R ealistic R elief M aps

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How To Do Them !?
by
Dominique Crouzet <[email protected]>

Copyrights
You can distribute this file to whoever you want on the Internet, but are forbidden (!) to
make money out of it (it is doubtful you could anyway).

Foreword
If you want to know the method to create that kind of Realistic Relief Maps, like the one
below, no problems. In this text you will find all my SECRETS to copy me. However, before
smiling at this good new, let me tell you a few things :
I am a professional Photoshop-worker, and when doing such a map, it doesn't take me a few
minutes, but several hours ! So, before beginning to work, you must know three things :
1) To use the SECRET method, you need Photoshop !
2) Despite the principles involved to create such a map are very simple, you will need to
try and exercise, before obtaining a result conform to your expectations.
3) Making such a map is deadly taxing on the computer resources. You should better use a
Giga Hertz processor, and don’t expect being able to do anything with less than a 200 Mhz….
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Before beginning the real job, which is doing some kind of realistic relief on the map, you
need to have drawn a map. Personally I prefer to do it as a gray shape on a white background.
I mostly use a 3500 X 2500 pixel sized file, which is perfect for later A4 to A3 print.

1) SELECT and then MEMORIZE the continent and ocean shape!

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To get a realistic-looking relief, the idea is of creating a gray, fractal drawing, to then use
with Photoshop's Lightning-effects filter. In fact, this is the most important part of the SECRET.
Note that if you try to hand-draw the relief instead of using fractals as described, you won't get a
natural effect. Anyway, it could be a good idea to try, if only to modify that relief.
In fact, the below procedure is nothing more than creating a bump texture, as the kind you
would use with some 3D software. Thus, you may try many other sorts of bump textures instead
of doing it that way.
This "relief" will be done in black and white on a layer. When finished, the layer will be
changed into a channel (use copy-paste if you don't know better):

1) FILTER / RENDER / CLOUDS (using black foreground and white background)

2) FILTER / RENDER / DIFFERENCE CLOUDS
(note you can repeat this operation several times to get a thinner relief)

3) IMAGE / ADJUST / INVERT

4) make of this image (the one you got at #3) a new CHANNEL, and then call it (for
instance) "Relief". Once a channel, suppress it from the LAYERS window.
 Note: This relief you just created, will produce mainly mountains. As such, if you want to
get plains, hills, and other different features on your map, you will have to alter some parts of
this image, so it resemble the one shown above. Use airbrush with transparency, try some filters
(but very softly). Try it, until you understand the process. Anyway, a flat gray area will give a
flat plain, while strong (fractal) variations between black and white will produce mountains.

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Now, you need a color base to use the "Relief" channel with Lightning-effects:

5) Now do a flat color image (green and brown for instance), of your map. That is,
on the map-shape put appropriate colors on the terrain it will be (for instance, yellow for
deserts, green for forests, etc.). Use preferably neutral and grayish colors; as flashy
ones will give you bad results one the next operation.

Note: The colors you will use must be relevant to, and overlap the appropriate features of
your Relief channel. For instance: brown for mountains over fractal areas which will produce
mountains; and green for plains over near flat areas which will produce featureless terrains.

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Now, the fastidious thing is to use the Lightning effects to get the desired visual miracle on
your flat-colored map. Note however, that in most cases you won't be able to get the result in
only one application of the filter. In fact it creates burned areas on one side, and dark to black
ones on the other side. So you must do it several times, on several parts, then adjust all the parts
using the layers, the eraser, etc. Anyway the operation is:

6) On this flat color image apply : FILTER / RENDER / LIGHTNING EFFECT

When the window of lightning effect opens, activate the TEXTURE CHANNEL with
the "Relief" channel (from #4). Then adjust all the parameters.
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Once you have got all the areas well lighted (to get the nice relief you so dearly lusted for),
I hope you had kept various channels (i.e.: memorized selections), so you can do a perfect blue
on the ocean, and much more. Here are a few suggestions of manipulations giving good results:

7) You have got something looking like mountains, hills, etc., on your map. In order
to improve the colors, first do : SELECT / LOAD SELECTION / TEXTURE
What is "TEXTURE" ? It's a channel copy of "Relief", but that you forcibly contrasted
using IMAGE / ADJUST / LUMINOSITY-CONTRAST.

8) IMAGE / ADJUST / HUE SATURATION (and there, modify the hue and other
parameters to change the color of what looks like valleys, in relation to what looks like
mountains).

9) Another effect intended to improve the map's overall colors. Put a copy of the "C-
Colors for relief" image on a layer above the map you just obtained. Then change that
layer from NORMAL to MULTIPLY (with an OPACITY of 40-60%, depending on your
taste). Then, MERGE DOWN that layer on the image of the map.

10) Well... I feel becoming lazy tonight.

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Add names, with beautiful fonts of your liking. If you wondered where to find such nice
icons of castles and cities, I got them on a TSR software : the "CD-ROM Core Rules".
However, due to copyrights, I cannot distribute them. Thus, for those who would need such kind
of icons, see next page a sample of drawing I made, and that you may use freely.

That's all. Nonetheless, to create a whole map, with flat regions, coasts, etc., usually requires
much more sweating than you would like to spend.
Sincerely,
Dominique Crouzet (from France)
Nice Pictos & Symbols
If you don’t know where to find nice little drawings of castles, cities, and else, I added the
following items that you may use to fill your map:

_____________________________________________________________________________

If you make a nice map using these principles, I would be glad to get a
copy of it.
However, if you have problems, please do not ask me. The fact is the
procedure explained in this document is not all. Artistic talent, trying and
testing, and much sweating of the brain… Well, you see what I mean.

Dominique Crouzet