GIMP Version: 2.8.10
Operating System: Mac OS
GIMP Experience: Basic Level

List any relevant plug-ins or scripts:
Cloud - Solid Noise Filter
Displace Filter

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Hello,
I've been trying to figure out how to achieve a certain cloud/nebula effect in Gimp but I seem to not have any luck so I'm hoping to get some help.

This is the effect I'm trying to achieve:

And this is what I've been able to get so far by using the Cloud-Solid Noise filter and Displace Filter (not quite as 'wispy' and doesn't have those detail lines which make it look like brushwork in the image above).



I don't know what else to do to get the swirly-ness and especially the swirly contour/detail lines. I would really appreciate any input and help on this matter as trying to figure it out by myself is getting to be very frustrating. Maybe there's a Filter or Plugin that can help me achieve the desired effect that I do not know about?

Thank you in advance.

Not ignoring your request but haven't found a decent solution yet, I have been exploring some of the techniques I discovered when creating my Directional Smoke Tutorial, maybe some of the ideas might help to improve what you already have, which is pretty good.

This is the best I've got so far.....



By the way, if you do find a solution a tutorial would be nice, Hint! Hint!.

Hearty , That is an excellent image. I have been working on something too but it hasn't got a patch on your image. I have been working with render fog on black backgrounds, making new visibles in two colours, combining the two, new visible, cubism and blurring before using Artistic Gimpressionist. I will keep trying a while longer with different brushstrokes in Gimpressionist. Still No Cigar though! Well done!

Thanks wbool for the comments.

Got something reasonably feasible, I shall post a tutorial on it.

wbool63, he4rty:
Those are excellent suggestions. However, I'm trying to figure out how to get the detailed/contour type lines you see in the first image.

The method I used for my trial image was render > clouds > solid noise (detail at 15) and then create two more solid noise layers to use as x and y displacement map layers. Then I went ahead and applied map > displace (x and y values set between 20 and 40) and selected the two cloud displacement map layers I created before. As you can see, this comes close to the original image but still doesn't give me the fine lines seen in the first image. If you have any suggestions on that, I'd very much appreciate the input.

Maybe not quite what you are after but have created a tutorial on how I have achieved the initial results, you could try setting the cloud filter to turbulent.

It seems that I've hit another newbie obstacle. How do I get this type of cloud render?