Symbology 2
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Outline
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Symbology and mapping
Classification examples
Standard symbols
Tricks
Quiz 2
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Symbology and Mapping
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Making maps is the next module
Mapping is Cartography
Symbolization is basic to good maps
What’s good map?
One that communicates your message
efficiently
• Sierra Club vs. Adirondack league club
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For example
If you were trying to make the case that you should
be able to limit the publics use of your lake which 4
map would you use?
Steps to Creating a Map
• Define the Purpose of the map
• Restate into a design problem
• Design solution –
– Symbolization
– arrangement of map’s elements
• Graphic design
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Graphic design
• Which elements of a map do you want
the viewer to notice first?
– The inset map? The main map? The
legend? Features in the map?
• Some parts will be like background
• while others are foreground
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Back to symbology
• Through symbology you can
– Draw reader’s attention from one detail
and toward another
– OR
– You can distort the data so that the
reader comes away with the wrong
understanding of what is there.
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Parts of a map
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Main map
Smaller scale inset maps showing location
Larger scale inset maps showing detail
Title of the map (usually prominent)
Subtitles
Legend
Borders and neatlines
Scale (graphic)
North Arrow
Metadata
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Mapped Area
420000
440000
Title
460000
480000
LEWIS COUNTY
NEW YORK
500000
Border
4880000
4880000
US Highway
[
%
[ [%
%
4860000
[%%
[%
[%
[ %
[ %
[
[
%
[%
[%
%
[
[
%
Legend
4860000
State Highway
Sub Station
[
%
Rivers
[
[ %
%
4840000
N
4840000
[
%
Gradicule
[
[%
[ %
[ [% %
%
[%
%
[[
%
[
%
4820000
4820000
W
Neatline
E
S
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%
420000
440000
460000
Unmapped Area
30000
Scale
0
500000
Purpose,
metadata
480000
30000
Credits
This map to be used to evaluate
sites for future paper plant which
has to be near a substation
and a highway.
60000 Meters
LAGIS, esf
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Classification
• DEMO
• See link below for an excellent
discussion of classification
• http://gis.washington.edu/esrm250/l
essons/arcmap_basics/displaying_lay
ers.html
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Standard symbols
• The following standard symbols are
drawn from the USDA Geospatial
Symbology
• The entire document is located at
• http://www.itc.nrcs.usda.gov/scdm/
docs/SPG-GeospatialSymbology.pdf
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Tricks
• Printing maps a getting them into
word or other Microsoft stuff
• Eye dropper
• Graphics tools
• Selecting stuff in the layout view
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Printing
• It is often difficult to print maps directly from ArcMap
• So, since you have to turn in a word document anyway…
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Save as a .png
Do file>Export
Select .png as “Save as type”
Save
In word select Insert>Picture>From file
In word you can format the insertion by right clicking the image
and selecting Format picture
– Click Layout and select how you want text wrapped (usually
square)
– If you insert the picture in to a text box you have more control
over where the picture is placed. I usually un-check “move with
text” and “allow overlap”
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Eye Dropper
• A tool you can add to your project
interface that allows you to identify the
parameters of the colors in your map
• Particularly useful if you have two sets of
data in the same map!
– See help – use the search tool, enter in “eye
dropper” and click on “using the eye dropper
tool” to learn how to stick it into your project
profile and create named colors
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Selecting stuff
• When you have a compete map layout and
want to change something, say, the N arrow
it can be hard to select
• The trick is to start drawing the selection
box OUTSIDE of the map and extend the
box to include the thing you wanted to
select
• Booby Trap: Usually when you insert a thing
like a text box it will appear as a little tiny
thing in the middle of the map. Hard to
see and hard to select
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