Visual Variables
Visual variables can vary in the following manner:
Size: the thickness/size of a symbol
Size: the thickness/size of a symbol
Value: the
lightness/darkness of a colour
Hue: shade of a colour (element on the colour wheel; a pure colour)
Saturation: purity of the colour; also known as chroma
Orientation: the direction of the symbol
Shape: the type shape used for symbolisation
Arrangement: the way in which the symbol is arranged
Texture
Hue: shade of a colour (element on the colour wheel; a pure colour)
Saturation: purity of the colour; also known as chroma
Orientation: the direction of the symbol
Shape: the type shape used for symbolisation
Arrangement: the way in which the symbol is arranged
Texture
Colours
Colours used limited by: 1) human vision, 2) colour specification of systems, 3) colours in map design1) Human Vision
A beautiful video on the physics of colour
Two Theories on vision:
Trichromatic theory: condition of possessing independent channels for conveying colour information, derived from three different cone types (cone cells). In reality there might be more than 3. (by Thomas Young, 18th century)
Opponent-process
theory: psychological model that accounts for wide range of behaviours,
including colours. We perceive colours as three independent receptor types of
opposing pairs: white v. black, blue v. yellow, red v. green. (by Ewald Hering
in the late 17th century)
A lecture on the Colour-Opponent Theory
A lecture on the Colour-Opponent Theory
It has been shown that both work hand-in-hand (physiological v. psychological).
Simultaneous contrast:
appearance of a colour in a display depends on colour that surrounds it
Successive contrast:
colours modified in the order they are seen
A video illustrating simultaneous colour
2) Colour specification of systems
Things to note:
Printer-friendly
Colour-blind friendly
Black/white printer
3) Colours in map design
Colour conventions: e.g., blue for water, green for
lush/thick vegetation, brown for land surfaces, red with warm/blue with cool
temperature; red to advance, blue to retreat (because our eye lens bulge when
we see red, similar to seeing objects close up)
- Qualitative schemes: represented by the difference in hues
- Binary schemes: represent with differences in value, holding hue constant, unless it is used to represent qualitative difference (then hue difference might be fine)
- Sequential schemes: represent data in sequence; generally represented with value difference, hue held constant
- Diverging schemes: focus on a mid-point and variations out from that mid-point
 |
| Colour Brewer. Allows you to select for sequential, diverging colour schemes. Not included: binary scheme. |
Typography
Why text are required in a GRAPHIC map:
- Labelling: clear and unambiguous communication; ‘symbols for meaning’
- Organising: structure, visual hierarchy, location, spatial extent
- Explaining: graphics cannot explain everything, title/legends/explanatory text
Typography is the usage of design in text (type).
Letter form components:
X-height: height
between base and mean-line; a font with a large x-height is said to be more readable (though a quick search on the internet says that this is a myth)
Serif: the line
at the end of a letter
Type characteristics:
Type family: a group of type designs that
reflect common characteristics
Typeface:
combination of type of a particular style and family
Style: italics used more for natural features; also for
identification of publication though it is harder to read, water features;
Font: a set of
all alphanumeric and special characters of a particular type family, style and
size
Spacing: (between
letters) kerning, (between lines) leading; letter spacing for words in
uppercase so it is more readable (i.e., outline is more visually dominant than
inner space)
Type size:
implies ordered relationships; larger of greater importance; small sizes should
be avoided (4-5point)
Type weight: bold
implies greater quantity; light type may not always be available in a mapping
type
Case: lower case
for easier word recognition, uppercase for mountain ranges, lower cases for
other natural features; more important/ larger features with the usage of
uppercase
Type face and
lettering harmony: one typeface should be used across the map; multiple
variants of a type face can be used
Masking:
background (“highlight”)
Hallow: border
around text
Callout: with
speech bubble
Type is important to convey the message you wish to give to your audience.
As much as possible, it should be light in shading, enough kerning between the letters.
Capitalisation should be avoided unless its for a major area.
Finally, the most important thing is readability. :)
Type is important to convey the message you wish to give to your audience.
As much as possible, it should be light in shading, enough kerning between the letters.
Capitalisation should be avoided unless its for a major area.
Finally, the most important thing is readability. :)
History of Typography
What is typography
Layout
*this section is still work in progress
Planar Organisation
Balance
Rudolf Arnheim’s visual principles of balance: weight & direction
Variables that confer more/less weight
Location: at structural net (via golden ratio)/ not at structural net, right/left, top/bottom, away from centre/near centre
Shape: regular/irregular, compact/not compact
Colour/ Interest/ isolation: type of colour (red/blue, bright/dark, white/black), instrinsic interest/none, isolated/surrounded
Size: large/small
Variables that confer direction or not
Location: isolated/ 'is surrounded'/ 'is in centre'
Shape: can direct with axes
Subject matter: can direct based on interest
Variables that confer more/less weight
Location: at structural net (via golden ratio)/ not at structural net, right/left, top/bottom, away from centre/near centre
Shape: regular/irregular, compact/not compact
Colour/ Interest/ isolation: type of colour (red/blue, bright/dark, white/black), instrinsic interest/none, isolated/surrounded
Size: large/small
Variables that confer direction or not
Location: isolated/ 'is surrounded'/ 'is in centre'
Shape: can direct with axes
Subject matter: can direct based on interest
Internal organisation
WHAT: An ordered map arranges the graphic and/or intellectual
elements into a composition that develops a clear visual expression
HOW: Through alignment in two steps: 1) Intraparallelism - aligning map elements with each other to simplify the map 2) Alignment corrections via continual separations between groups of elements
WHY: Reduces tension
source: http://www.gitta.info/LayoutDesign/en/html/DefOrgMapEle_learningObject3.html
HOW: Through alignment in two steps: 1) Intraparallelism - aligning map elements with each other to simplify the map 2) Alignment corrections via continual separations between groups of elements
WHY: Reduces tension
source: http://www.gitta.info/LayoutDesign/en/html/DefOrgMapEle_learningObject3.html
Hierarchical organisation
Figure: important
objects that should stand out against the background
Ground: less
important objects that form the background
Perceptual grouping: the map viewer spontaneously combines elements in the visual field that share similar properties, resulting in new forms or ‘wholes’ in the visual experience; this can be done so by shape, size or proximity
Contrast: visual
differences between the map features that allow us to distinguish one from
another, achieved through considering line/ texture/ colour (value and hue)
-> Line contrast:
edges
-> Texture contrast:
pattern of small symbols repeated in such a way that the eye can perceive
individual elements
-> Value contrast:
e.g., using a dark colour as the background and lighter colour as the
foreground (Arnheim’s rule)
Closure: the
tendency for perceiver of the map to complete unfinished objects
Vignetting:
graphic emerging from an edge or border resulting in a continuous gradient of
brightness (for land-water contrast)
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