Contents
Preface xiii
Acknowledgments xv
Trademark Names xvii
1. INTRODUCTION 1
On Design Experience 2
Constructive Criticism 3
What Is a Geoprofessional? 4
Tick-Tock Goes the Clock 4
Why Good Design Matters 6
Audience 6
How to Use This Book 7
Skipping the How-Tos to Get Straight to the Good Stuff 8
Relative Map Scales 8
Endnotes 9
2 Creative Inspiration 11
You Can Be Creative 12
Doing 13
Seeing 13
An Example of How to See 14
Applying All of This to Your Map 15
Summary and Final Prodding 17
Creative Maps 17
A Few Places to Start Seeing Art from Your Desktop 18
Endnotes 18
Exercise 19
3 Layout Design 21
All Together Now 21
Layout Checklist 24
Element Details and Examples 25
Title 27
Subtitle 29
Legend 30
Maps 34
North Arrow 35
Date 36
Authorship 37
Scale Bars 38
Page Border 40
Neat Lines 40
Graticules 42
Network Path 43
Disclaimer 44
Data Sources 45
Data Citations 46
Logos 46
Graphs 47
Photographs 49
Graphics 50
Map Number 51
Tables 52
Copyright 53
Projection 54
Inset Map 55
Descriptive Text 56
Style 56
Context 57
Arrangement 60
Emphasis Maps and Wireframes 62
Simplicity versus Complexity 64
Margins 65
Balance 67
Endnotes 69
Suggestions for Further Reading 69
Study Questions 69
Exercises 70
4. Fonts 71
Choosing the Right Font 71
Serif versus Sans Serif 72
Decorative 76
Script. 76
Letter Height, Width, Line Thickness 77
Modifying the Font 78
Point Size 79
Other Modifications 82
Placing the Text 87
Text Direction 88
Study Questions 92
Resources 93
Endnotes 93
5. Color 95
Color Theory 97
RGB 99
Hexadecimal 100
HSV 101
HSL 101
CMYK 102
CIELAB 103
Rules 103
Figure-Ground 104
Five Shades Are Enough Already 105
Color Gradients 107
What Color Are You Today? Color Connotations 110
Color Blending, or My Eyes Are Playing Tricks on Me! 112
Contrast 114
Color Everywhere Is Tiring 115
Ensuring Readability for Color Vision Deficiency 116
Inspiration 119
Grayscale Modern 120
Endnotes 121
Resources 121
Study Questions 123
Exercises 123
6. Features 125
Roads 125
Colors 125
Rivers and Streams 127
Colors 127
Showing Hierarchy 129
Showing Attributes 130
Labels 131
Bodies of Water 134
Colors 134
Labels 135
Cities and Towns 138
Colors 138
Points 139
Special Effects 139
Labels 140
Polygons 140
Political Boundaries 141
Colors 141
Conventions 142
Fuzzy Features 143
Colors 143
Technique 144
Elevation and Hillshade 150
Hillshade Colors 150
Elevation Colors 150
Hillshade 150
Spot Height Labels 152
3D Elevation 152
Parcels 152
Colors 152
Currents 160
Colors 160
Wind 161
Colors 161
Temperature 168
Colors 168
Land Use and Land Cover 169
Colors 169
Trails 172
Colors 172
Utilities 180
Colors 180
Field Mapping 181
Impervious Surface 182
Colors 182
Basins 183
Colors 183
Buildings 188
Colors 188
Soils 192
Colors 192
Soil Datasets 193
How to Show 194
How Many Categories Is Too Many? 194
From 2D to 3D (and in between) 196
Geology 197
Endnotes 203
Suggestions for Further Reading 204
Study Questions 205
Exercises 206
7. Static Maps 207
DPI 207
Export Formats and Workflow 209
Slides 210
Presentation Style: Fast or Slow, Busy or Simple? 211
Fast and Simple 211
Slow and Simple 211
Tips for Creating Simple Map Slides 212
Slow and Busy 214
Time and Research Wanted! 214
Reports 215
Where to Put the Map 216
Margin Elements for Report Maps 217
Posters 219
Summary Posters 219
Detailed Posters 220
Dual Purposes 221
Endnotes 221
Suggestions for Further Reading 221
Study Questions 222
Exercise 222
8. Projections 223
Distortions: Where Projections Fall Flat 227
Map Considerations: Choosing a Suitable Projection 229
Directional Types 232
Choosing a Projection in the Real World 234
Endnotes 237
Resources 237
Study Questions 237
Exercises 238
9. Zoom-Level Design 239
Zoom Levels and Scales 244
Zoom Fields 246
Incremental Styling 247
Repetition 250
Testing a Multizoom Design 251
Endnotes 254
Resources 254
Study Questions 255
Exercises 255
Appendix A: Layout Sketches 257
Appendix B: Map Examples 269
Appendix C: Color Swatches 279
Index 283