Glassy Globes

Let's start with a new image, black, 72 dpi. Mine is set to 6 inches wide and 5 inches high, RGB. Create a new layer and, with the circular marquee, make a nice, fat, round selection in the middle of your image. Fill this selection with gray.

In the past when we've made spheres, I've use the quick-and-easy gradient tool. Not so this time. This is the portion I've borrowed from Pank, and I love the effect. This isn't exactly how they did it, but a variation.

Create a new layer. Select the airbrush tool, and make sure your default brushes are loaded. With white as your foreground color, select the round feathered brush, size 100. In either the upper right quadrant of the globe or upper left, your choice, spray some white in the new layer.

Do this twice more, only reducing the brush size each time: 65 first and 21 last, moving toward the upper right of the original spray each time.

Create a new layer. With your circular selection still active, let's change the foreground color to black. In the quadrant opposite your highlights, paint gently around the edge. Don't overdo it... just take your time. I'm using a brush size of 65 for this one.

We don't want that bottom edge to be totally dark, so apply a Gaussian blur of 5 or so. This will also help clear up any jerky distortions from applying the paint to vigorously (something I'm always guilty of).

Select the layer directly beneath your reflections layer. Create a new layer here. Now open an image you would like inside your globe... I'm using a wolf for this example. Hey, I'm in Montana, right?

Anyway, make a selection that is larger than you globe on the photo. Copy that, go back to the globe image, and paste. Using the Edit>Transform>Scale, resize the photo so the edges just toucj the edges of the globe. If you need a gauge as to how large the globe is, you can move the dark shadow layer above the photo.

Once your image is in place, change the layer mode to overlay.

Now select the original gray circle. Go to Image>Adjust>Hue/Saturation, and check the colorize box. Adjust your sliders until you find a color/brightness you like. This is so cool:

If you like, apply the Filter>Distort>Spherize filter to the photo layer. This will just round it out a bit to add to the illusion.

You may now dress it up a bit with the lens flare, perhaps some more edging with the airbrush, etc.

Here's my image after some dressing up: