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Study / Map Design
Map Design
Notes on making and presenting maps. Each topic explains one design decision, shows a before and after, and links to the matching practical.
13 theory notes
Cartography
2 guides- 01Map Design and Cartography: Making a Map People Can ReadHow to plan a map for its audience, which elements it needs, how to choose classes and colours honestly, and how a print layout turns a project into a finished page.
- 023D Visualisation, Animation and Reporting: Showing Terrain and ResultsHow a 3D scene is built from a terrain model and draped imagery, what vertical exaggeration does, how camera animations work, and how to put a map, a chart and a caption on one page.
Layout rules
11 guides- 03Start with the Purpose: The Design Brief Behind Every MapWhy a map is a message and not a screenshot, and the five questions that decide what goes on the page before you open a layout.
- 04Page Size, Margins and Balance: Giving a Map Room to BreatheHow to choose a page size and orientation, set margins, align items and use white space so a map layout looks tidy and is easy to read.
- 05Visual Hierarchy and Reading Order: Telling the Reader Where to LookHow size, weight and position make a map readable in the right order, from the title to the map to the small print, with starting sizes you can adjust.
- 06Map Scale, Extent and Projection: Showing the Right Area the Right WayWhat map scale means, how to choose the area a map shows, and why the projection you pick changes what a reader can trust.
- 07Typography on Maps: Choosing Fonts That Help the ReaderHow to pick a small, consistent set of fonts and sizes for a map layout, and how to avoid the habits that make text hard to read.
- 08Colour, Contrast and Accessible Maps: Choosing Colours That Mean SomethingHow to pick sequential, diverging and qualitative colour schemes, check contrast, and make a map readable for people who see colour differently.
- 09Legends That Explain: Showing Only What the Reader NeedsHow to build a legend that explains the map instead of listing the project, with plain names, the right order, units and symbols that match the data.
- 10Scale Bars, North Arrows and Grids: Tools for Location, Not DecorationWhen a map needs a scale bar, a north arrow or a coordinate grid, how to set each one so it helps, and how to avoid the oversized, crowded versions.
- 11Inset Maps, Locator Maps and Annotations: Adding Context Without ClutterHow a locator map shows where a study area is, when an inset helps, and how to use annotations to point at what matters.
- 12Sources, Methods, Dates and Credits: Making a Map TraceableWhat to write at the foot of a map so that a reader can trust it, check it and reuse it: data sources, dates, method, projection, licence and limits.
- 13Exporting and Checking a Finished Map: The Last Step Before It LeavesHow to choose PDF, SVG or PNG, which resolution to use, and the checklist that catches clipped text, missing symbols and blurry output before anyone else sees the map.