As per my usual modus operandi, here's two versions of a little something I made for no other reason than love: It's a very large poster — 24″ × 36″, in fact. So, I recommend clicking those images to browse around the PDF versions. Or just look at this quick pair of detail images, instead: … Continue reading An Arrangement of Islands →

The other day I managed to pull off a fairly complicated Illustrator effect that I was rather proud of, and I wanted to share it today with all of you and talk about how I did it. While you may not ever want to reproduce this exact effect, hopefully it will give you an idea … Continue reading The Power of Appearances →

For the past few months, on Twitter, I've been posting brief practical cartography tips every Tuesday using the #PractiCarto hashtag. You can click on the tweet below to read a thread with my whole rationale, but the short version is: by keeping it short, it makes it easy for me to share, and it makes it easy for … Continue reading A #PractiCarto Archive →

As longtime readers may know, I'm a big fan of label knockouts — see my previous tutorial on the subject here. I'd much rather have stuff underneath a label gracefully vanish vs. stepping on it with a halo. However, the downside with the technique I usually use is that you actually have multiple independent copies … Continue reading Even Fancier Type Knockouts in Illustrator →

Last May the deadline approached for submissions to the Map Gallery at NACIS 2016, and I didn't have anything interesting to share. I could have simply let a year go by without showing something off, but that thought instilled in me the irrational (but recurring) fear that I was becoming professionally irrelevant and that my … Continue reading Metropotamia →

Last year, I successfully used this space to prepare a version of my NACIS 2015 talk prior to giving it, and if you'll indulge me, I will do so again this year. Turns out it's helpful to write your thoughts down before delivering them to a roomful of 150+ people. EDIT: If you'd like to see … Continue reading Terrain in Photoshop: Layer by Layer →

I am asked, from time to time, how I have managed to make it as a freelancer (so far). For those who are unwise enough to rely upon me for advice, I generally offer two major comments: first off, the network of comrades I have developed via my participation in NACIS has been a big piece … Continue reading A Career Built on Side Projects →

This morning, thanks to the magic of Twitter, I was alerted to an article on Slate about the maps at the Osher Map Library, at the University of Southern Maine. One of the things that the article points out, and which was the focus of Gretchen Peterson's tweet about it (and, as I later realized, was … Continue reading Advertising the Physicality of Old Maps →

There is a special span of time that is known to freelancers of all stripes: that magical period after you've delivered a draft to a client, but before they have had a chance to reply to you with comments & revisions (or, rarely, immediate acceptance). It's one of my favorite times on the job, and … Continue reading Naming the Golden Minutes →

Today I wanted to share with you a little project of mine from a few months ago, which may best be described by the question: What happens if you take the shoreline of a lake, cut it, and unfurl it? The once-closed shoreline of the lake now becomes linear, providing a new perspective on a familiar feature. Warm up your scrolling … Continue reading A Matter of Perspective →