Photoshop Space Scene

To create the starry background, I started with a solid black canvas and added monochromatic noise. I adjusted the brightness/contrast repeatedly to provide a nice dense yet realistic star field. I then added the effect of the cloudy nebulas. To do this I created a new layer with a black background and added the "difference clouds" filter. After playing around with that, I set the new cloud layer to the blending mode of "screen" and set the opacity to around 30%. I then merged the layers two layers and added a new colourized hue layer. After adjusting the grey tones to new monochromatic tones, I merged this layer to the bottom one. Using the colour dodge tool with a small soft brush I clicked repeatedly, making the brush slightly larger each time until the areas appeared glowing. Next came the planets. On two new layers I created two black circles. Selecting each planet and using a round soft brush I clicked and dragged along the outside to fill in the lit side. I then merged the layers down and used the colour dodge tool to enhance the glowing effect on the edge of the planets. Using a "lens flare" filter, I added a flare point to the lit part of the planet giving the image nice depth.