Create an “Inception” Inspired Movie Poster – Tuts+ Premium Tutorial

Posted by on Feb 29, 2012 in Blog | 10 comments

In this Tuts+ Premium tutorial, author Mark Mayers will take inspiration from the Inception movie of a few years ago. The film used breathtaking special effects to create a world of impossible reality. This concept is by no means new, in fact the most well-known illusions of reality were created almost a century ago by the Dutch graphic artist Escher. His woodcuts and lithographs featured impossible constructions, explorations of infinity, architecture and tessellations. This tutorial is available exclusively to Tuts+ Premium Members. If you are looking to take your print design and photo manipulation skills to the next level then Log in or Join Now to get started!

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Tuts+ Premium Members can login now for instant access to this tutorial. Membership to Tuts+ Premium gets you access to hundreds of exclusive premium tutorials, top selling ebooks, in-depth courses, member forums, and much more. To learn more about Tuts+ Premium, Take the Tour or Join Today.



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10 Comments

  1. Mark Mayers | February 29, 2012

    In this Tuts+ Premium tutorial, author Mark Mayers will take inspiration from the Inception movie of a few years ago. The film used breathtaking special effects to create a world of impossible reality. This concept is by no means new, in fact the most well-known illusions of reality were created almost a century ago by the Dutch graphic artist Escher. His woodcuts and lithographs featured impossible constructions, explorations of infinity, architecture and tessellations. This tutorial is available exclusively to Tuts+ Premium Members. If you are looking to take your print design and photo manipulation skills to the next level then Log in or Join Now to get started!

    View the Tutorial

    Tuts+ Premium Members can login now for instant access to this tutorial. Membership to Tuts+ Premium gets you access to hundreds of exclusive premium tutorials, top selling ebooks, in-depth courses, member forums, and much more. To learn more about Tuts+ Premium, Take the Tour or Join Today.


  2. Mark Heaps | February 29, 2012

    Photoshop’s default filters and effects don’t always give you the look and flexibility that you are looking for. Over the last several months, we have been introducing you to Filter Forge, a powerful third-party plugin that allows you to apply 4,000 amazing effects to your images, and even create your own. In this tutorial, we will explain how Filter Forge works and how you can get started with this fantastic plugin. Let’s get started!

    To learn more about Filter Forge, you can visit their website, download the trial version of the software, or check out their filter gallery.

    Download Trial

    Editor’s note: This post was sponsored by Filter Forge.


  3. Rose | February 29, 2012

    Applying texture to a text effect can be a lot of fun. In this tutorial we will explain how to create a baseball-inspired text effect using layer styles, patterns, and brushes. Let’s get started!

    Tutorial Assets

    The following assets were used during the production of this tutorial.

    Step 1

    Create a new document that is 1024 x 645 px.

    You can use any other values for the Height and Width depending on the text you are going to create.

    Download the Grass Texture 1, and place it on top of your “Background” layer, then resize it as needed.

    Rename the layer to “Grass Texture”.

    Step 2

    The grass colors are a bit dark and desaturated. To fix that, go to Image > Adjustments > Color Balance, make sure that Midtones is the active option under Tone Balance, then modify the values as shown below.

    Go to Image > Adjustments > Levels, and change the Highlights value to 226. This will brighten up the texture a little bit. We will be using Adjustment Layers later, so that would be it for the grass texture for now.

    Step 3

    Create the text using the font Merkin. The color is #e6e6e6 and the Size is 250pt. Set the Tracking value to 100 to avoid overlapping, and click the All Caps icon.

    Press the Ctrl/Cmd key and click the text layer’s icon to create a selection.

    Step 4

    Go to Select > Modify > Expand, and type in 15. This will expand the selection 15 px outwards.

    Create a new layer below the text layer and call it “Stroke”.

    Set the Foreground color to #e7e7e7, and fill the selection with that color. You can go to Select > Deselect, or press Ctrl/Cmd + D to get rid of the selection.

    Step 5

    We are going to separate the stroke from the text. So Ctrl/Cmd + Click the text layer’s icon once again, then go to Select > Modify > Expand, and type in 1.

    Make sure that the “Stroke” layer is active (selected), and hit Delete to get rid of the inner parts of the stroke.

    Step 6

    This is optional, but if you want to delete parts of the stroke that connect some edges of the letter to enhance the stroke, then you can use the Eraser Tool. OR, you can simply Ctrl/Cmd + Click the text layer’s icon to create a selection, then expand it (Select > Modify > Expand) in values that are less than 15. For example, the value 10 will be used here to enhance the stroke at the top of the letter S.

    Go to Select > Inverse to invert the selection.

    Use the Eraser Tool to remove the unwanted parts. This method gives the exact shape of the unwanted areas, instead of erasing it randomly. Of course, smaller “Expand” values enable you to erase larger areas, and vice versa.

    Step 7

    Now, it’s time to create the Stitches Brush. So go ahead and create a new 23 x 82 px.

    Pick the Ellipse Tool and set the Foreground color to Black.

    Click on the top left corner of the document and drag to the lower right corner to create an ellipse.

    Don’t worry if some edges of the ellipse do not appear, they will in the next step.

    To show all the edges and continue creating the brush, go to Image > Canvas Size, and set the Width to 100 px.

    Step 8

    Press Ctrl/Cmd + T to enter the Free Transform Mode. Rotate the ellipse 45° clockwise. (You can type the value in the Rotate field in the Options bar at the top). Hit Enter/Return to accept and get out of the Free Transform Mode

    Duplicate the ellipse shape layer, and press Ctrl/Cmd + T to free transform the copy.

    Type -100% in the Width field (in the Options bar at the top) to flip the ellipse horizontally. Hit Enter/Return to accept.

    Next we are going to rasterize the two shape layers, but first, group them so that you’ll have the original layers available in case anything goes wrong after rasterizing.

    Step 9

    Duplicate the group, go to Layer > Merge Group, or press Ctrl/Cmd + E to merge the group layers and make the original group invisible by clicking the eye icon next to it. Now, both shape layers are rasterized and merged in one layer.

    Use the Rectangular Marquee Tool to create a selection around the lower part of the stitch. The selection’s Height should be around 13 px, you can check that in the info panel (Window > Info).

    Hit Delete to get rid of the selected part, and press Ctrl/Cmd + D to get rid of the selection.

    Once again, use the Rectangular Marquee Tool to create a selection in the middle part of the stitch. The selection’s Width should be around 2 px.

    Hit Delete and press Ctrl/Cmd + D.

    Go to Image > Trim and apply the values below. Once you click OK, the extra white space around the stitch will be removed. This helps define the brush’s size more precisely.

    Finally, go to Edit > Define Brush Preset and type in a name for the brush. You can save the PSD file if you want as well.

    Step 10

    Back to the Original document, open the Brush panel (Window > Brush), and choose the “Stitches Brush” (it’ll probably have a size of something around 90 or 100 px). Change the settings under Brush Tip Shape as shown below, and make sure to change the Angle to 90°.

    Change the settings under Shape Dynamics as shown below too, and make sure to choose Direction from the Control drop down menu under the Angle Jitter tab. This is important as it will make the stitches follow the direction of the text path instead of having the same angle everywhere.

    Step 11

    Right click the text layer and choose Create Work Path.

    Create a new layer on top of all layers and call it “Stitches”.

    Set the Foreground color to #d5002c, pick the Direct Selection Tool, right click the path, and choose Stroke Path.

    Choose Brush from the Tool drop down menu, and make sure that the Simulate Pressure Box is un-checked.

    This will stroke the path with the stitches. Hit Enter/Return to get rid of the path.

    Next, we are going to apply some Layer Styles.

    Step 12

    Before applying the Layer Styles, you might need to Load the Contours used. To do so, go to Edit > Preset Manager, and choose Contours from the Preset Type drop down menu.

    Click the small arrow in the top right corner, and choose Contours

    Click Append to add the new contours to the existing ones.

    Double click the text layer to apply the following Layer Styles:

    Inner Shadow: Change the Distance to 0 and the Size to 16.

    Inner Glow: Change the Blend Mode to Multiply, the Opacity to 30, the color to #c9ac86, the Source to Center, the Size to 59, and the Gloss Contour to Gaussian – Inverse.

    Bevel and Emboss: Change the Size to 24 and the Shadow Mode color to #a6a6a6.

    Texture: Load the .pat (pattern) file in the Seamless leather texture folder to use it.

    Then change the Scale to 50 and the Depth to 15.

    Satin: Just change the color to #e4e4e4.

    This will create a nice leather-rubber effect.

    Step 13

    Double click the Stroke layer to apply the following Layer Styles:

    Drop Shadow: Change the color to #5a543d, the Distance to 0 and the Size to 10.

    Inner Shadow: Change the Distance to 0 and the Size to 3.

    Inner Glow: Change the Blend Mode to Multiply, the color to #a67c5a, the Source to Center, and the Size to 16.

    Bevel and Emboss: Change the Size to 16 and the Shadow Mode color to #a6a6a6.

    Texture: Use the same Leather texture, and change the Scale to 50 and the Depth to 20.

    This will apply the effect to the stroke.

    Step 14

    Double click the Stitches layer to apply the following Layer Styles:

    Drop Shadow: Change the color to #686868, the Distance to 0 and the Size to 2.

    Bevel and Emboss: Change the Depth to 521, the Size to 1, the Highlight Mode to Soft Light, and the Shadow Mode color to #939393.

    Contour: Choose the Ring contour and check the Anti-aliased box.

    Texture: Use the Metal Landscape pattern, and change the Scale to 31 and the Depth to 100.

    This will add some depth and dimension to the stitches.

    That’s it for the Layer Styles.

    Step 15

    Ctrl/Cmd + Click the text layer’s icon to create a selection, then Ctrl/Cmd + Shift + Click the “Stroke” layer’s icon to add the stroke to the text selection.

    Create a new layer on top of all layers and call it “Grunge”, then change its Blend Mode to Multiply.

    Set the Foreground color to #9a8b74, and choose one of the Undercover Grunge Brush Set brushes to add some dirt to the text.

    You can adjust the Opacity value if you like. Here it is set to 70%.

    Step 16

    Duplicate the “Grass Texture” layer, then drag and drop the copy on top of all layers.

    Ctrl/Cmd + Click the text layer’s icon to create a selection.

    Go to Select > Modify > Expand, and type in 15 to select both the text and the stroke. Then, go to Select > Inverse to invert the selection.

    Click the Add layer mask icon down the Layers panel (Window > Layers). This will make the text appear again. We will use the mask to add some grass over the text later on.

    Step 17

    We’ve modified the grass colors a little bit at the beginning of the tutorial. And now, we will add some Adjustment Layers to enhance the colors of the whole image, which will add a nice vintage feel and help blend all the elements nicely.

    So click the Add new adjustment layer icon down the Layers panel, and choose Color Balance.

    Make sure that the Midtones option under Tone is active, and change the values as shown below.

    Now select the Shadows, and type in the values below.

    Add another Color Balance Adjustment Layer, and change the values of the Midtones as shown below.

    And change the Shadows values as shown below as well. Those values will bring out the many beautiful colors in the grass that weren’t as vivid before.

    Step 18

    Create a new layer on top of all layers and call it “Gradient”. Change its Blend Mode to Soft Light, and its Opacity value to 70%.

    Set the Foreground color to #724c21, pick the Gradient Tool, choose the Foreground to Transparent fill type, click the Radial Gradient icon in the Options bar, and check the Reverse box. Click in the middle of the document and drag to one of the corners to create the Gradient.

    This will add a simple depth to the image so that it doesn’t look so flat.

    Click the Add new adjustment layer icon and choose Levels this time.

    Change the Shadows value to 20. This will darken up the image a little bit. You can play around with the values if you like.

    Step 19

    Time to add some grass over the text. So open the Brush panel (Window > Brush) and choose the Dune Grass brush. Modify the Brush Tip Shape as shown below.

    Change the Shape Dynamics values as shown below as well.

    Keep in mind that you can always rotate the brush’s tip under the Brush Tip Shape tab, by moving the Angle arrow around, or typing different values. This will make adding the grass easier in different angles and areas.

    Step 20

    Set the Foreground color to #000000 and the Background color to #ffffff, pick the Eraser Tool, click the “Grass Texture copy” Layer Mask.

    Paint some short strokes near the edges of the text randomly. You can always press Ctrl/Cmd + Z to undo if you don’t like the result then paint again. You can also change the brush’s Size and Angle whenever you need to. Just try not to drown the text in the grass, keep it simple.

    If you set the switch the Foreground and Background colors, you can use the Eraser Tool to erase any unwanted parts with a hard round brush.

    Final Image


  4. Erasmo D'Onorio De Meo | February 29, 2012

    In this quick tip tutorial we will demonstrate how to create a cinematic “Action” Text Effect in Photoshop using layer styles. Let’s get started!

    Tutorial Assets

    The following assets were used during the production of this tutorial.

    Step 1

    Make a new .PSD document; size 1000 x 500 pixels, RGB color, 100 dpi and White background. Create a new layer and fill it with a Leather Texture/Pattern and go in the menu Layer > Layer Styles > Blending Options and use these settings:

    Step 2

    Now create the text using this font: SF Fedora. Use these settings: 170 pt – Anti-Alias: Sharp. Now rename this text: “3D”. Then we have to distort the text, so click on tool “Create Warped Text” as shown in the screen below:

    Step 3

    Then go in the menu Layer > Layer Styles > Blending Options and use these settings:

    Step 4

    Duplicate the text and rename it “Base”. Right click on his layer and click to “Clear Layer Style” or in the Styles Palette click on the first style “Default style (None)” (It’s the same thing). Now move this text slightly to the right in order to create a “pseudo 3D effect” with the text below (Look picture below). Then go in the menu Layer > Layer Style > Blending Options and use these settings:

    Conclusion

    Lastly to make the text effect nicer I added some light around the text with simple brushes and color lights with soft brushes. Now your text effect is completed!


  5. Mark Bowley | February 29, 2012

    As a graphic designer a portfolio is essential. While it’s great to have an online one, it’s also a good idea to have a physical one too to take along to meetings and interviews.

    Putting together and showing this kind of portfolio of your graphic design work is quite a skill, and the best way to do it gets debated constantly by designers around the world. There is no right way of doing it – there will always be differences in what employers or clients expect, or would like to see. Some simple logic and advice will help you though, and I’m going to share what I have learned both from experience and from reading other articles.


    May of 2009

    This Post is Day 10 of our Graphic Design Session. Creative Sessions
    « Session Day 9Session Day 11 »

    So, to get started it’s worth mentioning that your portfolio, and the way you talk about it, is an opportunity for you to shine and to demonstrate that:

    • you are creative
    • you can apply good thought processes
    • you have a range of skills
    • you are ambitious and enthusiastic

    Your Audience

    Who will be looking at it?

    As designers, when we start a design project one of the first questions we always ask is who the audience will be. You should be applying the same thinking when putting together your portfolio – who will be looking at it? What are their needs and expectations?

    Depending on your situation, your target audience is likely to be one of the following:

    • A potential employer
    • A potential client

    If you are looking for a job in the design industry remember potential employers will most likely be designers themselves. This means they will have a keen eye for the look of your work and will want to understand your contribution to each project.

    If you are looking for work from potential clients they, on the other hand, will be more focussed on whether you have experience in the type of work they need to produce, and whether your design style is to their taste.

    Adapt where you can

    Try to adapt your portfolio and presentation style to fit each audience. This means a bit more work each time but will make it more engaging for them. It will also lead to more success for you by demonstrating you understand their business.

    Do some research

    When you have a meeting set up to show your work, do some research. What sort of company are they? If they are a potential employer what kind of work do they produce? Are they really creative or more corporate? If they are a potential client what sort of design work have they had produced before? What kind of industry are they in and who are their customers? Luckily today most businesses have websites, so all this should be relatively easy.

    Choosing projects

    Only select your best work

    Limit the number

    If you can, try and keep it to about 6-10 good size projects. People don’t want to go through everything you have done and will probably make up their minds about you during the first 3 you show. Obviously if you don’t have much to show for any of them (e.g an individual logo) you could consider showing more projects.

    Select your best

    I can’t stress this one enough and you will hear the same thing from other people in the industry: Only select your best work and work you want to talk about. If you don’t love it or can’t talk about it endlessly, over and over, it will show and they won’t be interested. I know myself it’s tempting to fill out your portfolio with work that isn’t your best but shows other skills or types of client. But it won’t be long before you struggle to talk about them engagingly, and you will come across as not enjoying your work.

    What order to show them in?

    The first and last projects in your portfolio will stick in people’s minds the most. So, you should select carefully which projects to put in these positions. In addition, the last project can be the best place for a project you really like talking about or has samples that people can look at. This is because it can often end up staying open on the desk while you continue the meeting.

    The projects you show in the middle of your portfolio should then be ordered in a way that demonstrates variety in skills and style. Keep them interested by mixing things up and being dramatic. If there are samples to pass around for one project, consider following it with a project that doesn’t. Don’t, for example, put all your logo or brochure projects back to back if you can help it.

    Show creativity

    One of the things potential employers will often look for is how you got to the finished design. They may be interested in sketch books, loosely bound sheets of ideas, mood boards or unused concepts. Put a few of them in your portfolio but not for every project. They are there to demonstrate your ability to think and and sketch before you jumped on a Mac to create the work.

    You should also aim to include at least one or two mockups or printed samples. This will stop your portfolio from looking like just a collection of flat printouts of your work, and therefore a more memorable experience.

    Put in what you want to get out

    What does this mean? Well one important thing to remember is that you should only put types of work in your portfolio that you want to get more of. If you’ve done a lot of one type of work but you’re now really tired of it, don’t put it in your portfolio even if you think it’s good work. Chances are, you will only get more of it.

    Presentation is key

    The standard of presentation in your portfolio must be the highest you can achieve. Employers and clients alike will be judging how much attention you pay to these details as well as the actual work. But don’t dress it up – the quality of your work and your presentation is much more important than a fancy or tricksy portfolio.

    Explaining the Work

    Each meeting is an opportunity to develop

    OK, so we have covered putting your portfolio together, but you also need to learn how to talk about it.

    It’s not easy

    The art of talking about your work is not something that comes naturally to designers – I know I didn’t find it easy in the beginning. But it’s a good skill to learn, and learn as early as you can. Don’t be afraid of making mistakes and look upon each meeting as an opportunity to develop this skill. Not only will this make it easier to talk about your portfolio, it will also make you better at presenting concepts and design work, both to your colleagues and to clients.

    The simple rule here is engagement. Your aim should be to arouse interest in your work, not give a speech or lecture. Remember, showing your portfolio to people is also about them, not just you.

    When you come to each project, talk about it briefly to introduce it but don’t talk at length. See how they react, let them ask questions or let them simply look. If they are looking at you rather than the work, talk some more about the project – tell them what interested you about it. Look for signs that it’s time to move on to the next project.

    To help you get used to talking about your work, try it on other people whenever you get a chance. If they are non-designers it will help even more, as you will practice not using designer lingo to describe each project.

    Show your value

    Employers want to see how you could be useful in their organisation, and when showing your portfolio they will often ask what your involvement was on a project. Whatever you are tempted to say, I advise this: Be honest, give yourself credit, but be clear about your skills.

    A potential client will be wanting to find out if you have the skills they currently need. Focus less on talking up the design aesthetics of your work, and more on explaining the value of your services to the client of each project. Were they pleased with the work? Did they achieve their business goals?

    Know yourself

    You should take some time to understand your strengths and weaknesses (and yes, we all have weaknesses) before showing your work. If you can’t see them yourself ask another designer for an honest opinion (and be prepared for the answers!). You may not get asked about these specifically in a meeting, but you should be prepared to discuss them anyway.

    The reason I mention this is that showing you understand your limits and where you are most effective is far better than trying to prove you are simply amazing. Employers and clients are interested in how they can use you best – they know no-one is good at everything and are not looking for that.

    If you are particularly strong in one area though, make sure every piece of work in your portfolio shows that without you even having to say it. They will remember you better that way.

    Summary

    Hopefully this article will give you a good starting guide to your portfolio. Remember, it is a skill to be learned during your career rather than mastered beforehand – every time you show your work it will give you extra experience and feedback that helps you improve.

    If you are interested in reading further, here is a collection of a few articles which you may also find useful:

    This Post is Day 10 of our Graphic Design Session. Creative Sessions
    « Session Day 9Session Day 11 »


  6. Grant Friedman | February 29, 2012

    Today, Adobe released their 5th sneak peek video that explains what they are working on for the next version of Photoshop. This sneak peek shows off several new features including the ability to share your presets between computers, as well as some enhancements to the layer panel. In this article, we will take a look at some of these announcements and analyze them to see what they mean for you. Let’s take a look!

    If you work on several computers (a laptop and a desktop, for instance) you know how irritating it can be to save your settings onto both machines. This update to the preset manager looks like an easy way to quickly export your settings and install them onto all your machines. In addition, it will make the upgrade to the next version that much easier.

    Adobe also introduced some new features available from the layers palette including the ability to duplicate several layers at one time using Command/Ctrl + J, as well as the ability to add color labels for multiple layers at once. This is a pretty big time-saver for anyone who has had to apply the same setting to multiple layers one-by-one.

    In addition to those announcements, Adobe also revealed some features that they didn’t spend a whole lot of time explaining. For instance, take a look at the layers panel and compare it to the layers panel from CS5. You’ll notice some really big changes. Notice the options at the top. Could these be new ways to manage your layers? What do you think these new options do?

    Also, take a look at this screengrab from the JDI section of the video. It may be hard to read, but they’ve included quite a few quick fixes in the new version.

    What do you think about these new changes? Are you excited about the new version? Will you make the upgrade?


  7. Martin Perhiniak | February 29, 2012

    Photoshop is an excellent tool for manipulating photographs but it can also be used as a means to create stunning digital art. This tutorial is part of a 25-part video tutorial series demonstrating everything you will need to know to start producing digital art in Photoshop. Digital Art for Beginners, by Adobe Certified Expert and Instructor, Martin Perhiniak will begin by teaching you how to draw in Photoshop. At the conclusion of this series you will know all you need to produce your own concept art and matte paintings in Photoshop.

    Today’s tutorial Part 24: Paint a Castle in Photoshop – Part 1 will explain how to paint a castle on top of a photograph. In this part we will explain how to set the perspective, draw the outlines, and lay down color. Let’s get started!


  8. Grant Friedman | February 29, 2012

    If you’re a graphic or web designer by trade, chances are coding a website isn’t something that you prefer to spend your time on. That’s why many designers get frustrated when tasked with having to design and code a site by themselves. Today, our friends at PSD2HTML are coming to the rescue by offering 4 lucky Psdtuts readers $300 worth of services for free. To enter, all you have to do is submit your entry using the form below.

    Update: the winners of this giveaway have been chosen and contacted. Thanks to everyone who participated.

    PSD2HTML is a service that provides fast, high quality conversion of graphic web designs to HTML. They accept source files in all common formats including PSD, PNG, AI and even existing HTML markup.

    The turnaround time depends on the number of pages and the required functionality, but the conversion of the first HTML page usually takes 8 business hours. Expedited delivery is available as well.

    If you need more complex PSD to HTML slicing, you can select among the variety of markup, layout and JavaScript options until you come up with something that fully suits your needs. With over 7 years of experience, PSD2HTML can handle any conversion or implementation tasks, whether it’s web page, email, or mobile template!

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  9. Alexandra Fomicheva | February 29, 2012

    When most people think about Photoshop, they probably don’t think about 3D. What most people don’t realize, however, is that Photoshop CS5 Extended includes some powerful tools to help you render your artwork in 3D. In this tutorial we will demonstrate how to create a mini planet using Photoshop’s 3D capabilities. Let’s get started!

    Tutorial Assets

    The following assets were used during the production of this tutorial.

    Step 1

    Create a new document, the size is 1400 x 1400px, 96 pixels/inch. Fill background layer with radial gradient or apply Gradient Overlay effect (unlock background layer).

    Step 2

    Insert sky image. Go to Edit > Transform > Rotate 180°. Then choose Transform > Warp, apply Arch transformation like on the example. Make active Distort transformation and drag sky layer corners. Follow screen shot red arrows directions.

    Step 3

    Add Layer Mask to the sky layer (click Mask icon in the bottom of layers palette). Fill Mask with the Black and White Reflected Gradient . Correct top right edge with soft large Brush Tool. Apply Screen Blending Mode, Opacity 80%. Add Adjustments Clipping Masks to this layer – Black & White and Levels. Click Undress a Giraffe in Photoshop icon in the bottom menu of the Layers Palette. Select all adjustments layers (make them active), right click > choose "Create Clipping Mask". Apply setting for each adjustment layer like on the examples below.

    Step 4

    Group and duplicate sky layers, move them up. Edit > Transform > Rotate 180°. Apply Scale transformation to this group of layers to make it smaller than the bottom one. Now you should have gradient background and two groups of sky layers.

    Step 5

    Insert stars photo. Remove reflections with the Patch Tool. Select reflections and drag the selection border to the clean area. When you release the mouse button, the trace of the selected area is patched with the sampled pixels.

    Step 6

    Rotate it on 90° and apply Warp Arch transformation just like for the sky layer in previous steps. Then stretch this shape and rotate it again.

    Step 7

    Duplicate stars layer, turn it on 180° and move it left and down.

    Step 8

    Merge stars layers and apply Screen Blending Mode. In order to completely remove light background shade, go to Image > Adjustments > Levels and move left black marker to the center a bit.

    Step 9

    Let’s make snow material for the first 3D shape. Open a new document – 1200 x 1200 px, 96 pixels/inch. Unlock the background layer and convert it to the Smart Object. Layer > Object Layer > Smart Objects > Convert to Smart Object. Apply Color Overlay effect to this layer .

    Step 10

    Apply following filters. Filter > Noise > Add Noise and Filter > Artistic > Sponge. Use settings like on the screen shots below.

    Step 11

    Crate a new layer fill it with black color, Click "D" to make default black and white colors. Go to Filter > Render > Different Clouds. Repeat Command/Ctrl+ F until you get similar effect like on the screen shot. Apply Screen Blending Mode to this layer. You may save this texture as a regular JPG file.

    Step 12

    In order to create 3D sphere with mountains landscape, we need to make special grayscale texture. Make a new document 1200 x 1200px 96 pixels/inch. Fill the firs layer with gray color #9f9f9f.

    Step 13

    Create a new empty layer, go to Filter > Render > Clouds. Keep foreground/background colors black and white . Scale the "clouds" layer like on the screen shot and apply Screen Blending Mode.

    Step 14

    Add Layer Mask to this layer and fill it with Radial Black and White gradient from center to edges. Then make several copies of created layer. Apply random Scale, Rotation transformation for each copy and set smaller amount of Opacity – around 40-60%. Light colors are creating heights of the mountains and spots with smaller Opacity parameter making them lower. Group the clouds layers and set opacity for the group folder around 75%. Merge all texture layers and add Gaussian Blur effect, Filter > Blur > Gaussian blur ~2px. We need to make very smooth and low contrast image. You may check out the result with the high contrast texture on the last two screen shots.

    Step 15

    Insert created texture to the main Photoshop document. Put it above stars and sky layers. To optimize 3D rendering process, I’ve made Smart Objects for all 3D shapes in this tutorial. For another thing, our textures have different size than main Photoshop document, but in order to create the regular sphere shape, texture should cover whole working area. Right click texture layer, choose Convert to Smart Object. Double click Smart Object thumbnail to open smart object content in a separate window and convert it to 3D shape – Open 3D settings window, Window > 3D and choose 3D Mesh from Grayscale > Sphere. After editing the contents choose File > Save to commit the changes. Those changes will be reflected upon returning to the main file window.

    Step 16

    Here you may see the camera settings for the 3D scene.

    Step 17

    Use these tools to rotate, move and scale created 3D shape.

    Step 18

    Apply following Scene settings. In final change "Quality" from "Interactive (Painting)" to "Ray Traced Final". Download lights presets, choose "Replace Lights Presets" and find "lights_mountains" on your computer. Apply Snow texture to the Diffuse and Bump parameters.

    Step 19

    Apply Inner shadow effect to created 3D layer.

    Step 20

    To create water texture, create a new large document 2400 x 2400px, 96 pixels/inch. Apply blue gradient to the first layer.

    Step 21

    Set default colors just like on the screen shot, create a new empty layer, go to Filter > Render > Clouds. Then Filter > Artistic > Plastic Wrap.

    Step 22

    Duplicate textured layers two times. Apply Soft Light Blending Mode to the bottom layer and Screen Blending Mode to the top one.

    Step 23

    Add "Black&White", "Levels" Adjustment Clipping Masks to the top layer. Save this texture as a regular JPG.

    Step 24

    Return to the main Photoshop file; create a new layer above the first 3D mountains smart object. In order to get the exactly same size sphere, create a square 1200px x 1200px, use the same color as for the mountains texture background – #9f9f9f. Right click gray layer, choose "Create the Smart Object from this layer". Double click layer thumbnail to open smart object in a separate window. 3D > New mesh from Grayscale > Sphere. Apply absolutely the same 3D object and camera tools position settings as for the mountains shape in previous steps. The new shape should be the same size as the previous one with the mountains.

    Step 25

    Adjust scene settings. Apply Ray Traced Final Quality after other adjustments. Upload water texture to the Diffuse and Bump parameters. To find better texture position, right click texture icon and change Texture Properties. For the Bump setting you may use default texture properties. Download light preset for the water layer and apply it using the same way as for the mountains 3D layer.

    Step 26

    Add the Layer Mask to the mountains Smart Object in the main Photoshop document or to 3D layer inside the smart object. Fill the mask with the Linear Black and White gradient in the bottom part. Then choose small round Brush Tool and correct surface contour with black or white color in the Layer Mask.

    Step 27

    Now we have background layers and two smart objects above. Move water layer below the mountains. Load selections for the current mountains layer Select > Load selection. In order to make left bottom part of the snow shape smoother, make active water layer and copy selected area. Paste copied water part above both of objects, add Layer Mask, fill it with the linear gradient just like on the screen shot and apply Soft Light Blending Mode.

    Step 28

    Crate a new document for craters texture, 1200 x1200px, 96 pixels/inch. Fill the first layer with #808080 color. Keep default colors . Create a new white or black layer, go to Filter > Render > Different clouds. Repeat Command/Ctrl + F several times to get the similar effect.

    Step 29

    Add Levels Adjustment Clipping Mask to the clouds layer. Merge clouds with the adjustment layer, go to Image > Adjustments > Invert, and apply Screen Blending Mode to it.

    Step 30

    Change Opacity parameter for this layer and add Layer Mask. Fill it with the Radial gradient from center to edges.

    Step 31

    Draw a small circle in a new layer, apply Gradient Overlay effect to this shape.

    Step 32

    Duplicate created circle several times, apply Scale transformation for them to create different diameter craters, Play with Opacity setting to get different heights. Group circles layers and apply ~30% Opacity to the created group folder.

    Step 33

    Now you may merge all texture layers, apply Gaussian Blur filter -2px and move the final texture layer to the main Photoshop document. Convert it to the Smart Object, double click Smart Object thumbnail to open inside content in the separate window. Convert Texture to the 3D shape.

    Step 34

    Apply Camera position settings the same as for all previous shapes. Move, scale and rotate the 3D shape to find better position. You may find how it looks like in the main Photoshop document on the second screen shot. Apply "Snow" texture for Diffuse and Bump settings. Upload "lights_planet2" preset for this shape. Pay attention to the new light source – blue reflection from the water sphere.

    Step 35

    Apply Gradient Overlay effect to the third smart object layer. You may use Spectrums gradient preset – "Light Spectrum".

    Step 36

    Duplicate craters Smart Object layer several times to create small planets. Double click each new Smart Object thumbnail to open 3D settings. Scale, rotate and move each shape to get different positions. Correct Opacity setting for the far planet Smart Object layer ~ 84%.

    Step 37

    Check out all 3D shapes "Ray Traced Final" Quality scene parameter, to get the better result. Select whole working space in the main Photoshop document, Select > Select All, then go Edit > Copy Merged. Paste merged composition into a new layer (layer 18 on the screen shot below). Press Quick Mask icon .

    Step 38

    Choose Reflected Black and white Gradient Tool. Keep Quick Mask pressed. Find craters 3D shape in the bottom layers and load selection for this layer. Take large soft translucent white Brush Tool and touch the bottom part of selected area. Choose Select > Deselect.

    Step 39

    Keep active Quick Mask Mode. Load selection for the water sphere, add to selection "mountains" layer, use Command/Ctrl + Shift + click "mountains" layer thumbnail. Correct Mask in the selected area with the translucent soft white Brush Tool, just leave light pink shade on the mountains tops and "south pole". Deselect planet shape. In final touch left edge of the right bottom small planet with the small soft translucent Brush Tool.

    Step 40

    Deselect any active selections and then release Quick Mask button. Go to Filter > Blur > Lens Blur.

    Step 41

    Duplicate merged layer after lens corrections, go to Image Adjustments > Black and White (default). Apply Soft Lights and Opacity 20% to this layer.

    Final Image


  10. Skellie | February 29, 2012

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