This week I made a graphic depicting the public schools in
Ward 7, Washington D.C. using ArcMap 10.2. Adding features to the map and
utilizing multiple layers to display more than one map in the final graphic was
pretty simple. The difficult part was employing the cartographic design principles.
I had no idea how difficult it could be balancing colors and line sizes until I
tried to do it this week. I could have spent an entire day adjusting colors to
get the contrast, visual hierarchy, and figure-ground balanced right but I didn’t
have that much time on my hands. I am very glad we are doing this using
computer software rather than by hand because I am not sure I could draw and erase
than many times.
As for the graphic itself, I struggled to find a way to
place all of the items so it was appealing. I wanted to place the small map of Washington
D.C. in the top left corner and the legend in the bottom left corner but
overlapping features was not possible. I also do not like placing a title on
the bottom of a graphic but it seemed like the best place for this particular
project. I know cartographic design is one area where any practice will be
beneficial.
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