Cartographic Skills, Lab 10: Flow Maps

In this weeks lab, we learned about Flow Maps.  Above is an example using the U.S. Immigration totals in 2007.  This was a fun lab, in that I had a lot of artistic freedom and learned about some of the different visual effects that AI has to offer.  In this map, the flow line width is proportional to the total immigration from that continent in 2007.  This was figured out by using an equation and data collected by the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security.  

We had two base maps to choose from and I selected the option which allowed me to move the continents around.  I decided on this one because it allowed the flow lines to be more direct rather than dipping, diving, ducking and dodging other continents.  I made the U.S. (continental) the center of focus because, after all, we are talking about the U.S. immigration totals.

As far as the effects that I decided to use go, I decided to go with a drop shadow, inner glow and round corners.  With the flow lines themselves, I used a drop shadow and an inner glow.  For the continents and U.S. map, I also used a drop shadow.  Doing so creates a more dramatic figure - ground contrast.  For the last effect, I decided to round the corners of the U.S. map neatline and the border around the state immigration legend.  

Overall, I feel like the added effects might be a bit much.  I like the, less is more approach.  At times, I found myself feeling like it was getting too hokey.   The lab, however, allowed me to at least learn about my options.

Intro to GIS, Lab 10/11: Vector Analysis 2

For this weeks lab, we started using more of the analysis tools that are available in ArcMap.  The above map provides locations of potential campground sites.  These sites were selected using specific criteria.  The needed to be located within 300 meters of a road, within 150 meters of a lake and/or 500 meters from a river.  There were also some sensitive conservation areas that needed to be avoided.  This lab was interested and I can definitely see how these tools will be not only helpful but essential in a GIS related job.

Cartographic Skills, Lab 9: Isometric Mapping

 Isohyet map of average annual precipitation in Georgia.

This is an isometric map depicting the average annual precipitation in Georgia.  Using the data from NOAA and the Southeast Regional Climate Center, I determined where the isohyet lines should go and what/how they should be labeled.  I solely used Illustrator for this map and created the north arrow and legend by hand.  I used tick marks to show where there was a decrease in precipitation compared to the surrounding areas.  I was able to have a lot of creative freedom when making this map and learned a bit about Isometric maps in the process.  These kinds of maps are useful to show trends or continuous phenomena that are happening across an expansive area.

Intro to GIS, Lab 7/8: Data Input & Editing and Data Search

Map #2: Major Cities, Waterways, Miami-Dade County boundary and a DEM (showing elevation)

This weeks lab was an exercise in collecting, transforming and projecting all of our own data.  We were  each assigned different county in Florida and were given a list of what needed to be included in the 1-3 maps.  I found the most challenging part of this lab was finding the correct data and getting it projected the way I needed.  Most of the data was gathered from either Labins or FGDL.  Because there was so much information that needed to be displayed, it took me more than one map.  I took a look at the information and how it was displayed in ArcMap and used that to determine how to divide up the data in a way that made sense and still looked good.  Above is one of my maps that I created.

Cartographic Skills, Lab 8: Proportional Symbol Maps

Figure 1

In this weeks lab, we explored proportional symbol maps and different ways to portray information.  In the above map, Figure 1, you can see how cluttered it is.  It was a very basic map, almost thrown together.  The main purpose of this map is to show one way of using a proportional symbol.  The circle sizes are directly related to how much wine (by 1000's of liters) was consumed in Europe in 2010.  We had the options of using a solid circle, hollow circle or with a symbol of a wine bottle.  While the bottle itself was neat, it proved to be misleading and confusing.  I decided to go with the hollow circle because I thought it was easiest to understand.

Figure 2

In Figure 2, we zoomed up to contain mostly western Europe.  This makes it easier to decipher the countries.  As for the symbol that was used, it's a combination of a solid (yet transparent) circle with a wine bottle graphic.  Again, the size of the bottle and circle were proportional to the amount of wine consumed in that country in the year 2010.  I learned a lot during this lab and can see how transparency, proportional symbols and an area specific map can really turn things around!