Recreating an planet in FT from an image
I was wondering if there is a best method or good tutorial for using an existing surface image to create a world in FT? I have a planet in Universe Sandbox2 and I would like to create a FT version. I can take screenshots of the planet so I can capture different hemispheres, but the best I can do is evenly lit. I can't get a height map. So what's the best way to take those views and produce something that is close in FT? It doesn't have to be 100% accurate or an exact match, just would like the FT map to look like it matches up with the Universe Sandbox model in general.
Comments
http://oldguygaming.com/recreating-an-existing-map
It is not ideal, but it works. As it says in the comment section for that post, do not set percent sea to 100% (it is broken). Use 99% instead.
Sadly, this technique uses normal offset channels instead of prescale offset channels, so you won't get program-generated continental shelves.