Making Maps
Map function in GIS
Storage
Temporary communication
Intermediate check of data
Final report
To be effective, must be correctly designed and
constructed.
The Parts of a Map: Map Elements
1. Paper edge of a map
2. Frame line
3. Neat line
4. Body of the map
5. Border area
6. Marginal area
Map face (Body of the map)
Map
Neat line (outer part of the map face)
elements(summary)
Frame line
Border area(area between neat line and frame line)
Geographic co-ordinates(latitude, longitude)
Grid co-ordinates(easting, northing)
Name of the nearest village(eg: Lamachaur 2km)
Marginal area/information
Map title(important place)
Scale (graphical/numerical)
Legend
Sheet number
Sheet index(surrounding sheet: 8+1=9)
Location diagram(inside Nepal, where is the sheet)
Datum(horizontal/vertical)
Magnetic declination(for center of the sheet)
Grid convergence(for center of the sheet)
Contour interval(supplimentary contour)
Copyright(Government of Nepal, survey department)
Administrative index(Zone/District)
First edition
Reprint
The medium is the
Paper message
Film
Mylar
Monitor
Projection
Broadcast TV
THE DISPLAY IS PART
OF THE
SYMBOLIZATION
Cartographic Elements
Medium
Figure
Ground
Reference
information
Cartographic Elements (2)
Border
Neatline
Insets
Scale up
Scale down
Metadata e.g. index
Off-map references
Cartographic Elements (3)
Page coordinates
Ground elements
Graticule/Grid
North arrow
Cartographic Elements (4)
Figure
Point/Line/Area
symbols
Text
Place Names
Title
Cartographic Elements (5)
Reference Information
Scale
Projection(s)
Sources (2)
Credits
Legend
Reliability
Text: Selection and
Placement
Choosing Elements
Map research
Map compilation
Worksheet
Selection
Placement
Layout
Tools in GIS not ideal
Choosing a Map Type
Cartographers have designed hundreds of map
types: methods of cartographic representation.
Not all GISs allow all types.
Most have a set of basic types
Depends heavily on the dimension of the data to be
shown in the map figure.
Choosing the Wrong Type
Fairly common GIS error.
Due to lack of knowledge about cartographic
options.
Can still have perfect symbolization.
Possibility of misinformation
Definite reduction in communication effectiveness.
Map Types: Point Data
Reference
Topographic
Dot
Picture Symbol
Graduated Symbol
Reference Map
Topographic Map
Dot Map
Picture Symbol Map
Graduated Symbol Map
Map Types: Line Data
Network
Flow
Isoline
Reference
Origin of Flow Maps
Harness, H. D. (1837).
Atlas to Accompany the
Second Report of the
Railway Commissioners,
Ireland. Dublin: Irish
Railway Commission.
Flow Map
Map Types: Area Data
Choropleth
Area qualitative
Stepped surface
Hypsometric
Dasymetric
Reference
Area Qualitative Map
Stepped Statistical Surface
Map Types: Volume Data
[Isoline, Stepped Surface, Hypsometric]
Gridded fishnet
Realistic perspective
Hill-shaded
Image map
Isoline Map
Fishnet or Gridded Perspective View
Realistic Perspective View
Hill-shaded Relief Map
Image Map
Map Types: Time
Multiple views
Animation
Moving map
Fly thru
Fly by
Cartographic Animations
[Link]
[Link]
Map Type and Dimensionality
Choosing Types
Check the data
Continuous vs. Discrete
Accuracy & Precision
Reliability
Dimension (Point, Line, Area, Volume)
Scale of Measurment (Nominal etc.)
GIS capability
May need to supplement GIS software
Data Scaling (Stevens)
Nominal (Name of a place)
Ordinal (Small, med., large town)
Interval (Arbitrary zero e.g. Sea Level)
Ratio (Absolute zero e.g. dollars, densities)
Example: Choropleth
Mapping
Data should be AREA (e.g. States)
Data should not suffer from area effect.
Population?
Per capita Income?
Elevation? Temperature?
Boundaries unambiguous.
Areas non-overlapping.
Classification
Equal Interval
Natural groups
N-tiles
Equal or unequal?
Logarithmic? Linear? Discontinuous?
How many classes?
Non-overlapping, distinctive groups.
The Need for Design
To appear professional and avoid errors,
GIS maps should reflect cartographic
knowledge about map design.
A map has a visual grammar or structure
that must be understood and used if the best
map design is desired.
Cartographic convention (e.g. forests
should be green).
Symbolization Errors with a GIS
Map design
Good map design to communicate the information
and data clearly, accurately and economically to
users having a minimum of map reading skills.
Factors which affect the design process are:
The map user’s requirements,
His/her ability and knowledge of maps,
The complexity of the information to be mapped,
The available methods of map reproduction and costs.
An understanding of the natural or cultural environment
being mapped is also necessary to present a balanced
reproduction of that region of the world.
Steps of the cartographic
design
Geospatial data
analysis
Cartograph
ic grammar
Translation
Geospatial data characteristics
=>> choice of visual variables
Choice of representation method
(type of map) Thematic/
topo
mapping
Application of choices
Good map design
Transmits spatially related information in an optimal
manner
Restricts itself to the essential substance of the available
information
Guarantees desired positional precision
Applies a symbolization, which allows for spontaneous and
correct association
Is clear in its statement
Obeys the agreed cartographic protocols
Is easily legible
Is aesthetically satisfying
Is efficiently producible
Map Design
A GIS map is designed in a process called the design
loop.
Good map design requires that map elements be
placed in a balanced arrangement within the neat
line.
The Design Loop
Create map layout as macro
Draw on screen (proof plot)
Look
Edit macro
Repeat until happy
Make final plot
Graphic Editors
Graphic Editor Software
Vector
Adobe Illustrator
CorelDraw
Freehand
Raster
Photoshop
CorelPaint
Fractal Paint
Map Design (2)
Visual balance is affected by:
the "weight" of the symbols
the visual hierarchy of the symbols and elements
the location of the elements with respect to each other
and the visual center of the map.
Symbol “weight”
Line weight Pattern Shading Hue
Visual center
5% of height
5% of height
Landscape Portrait
Visual Layout
Title Here
Title Here
Eye expects (1) balance and (2) alignment
Color and Map Design
Color is a complex visual variable and in a GIS is
specified by RGB or HSI values.
Red, Green, Blue are additive primaries.
Magenta, Cyan and Yellow are subtractive primaries.
Saturation and Intensity map better onto values
than hue.
Color Primaries
Subtractive Primaries Additive Primaries
Dimensions of Color
HUE
SATURATION
INTENSITY
Simultaneous Contrast
[Link]
Text placement
Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara
Path right
Path Down
L a g o o n
Scale and Generalization
Smaller scale means fewer features.
Smaller scale means smoother features.
Smaller scale means combining features.
Smaller scale means displacing features.
Often scales are mixed or overgeneralized.
Map Design and GIS
When a GIS map is the result of a complex
analytical or modeling process, good design is
essential for understanding.
The map is what distinguishes GIS as a different
approach to the management of information, so
extra care should be taken to improve the final
maps that a GIS generates in a GIS task.
Map layout
Important aspect of map design
Arrangement, on the sheet of paper or computer screen, of the
mapped area, together with all the other information needed
to use the map fully.
The other information includes:
The map title
Statement of the scale
The legend
Author
Publisher
Data sources
Projection, grid
Location map or diagram
Map layout
example
Printing and exporting from ArcMap
The ArcMap map export functionality allows us to
export a map to any of 10 formats. These include:
Five raster formats:
BMP, JPEG, PNG, TIFF, GIF; and
Five vector formats:
EMF, PDF, EPS, SVG, and Adobe Illustrator (AI).
Raster or vector?
Raster files are made up of Vector files are made up of
pixels and have an mathematical descriptions
associated resolution that is of objects such as points,
usually expressed as the polygons, lines, and text.
number of pixels per inch Vector files scale well
(dpi). Raster files are best at
since they do not have an
containing images that are
made up of many different
associated resolution and
colors such as photographs they will look the same at
or satellite images. They do whatever size they are
not scale well and can displayed. Vector files can
appear blocky or jaggy if also contain raster
increased in size. images, although the
raster portions may not
scale as well as the vector
Vector files are generally smaller in sizeportions.
than a
corresponding raster file.