M3 Cartography

In module 3 of cartography we continued our investigations and application of appropriate map techniques and the principles behind them. In this assignment we were given a packet of data spatially describing Ward 7 in Washington DC, and directed to create an aesthetically pleasing map using skills we learned from reading and lecture. Gestalt's Design Principles, visual hierarchy, and the mechanics of certain ArcPro labeling and scale tools were the forefront of this assignment. 

For this assignment we created maps of Ward 7 public schools, with specific requirements for certain symbols and labels to display. 

One of the first things I did with my map was use the Clip tool to create small subsets of the road, school, and park shapefiles. I clipped these datasets to just the boundaries of Ward 7, which allowed me to focus detail in that area. 

For the assignment we also needed to label one neighborhood in each of the seven neighborhood clusters within Ward 7. I knew I didn't want to keep the neighborhood cluster delineations on the map, because it would create too much distraction. I assigned a boundary-only symbology to the neighborhood clusters, then created unique-feature color symbology for the neighborhoods themselves. This allowed me to see each neighborhood border within the neighborhood cluster. By mapping the schools over both of these layers, I was able to make a list of the seven neighborhoods I wanted to label based on which ones seemed most relevant to school locations. Labelling just seven neighborhoods could have been accomplished a number of ways - from annotating, to SQL lines, to creating a new label class based on feature selection. For my map I decided to add an attribute column called "Name Selected" and only populate the column for neighborhoods I had picked to label. This wouldn't have worked for a larger dataset, but for this size it was handy to be able to manipulate the labels by selecting that new attribute. 

After toying with color and symbology, the last challenge in the map creation was inserting text that followed the shape of the river for Anacostia River. During map creation I had located the Anacostia, created a new attribute column for naming it, and then used the River Polygon label defaults to label the river. This gave me the results I expected during most of my map work, but once I got to layout the labelling proved very difficult to control and did not always line up with the feature like I expected. This led me to use an annotation, where I went to Layout->Insert->Curved Text and traced the shape of the river before fixing the font and color for my new curved river label. 

Overall this was a great exercise in map customization and aesthetics. I think I spent more time on this map than almost any of the maps in the certificate program so far. 

One thing I wish I had done was put a shadow on the border of my Washington D.C. shape, since this would have added a new layer of visual hierarchy and helped better establish Feature Ground Relationship.