Lecture 2: Map Design

1. Lecture 2: Map Design

2. 2 Map Design Art of designing maps Choice of symbols, colors, text, patterns Arrangements of graphic elements in visual display Aim of achieving communication

3. Vector GIS

4. Vector GIS

5. Points

6. 6 Point Guidelines Use simple shapes Use point markers that have boundary lines and solid-color fill for important points When using the size of point markers to symbolize quantity, exaggerate the differences in size

7. Points Simple, solid shapes

8. Points

9. Exaggerated Point Sizes

10. Lines Roads, streets, rivers, etc.

11. Line Symbol Guidelines For analytical maps, most lines are ground and should be black or shades of gray

12. Polygons States, counties, buildings, parks, census tracts, etc.

13. Polygon Symbol Guidelines Consider using dark gray instead of black for boundaries of most polygons Use texture for black and white prints

14. Choropleth Maps Color-coded polygons or patterns showing different values

15. Classification Intervals Edit the classifications and layer properties

16. Original Map (Natural Breaks)

17. Custom Map (Equal Intervals)

18. Other Numeric Intervals

19. 19 Color Overview One of the most effective graphic elements for communication of spatial information Colors have meaning Cool colors calming, Warm colors exciting Cool colors appear smaller than warm colors and they visually recede on the page so red can visually overpower and stand out over blue even if used in equal amounts Colors have political and cultural meanings

20. Color Overview

21. Color Overview Monochromatic color scale is a series of colors of the same hue with color value varied from low to high

22. Customized ramps Customize the Properties of a layer

23. 23 Color Wheel Guidelines Use opposite colors- those directly across from one another to differentiate graphic features 3 or 4 colors equally spaced- good for differentiating graphic features Use adjacent colors for harmony- such as blue, blue green, and green or red, red-orange, and orange

24. Contrasting and Non-contrasting Colors

25. 25 Dichromatic Color Scale

26. Change Map Example

27. Color Spots White background allows color spot to be visualized

28. Color Spot Ramp

29. Contrast Increase/Decrease Contrast The greater the difference in value between an object and its background, the greater the contrast. In the above examples, the lighter value recedes into the light background. The design with the greatest contrast makes the darker object more dominant. In the above examples, the lighter value recedes into the light background. The design with the greatest contrast makes the darker object more dominant.

30. Light vs. dark colors In the above example, the first set of all dark lines are static. The middle example leads the eye in a downward direction (dark to light). Reversing the values of the lines leads the eye upward.In the above example, the first set of all dark lines are static. The middle example leads the eye in a downward direction (dark to light). Reversing the values of the lines leads the eye upward.

31. 31 Color Guidelines Use monochromatic color scales to color-code most choropleth maps Use a dichromatic color scale when there is a natural middle-point of a scale, such as 0 for some quantities The darker the color in a monochromatic scale, the more important the graphic feature

32. 32 Color Guidelines Use more light shades of a hue than dark shades in monochromatic scales. The human eye can better differentiate among light shades than dark shades If you have relatively few points in a point layer, use size instead of color value to symbolize a numeric attribute If you have a massive number of polygons to symbolize, you can symbolize polygon centroid points with color rather than to use choropleth maps

33. Changing colors

34. 34 Graphic Hierarchy Assign bright colors to the most important graphic elements Such graphic elements are called �figure�

35. 35 Graphic Hierarchy Assign drab colors to the graphic elements that provide orientation or context, especially shades of gray Such graphic elements are called �ground�

36. 36 Graphic Hierarchy Place a strong boundary, such as a heavy black line, around polygons that are important to increase figure Use a coarse, heavy cross-hatch or pattern to make some polygons important, placing them in figure

37. Graphic Hierarchy

38. GIS Queries

39. 39 GIS Queries Powerful relationship between data table and features - unique to GIS Records from a feature attribute table are selected by using query criteria Selects a subset of all the features Query will automatically highlight the corresponding graphic features

40. 40 Simple Attribute Queries Simple query criterion <data attribute>< logical operator><value> NatureCode =�DRUGS� DATE >= � 20040701� % wild card % symbol stands for zero, one, or more characters of any kind NAME like ' BUR%' Selects any crime with names starting with the letters BUR, including burglaries (BUR), business burglaries(BURBUS), and residential burglaries (BURRES)

41. Simple Attribute Queries

42. 42 Compound Attribute Queries Compound query criteria Combine two or more simple queries with the logical connectives AND or OR "NATURE_COD" = 'DRUGS' AND "DATE" > 20040801 selects records that satisfy both criteria simultaneously Result are drug crimes that were committed after August 1, 2004

43. Compound Attribute Queries

44. More Map Characteristics

45. Map Layers Organizes your layers Group logically and rename Polygons, lines, points

46. Scale Thresholds Minimum Scale Range If you zoom out beyond this scale, the layer will not be visible

47. Scale Thresholds When you zoom in, the layers are visible

48. Scale Thresholds Maximum Scale Range If you zoom in beyond this scale, the layer will not be visible State Capitals not visible at this scale

49. Hyperlinks Links map features to images, documents, web pages, etc.

50. Summary Map Design Overview Vector GIS Choropleth Maps Colors Graphical Hierarchy GIS Queries Map Layers Scale Thresholds Hyperlinks

51. * Tutorial 2 tip * no spaces in filenames!