We geographers can dig pretty deep in the weeds of data collection and analysis, reveling in the fun of precision, process, statistics, even visualization. But when it comes to crafting the geographic message in the form of a map layout, sometimes we can feel a little overwhelmed. Out of place? I know I’ve been there.
Where to start? What do I show and say? Where do I put the north arrow, scalebar, and legend? How should they look? You know, it’s that I’m not a graphic designer thank you very much sort of existential crisis.
We’ve got you covered! Here’s a speedrun that ruthlessly pulls apart an intentionally…not great…layout, and rebuilds it in light of some helpful design advice. More what you’d call guidelines than actual rules.
Ok here we go…
0:00 Hallo, snakker du engelsk?
0:18 A ruthless rundown of this layout’s issues (data density, balance, outlines & backgrounds, margins & padding, wordiness, overview, legend, north arrow & scale, photo).
2:30 Rebuilding the layout with some design guidelines…
2:50 Accommodating overlapping data and maximizing data real estate with multiple map frames.
3:17 Embedding colors into text and labeling directly, avoiding the need for a legend.
3:36 Shortened annotations, strategically placed to pair with geography.
4:02 Giving a title visual hierarchy to emphasize key words.
4:16 Smaller, minimalist, north arrow. Simple scalebar with logical divisions.
4:41 Leveling-up the overview with a simple custom map and a fun extent indicator.
5:08 Topical photo with transparent background.
5:25 Editing the style of the default map credits, and adding additional citations.
5:46 There’s no one right way to make a map. Also some chickens.
If you’d like to take a closer look at the before and after layouts, here they are.
Before:
After:
And here’s a link to the ArcGIS Pro project if you want to look under the hood at both of these layouts.
Of course there’s no one right way to make a map, and this is just an exercise in thinking actively about designing a layout. I hope some of these tips will serve you well and you take great joy in making and sharing your good work!
Love, John