutorial Wiz Feeling destructive? Armageddon near? Create a cracked planet, then blow it up (literally!) using several filters. The final effect is pretty impressive, and best of all - pretty easy to do!
	How to Make a Planet - by dinyctis Another tutorial using textures, however this one uses only one! All the other effects are done through playing with layers styles and filters. In the end, you’re left with a beautiful sphere shrouded partially in shadows.
	How to Create Your Own Planets Using Your Panoramas - by PhotoJojo This one is really neat! Grab a picture taken at street level, or a panoramic metropolis - then stretch it around a sphere to create an exaggerated, cartoony planet. Depending on your source image, this can turn out really nifty!
	How to Create Your Own Planet - by EyesonTutorials This one is a little advanced as you need to manipulate a lot of photos, but the final result is definitely worth it. Grabbing images from Google Maps allows you to make a planet based on cities back home. The final sphere looks like something from the future (and personally, I thought some of his examples at the end reminded me of a Death Star!). If you’ve got some time to kill, check it out!