Book Image

Mapping with ArcGIS Pro

By : Amy Rock, Ryan Malhoski
Book Image

Mapping with ArcGIS Pro

By: Amy Rock, Ryan Malhoski

Overview of this book

ArcGIS Pro is a geographic information system for working with maps and geographic information. This book will help you create visually stunning maps that increase the legibility of the stories being mapped and introduce visual and design concepts into a traditionally scientific, data-driven process. The book begins by outlining the steps of gathering data from authoritative sources and lays out the workflow of creating a great map. Once the plan is in place you will learn how to organize the Contents Pane in ArcGIS Pro and identify the steps involved in streamlining the production process. Then you will learn Cartographic Design techniques using ArcGIS Pro's feature set to organize the page structure and create a custom set of color swatches. You will be then exposed to the techniques required to ensure your data is clear and legible no matter the size or scale of your map. The later chapters will help you understand the various projection systems, trade-offs between them, and the proper applications of them to make sure your maps are accurate and visually appealing. Finally, you will be introduced to the ArcGIS Online ecosystem and how ArcGIS Pro can utilize it within the application. You will learn Smart Mapping, a new feature of ArcGIS Online that will help you to make maps that are visually stunning and useful. By the end of this book, you will feel more confident in making appropriate cartographic decisions.
Table of Contents (12 chapters)
Index

Choosing a projection


Now that you've had a quick overview of some of the more common geographic and projection coordinate systems, you should have some understanding of how your projection choice can change the look of your map. But of all the thousands of choices of projections that ArcGIS Pro gives you, which one should you use? This is dependent on the scale and shape of your data, and what the purpose of your map is. It is usually best to choose the smallest projection that all your data fits into. This will minimize the distortion that can be introduced when using larger projections. For example, if you are mapping world capitals, you wouldn't want to use a continent or country-based projection, you would want to use a world projection. On the other hand, if you are mapping clean water locations in Libya, you wouldn't want to use a projection based on the North American Datum.

Scale of your data

It is important to understand the full spatial extent of your data. The size, shape, and...