User:Wauteurz/Mapmaking/Region

See also: User:Wauteurz/Mapmaking/Starting out

This page treats the creation of static, SVG-based region and country maps. For documentation on how to create static map elements for dynamic maps through GeoJSON, see this page.

Having gotten familiar with the how and why of static maps, you might find yourself needing one. Of course one can be requested through Requests for maps, but that might take a while. Therefore, you might want to take matters into your own hands and start making a map yourself. This page is there for that. It lays out the makeup of maps and walks you through the creation of one. Of course you may take some creative liberties, but for the sake of uniformity, it isn't recommended to stray too much from the established style for Wikivoyage maps.

Starting

Hand drawn maps can potentially be the most elegant and accurate (when traced over a high quality satellite base image), and are a fantastic way to start getting familiar with how SVG files work—since you'll be making them from the ground up!

Acquire a base image

Base imagery is quite easy to come across, though not everything is freely available for reuse. Some of our recommended resources that definitely can be used are:

• Anywhere: OpenStreetMap - Open to and developed by the public, OpenStreetMap (OSM) can be used to your own heart's content. Be sure to properly credit the OSM community when using this as a source though. An example of how to do that can be found here. You can either edit the webpage to exclude elements and stitch together screenshots at your desired zoom to create your base image, but this is a labour-intensive process. Instead, you can use the BigMap2 tool (guide) to select a region and export a high-res image of this area. Use the zoom controls to get a resolution that would work for your application.
• Anywhere: Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection is mostly a good source for reference material for country maps.

Layer structure

Recommended layer structure (Region maps)

Layer name		Description and contents	Help
Frame		The top elements of your map. This may contain a thin borderline, but also contains the map title, scale bar and text used on the map.
	Map elements	Key elements for legibility: Title, scale bar, north arrow, et cetera.	Template
	Annotation	Indication of location: Names of waters, regions, points of arrival (airports, train stations), cities and destinations. (Optional: Highways, railways)
Paths		Most of the line elements on the map. Borders specifically get made in a layer some ways down the order. This layer mostly contains infrastructure.
	Railway		#Rail
	Highway		#Roads
Geography		Natural elements on the map, such as lakes, rivers, but also parks.
	Lakes		#Natural features
	Rivers
	Parks		#Marking regions
Border		The borders of the mapped area. As borders tend to use natural elements, you might want to choose to keep paths and fills separate, as to not have to trace the same bits of river for a border.
	Paths	The actual border lines, in white.	#Marking regions
	Fill	The colouring of regions.
Map		Your base image(s).	#Acquire a base image
Background		A simple square the size of your map, either being coloured  #8e908d  if the surrounding area is mostly land or containing the water pattern if it is mostly water.

The layer structure you use largely depends on what you think works best. It is generally good practise to look at maps created by others, and copying what you think works best for your case.

Defining scopes

Building infrastructure

Final stretch