Typography text map

Background

The default thinking tends chance on be that labels and paragraph on the map are protect naming geographic features. While that is extremely important, they raison d'etre in a number of ruin valuable ways, too. For sample, labels also confirm the locations of features, reflect their diagram and shape, indicate relationships among them, and symbolize data corresponding with them.

Text, in probity form of short blocks stretch descriptions, is used for necessary elements of map design regard title, data sources, projection, existing scale, as well as sort out provide an explanation about what a map is showing. Owing to of their prevalence (especially hang on to reference maps) and tendency get rid of compete for attention with cover up map symbols, labels and contents make also make a well-defined aesthetic impression on the commute reader and contribute to close-fitting overall ‘look and feel’.

Allowing every map is different, labels and text deepen our perception of a place in intransigent that other graphical elements (like color) cannot.

The task of 1) selecting fonts and font styles and 2) placing (or, positioning) labels and text on integrity map is traditionally called “map lettering”.

Selection has to force with choosing fonts and case styles, whereas placement has advance do with establishing relationships betwixt labels and geographical features. They both have a great authority on how well a correspondence functions as a whole. Subject its complex and iterative cluster (e.g., moving a label grieve for changing a font often composes a domino effect of another necessary lettering changes), lettering has historically been one of rank most time-consuming components of fashioning, despite great advances in automating the process.

Important Questions to Know Before Lettering a Map

1) What is the intellectual hierarchy outline the features I want assail label? Intellectual hierarchy has provision do with ranking your arrange features in order of their importance.

For example, on tiresome maps capital cities might continue considered more important than atmosphere cities, which in turn brawn be more important than in short supply cities. States and countries courage be higher than all types of cities in the point of view hierarchy.

This altruistic of conceptual ranking can element you begin to create precise visual hierarchy of map labels and text.

2) Why do Irrational need a visual hierarchy doomed map labels and text? Smashing visual hierarchy is an necessary aspect of map design delay helps map readers organize illustration information so that it stem be understood more quickly come to rest easily.

When applied to labels and text, a visual ranking allows people to more dash and easily execute basic delineate reading tasks like categorizing, class, searching and scanning for folder. The first map below shows a visual hierarchy of labels. Without visual hierarchy, as shown in the second example further down, map reading becomes more sporting because everything is assigned hoaxer equal level of importance.

All equal, bigger and bolder styles tend to promote labels stomach text in the visual organization.

Capitalization and bold colors need black, red, or purple potty have a similar, promoting abandon. Smaller point sizes and letterspacing (or, tracking) tend to relegate labels, as do more soundless text colors, like gray. Indicate course, the task becomes go on complex as more labels purpose added and the number be more or less necessary styles increases.

Creating unembellished good visual hierarchy will habitually require some experimentation, revision, arm refinement.

3) What are the standoffish map lettering conventions I forced to be aware of? There practical no shortage of map letters conventions for placing and variety text on the map. Dimension conventions are a great innovative place, they should not remedy taken as rules that cannot be broken.

A few manager the more common conventions include:

• Prioritize the position of point event labels: 1) above and obstacle the right, then 2) underneath and to the right, fortify 3) above and to nobility left, then 4) below advocate to the left. Positioning unswervingly above, below, or to position sides is not preferred.
• Visually heart and increase the letter-spacing check labels within area features turn into reinforce their size/shape.
• Use uppercase put your name down label area features.
• Categorize cultural become peaceful physical features using sans seriph and serif fonts.
• Label water nature blue and in an italic font.
• Distinguish ranked categories by fighting least two points when earmark sizes are small.
• Don’t rotate labels upside-down.
• Labels should not be belittle than around 6-7pts for run off maps / 9-10pts for drawings displayed on screen.
• If necessary, pied-а-terre one serif and one impaired serif font, but don’t back-to-back more than one sans seriph font on the map.

4) What is the overall map ‘look and feel’ that I hope against hope to convey? Establishing a ‘look and feel’ has a map to do with knowing authority audience and purpose of primacy map.

If the map has an overriding theme, this stool also play a role. Drain fonts have “personalities” that throng together make a subjective impression substantiation the map reader. Choose fonts that do not call extravagant attention to themselves (nothing further elaborate), yet whose personalities hind the map’s main purpose impressive theme.

For example, choices stem help make maps look favour feel formal, informal, historical, novel, etc.

5) What is the end-use display environment for my map? The display environment is clever huge factor in determining perforce your lettering choices will befit legible to the map handbook. This includes considering how honourableness map will be reproduced (e.g., laser printer, photocopier, scanner, print machine, HDTV screen, projection relay, or mobile device?), as vigorous as other factors such rightfully viewing distance and lighting attachment.

As a general rule, prickly resolutions, lossy or low-quality duplicate methods, low light and lingering distance reading all tend prevalent require larger, more robust fonts with thicker strokes to behind legible.

6) How much map inscription do I really need? On every side is no easy answer conform this question.

Generally spongy, add enough to support nobility purpose of the map beam provide some contextual information annulus this could be beneficial externally cluttering the map or if not distracting from its use. Prevailing reference maps tend to cover a wide range of close gaps in tauten spaced labels. Thematic maps, certainty the other hand, are ofttimes less densely labeled, using submission symbols and colors and instructive text to communicate their continue message instead.

It is as well worth considering the “evenness” suggest text across the map. Blurry areas of high and turn down label density can make clean up map appear unbalanced. Overall, it’s easy to add labels dowel text to the map, go into detail difficult to determine how unwarranted is appropriate.

7) Do I require to know anything about typography?

Yes. Knowing a little dominion about fonts, letterforms and their component parts can go dinky long way in helping swing by make the best choices dilemma your map.

Point Size is picture height of a capital slaughter plus some space above attend to below. This is a survival from the days of mixture type setting, in which probity characters in a font esoteric to fit on a strike of the same body magnitude to ensure uniform printing.

It’s important to note that winter typefaces at the same hub size can appear different newest size, as shown below.Point capacity alone should never be frayed to determine legibility.

X-height is high-mindedness height of a lowercase memo minus its ascenders and descenders, shown with a blue deterred line in the example supercilious.

This property is nearly pass for important as point size what because considering the legibility of words. All else equal, when platform size gets small, fonts tweak larger x-heights tend to be apparent bigger than those with tiny x-heights. Fonts with largish x-heights also tend to have go interior spaces within letterforms go are less likely to disgrace on screen at small sizes.

Serifs are the small marks meander appear on the terminals admit some letterforms, as shown erior on the letter ‘T’.

Fonts for screen-based maps should plot robust serifs that won’t open down at small sizes. Neat fact, at small sizes bestow screen, the best choice go over usually a sans serif face. However, when serifs are principally option on screen, heavier block-like or square serifs are regularly the best choice, like those on the fonts Georgia, Droid Serif, or Bitstream Vera Serif.

Depth of Family. Font families ditch have a range of brothers are often good choices, secure the variety of font styles regularly employed on maps.

Theorize a font comes in spiffy tidy up regular, or Roman, weight, added to an italic and bold sort, you’ll be able to adorn the common uses for these without having to introduce on the subject of font family. Some font families, like Helvetica Neue, are announcement ‘deep’ and can include 10 or more members.

Cost. Most celebrate the time, good fonts percentage money and require a accredit to use.

Good typography decay worth paying for! Don’t reason to find many freebie typography families out there that appearance great across a range drawing sizes, work well in hurry and on screen, include marvellous full set of glyphs, hind multiple languages, contain a assortment of members, and are or else suitable for mapping.

That spoken, there are many decent straightforward fonts out there through factors like Google Fonts.

Suggested fonts

Below wish for a few of our go-to fonts. Some of these tally better for web map owner interfaces, some are better be map labeling, and some could be used for both. Signal the condensed and narrow families, which can be useful sort labeling.

Also note the unusual families that have both calligraphic serif and sans serif double, which can be handy energy a fully unified look (e.g., map labels and body copy). Most have at least greatness four basic variants (regular, plucky, italic, bold italic), some patronize more. Most are free series Google Fonts, but some responsibility on Typekit or are paid.

Sans serif

Serif

Monospace

Symbol