Space Scene with Photoshop

1. Create a new 600x600 pixel document and name it Space. Press D then fill the layer (with black). Then apply a noice filter with settings [Amount: 10%, Distribution: Gaussion, and 'Monochromatic' checked]. Now adjust the levels witht these settings:

2. Now create a new layer, and name it 'planet'. Make the foreground color [R:247, G:148, B:28], and the background color [R:117, G:76, B:35]. Then make a selection similar to the left.

3. Now, add a clouds filter to the selection. Then radial blur it with settings [Amount: 8, Blur Method: Spin, Quality: Best].

4. Now you want to edit the perspective. Now the corners as well as the middles will have anchors. While holding down alt, click and drag the bottom right anchor, Straight to the right. Holding down alt, mirrors this action to the other side.

That should now give a more perspetive view as if your above the planet, looking off its horizon into space.

5. Create a new layer, and name it 'sun'. Now select the elliptical marquee tool, then make a circle selection above the planet (my circle's diameter was about 290px). Then press D then X, and fill it with white. Now create another layer, and name it 'eclipse'. Press, D and fill this layer with Black. Now with the selection still active, select the 'sun' layer, and then expand the selection by 10 pixels. Press X to make the foreground color white again, then fill the selection. Now apply a gaussion blur with settings [Radius: 10].

6. Next, create a new layer, name it 'lense flare' and set the blending mode to 'screen'. Add a lense flare with the default settings, just angle the lens flare however you please. It's pretty much done, I just took the eraser, lowered its opacity, and erased parts of the 'sun' layer to make it little more realistic. Then I added some nebula clouds using the clouds filter. Your final outcome should look great.

Click to enlarge