Workshop overview

Cartographic design and better map making in QGIS. Discussion covers general design concepts with a focus on design issues and best practices for GIS mapping. Hands on sessions will cover a narrower set of the most common issues:

• Why design matters in map making?

• Most common GIS map design issues

• Establishing a good Visual Hierarchy

• Methods for simplifying busy or complex data

• How to use (and not abuse) color in maps

• Map layout

Time permitting we may also cover other topics based on student interests:

• Small Multiple layouts

• Maps to animated GIFs

• Working with design software (Illustrator and Inkscape)

Prerequisites

In this workshop I'll assume you already have a basic understanding of:

• Common spatial data formats (vector and raster).

• Desktop GIS software, and QGIS specifically.

If you're new to GIS, please see our Intro to GIS workshop here.

Workshop setup

• Download and install QGIS - a free and open source desktop GIS for Mac, Windows, and Linux.

• Download the exercise QGIS Cartography and extract it to your Desktop.

• Small Multiples in QGIS exercise

Zoom Meeting Room

Please be on time to the Zoom call. You will need to authenticate with your Stanford.edu email to gain access.

Stanford Slack

#stanford-geospatial-center