[Sushi]

I like the planet, but there are some nasty dither/compression artifacts along the right edge and the daylight line.

[Scourge of Ages]

Hrm. Most likely from the .jpg compression when I resized it for upload.
If I ever use it, or if anybody else needs it I can use the source file.

[watsisname]

So I watched Sunshine the other night, and although not exactly a great movie (decent though and with awesome visuals), it managed to inspire me to edit together a scene using a big star texture I had made a while back.  I think the result is kind of hot and sexy. :3

[Rodo]

That's a hot planet eh?

[Retsof]

Did you use fractal flames for the flares?

[watsisname]

Did you use fractal flames for the flares?

  Yes.

That's a hot planet eh?

  Very yes.

[General Battuta]

Could've used something like that for the Sunglare skybox. Think you could whip something up?

[watsisname]

How's this?  I can also give it flares like the prior one if you prefer.
Love your avatar btw. 

thumbnail: 

[watsisname]

Double post for an update.  I altered the surface texture some more, think this version looks better IMO.



2048² TGA download

[General Battuta]

URL link's giving me errors, I'll have Herra take a look at that download.

[watsisname]

Hmm, maybe mediafire is more reliable:

http://www.mediafire.com/?94wgodh5r5ruxps

[Herra Tohtori]

Got an uncompressed format somewhere...? The JPG compression artefacts aren't too bad here, but still present.

[watsisname]

Yeah JPG artifacts are terrible in images with large, smooth gradients like this.  However I don't think that's a problem with .tga format (correct me if I'm wrong).  Now if you're referring to the banding around the star, that's a side effect of having to use color-to-alpha, and is almost impossible to remove completely.  I went back and cleared that up as best as I can, take a look and see if it's good enough for ya.

PNG's on transparency:
version 1
version 2

TGA's on transparency can be found in my mediafire folder along with some previews.

Let me know if there's anything else I can do.

[Nyctaeus]

Could you release version with flames?

[watsisname]

Flames, you ask? 





tga download

[Herra Tohtori]

Ok, one more request.

There is a way to smooth up the corona gradient (by applying gaussian blur to RGB and Alpha mask separately), but since the flares are integrated to the same layer this will ruin them, for obvious reasons.

Could you upload either a layer containing only the flares, or possibly a layered XCF/PSD file of the star?

It's also possible that I might find an use for the flare layer to enhance the Sunglare skybox further... currently, the sun is confined to a 90 degree wide patch of the sky, which means I can't make stuff like corona elements truly immersive... however, if I had a high quality texture of flares, filaments, protuberances etc. I could make it appear as if they are reaching to, or close to, the orbit where the Indus is stranded at.

It's something that could either work or not, but either way it would be useful.

[watsisname]

There is a way to smooth up the corona gradient (by applying gaussian blur to RGB and Alpha mask separately), but since the flares are integrated to the same layer this will ruin them, for obvious reasons.

 
Ah, thanks, that's a nice trick.  It does limit the ways I can go about merging layers, but at least it should be workable.

As for the flares I think the best way to pass them on is to upload the original/unedited fractal flames in png format.  They should be fairly easy to work with.
http://img833.imageshack.us/g/flare1a.png/

[Herra Tohtori]

Much thanks. With your permission can I use those on a 3D skybox version where those flares would project upward from the surface of the sun, rather than just "out" from the edges of the sun disk?

[watsisname]

Absolutely, feel free to use them any way you like!  A 3D skybox like that sounds awesome.

[Nyctaeus]

I'm going to use it in skybox as a replacement for blue sun I've used in one of the SG screensots. Cool work dude , thanks for uploading .