Map-making with Inkscape : Tutorials
Since many people juge Inkscape as too difficult to be used, i make this short tutorial.
Please forgive my eventual language problems here.
Since many people juge Inkscape as too difficult to be used, i make this short tutorial.
Please forgive my eventual language problems here.
Thanks for correction, Nugax and AresOkay, this is a tutorial about Inkscape, why and how. There's surely better and more complete ones on Internet, but i've tried to make this one on a AH novice point-of-view.
WHY?
First Inkscape is a vector graphic software. It means that if you're drawing something, you can change all or part of the final result, size, color, font, etc; without loss of resolution or pixxelisation. You can move elements as easily you can move an icon on your desktop.
That's make this software the better one for begginers, anxious map-makers or corrections obsessives.
Inkscape produce .svg files. If you need all of part of one of your previous work, you can import it in a new file, even if you have make another draw without loosing it.
You can aslo import other pictures files, but they will keep their properties.
As Wikipedia have tons of svg maps or flags, you can save them to modify, take part of them, or entierly cannibalize them.
Inkscape have many other possibilites, as editiong your own fonts, exporting your work, part of totally, in .png; etc.
Did i mention that Inkscape, not only was free, but was open-source with an active communauty? It makes that if a important bug is detected on this software, you have good chances that it would be resolved by communauty quickly.
WHY NOT?
Well, Inksape have its weakness.
First, the vectors line can have issues. Not showing or only partially. It can be easily fixed tough, but it's sometimes hard to notice it.
Then, effects on Inkscape are really jiggery-pokery. If you want, you'll have to use Gimp or PaintShopPro for that.
Inkscape is aslo a major memory's eater. Be sure to not run another software in the same time, or to not take memory for too many things.
Depsite that, it would crash sometimes, so be sure to save your map.
Okay, Inkscape make automatic save (in other files) but nothing more irritating than Inkscape crashing when saving, with impossibility to use an automatic save, loosing 4 hours of work.
HOW
So you want to make a map?
1 - Find a basemap. We could have used a wikipedia map, but it would be more complete by creating one. Just skip many steps regarding creation of a basemap if you want to cannibalize wikipedia.
Let's use this Corsica's map
*
It's a good basemap because : it's show riviers and relief
Let's say we want to make a map of the Napoleonic Kingdom of Corsica in 1845, in a ATL where Napoleon was exiled not in Elba but in Corsica.
2. Save this basemap on your computer, and open it with Inkscape. Choose the option "Incoporate the file". It would allow you to keep this map, even if you delete accidently the original file.
3.Select the pencil tool. This one :. Pencil tool allow you to draw continuous line. Each time you click left, it would create a node. Each node marks the beggining of a new sub-line. For now, know that you have several kind of node, especially the square one and the diamond shape one.
4.Drawn the coastlines. It's boring, but necessary. Put nodes at each place you'll curve the path (the line) in some times. Like this.
Go on.
You'll end with something like this.
Obviously not perfect, but you'll have the general shape of the island.
5. Now, we need to curve this paths. Use this tool..
Make sure that every node is in diamond shape. If it's not, left click+CTRL on it. To resume, square node makes the sub-path interreact, the diamond block each other.
Now select a sub-path. And curve in the direction you want to.
See that little blue lines? it's tool for helping you to curve more precisly the path.
Continue like this. And when you'll be close to ending your coastlines, be sure to put the end of your last sub-path at the beggining of the other, marked by a little empty square that will became red when you can click on it.
That's better isn't?
Congratulations, now do the same with the islands.
6.Now it's done, it's time to make the lakes/body of water
Drawn the body of water like islands. But when it's done, use this tool, and click on the basemap, within what you've just drawn. It would copy the color of the basemap at this place for your water. Of course, you could have use too the color panel, at the down.
Don't forget : left click in the color panel is for objects, Right click is for all the object : what is within the paths except the paths themselves.
Make the same thing for all water bodies.
7. Now we drawn rivers.
Just like we draw coastlines, but this time, we will not join the endings.
Well..It looks quite too big isn't?
Don't worry, it would be soon fixed.
Select the line, and right click here
Choose 0,1, the smallest possible pre-defined size.
(Personally i've choose to put all the other pahts to 0,5, but the choice is yours)
Repeat this, i'll drink a beer the time you'll finish the rivers.
8. Now you have a map with coast, islands, lakes and rivers. Maybe you want to add relief?, as you drawn coastlines, drawn the relief.
Once done, color the object and supress the paths.
Remember the place you decreased the paths? Make the same and choose supress.
Of course, you can follow all the relief lines, but i'm lacking time and motivation.
I wont show you the result, because we don't need relief for the next steps.
Real 8. Put the cities.
Select this tool. It makes rounds. Make sure you select CTRL+Left click in order to make regular rounds. Normally you would have a circle plus a round path. Put the line to 1, and color the path to black, the circle to white.
Put in at the place of a city in the base map.
Repeat by copying the round (CTRL+C) and paste on the place you want (CTRL+V)
Now the names. Use this tooland tape the name of the city.
It's likely that nor the size or the font would be conveniant. Clik on this, up menu.. Then you could change everything.
The problem now, is that the name of the city is quite bad placed, and you have hard times to center it.
Click here.. In the window that just opened, choose the option "Last selectionned". It means that every placement would be made relativly to the last object you select.
Click on the text to select it, then select+SHIFT to select the round, while keep the text selected.
Select first the one, that will center the text, and the second that will place the text right up the circle. Of course there's other types of placement, and i encourage you to test them.
I advise you to use scaling often, to place well texts, borders, etc.
Now you have this.
Repeat for all cities.
Now you have this
9. Sea.
Yes, we need sea here. it's simple, make a big blue square with the square icon.
Yes it looks like a giant blue blob that hide all the work. But don't worry, it's time to learn the wonders of scales.
Click here after having selected your blue blob.
1 is for putting the blue square all under all what you drawn, 2 is for slowly up it, scale by scale.
Stop when you'll have this
Now color the island in white, by selecting and choosing a color for the object.
It would gave this
TIP : Scaling the objects is an important tool for Inkscape. Get used to use it really often
10. Borders.
Now, we want to made borders of departements. For this time we'll follow the relief.
Wait a minute. Haven't we colored all the map, hiding all the base map? Yes we did, and it's why we need to dissimule both the coloration of island and sea.
First remove the coloration of the island. And now select the sea and click here
This number is the % of opacity. Choose 20%, it would revel enough of the basemap.
TIP : Opacity could be a cheap but effective tool for effects.
Now time to put borders. Make like rivers.
If you want to follow a river, select the one you want, copy paste, use the placement tool to put it on the first river, change the size of the second river, and continue to drawn using the pencil.
Maybe a straight line is not the best to use. Click here.
TIP : You can modify color and style of object and paths here
You'll have many options, but click on the path's style button, and you'll have the choice of size, color or shaping. Use the shape you want.
Proceed like this for all your borders, when finished replace the opacity of sea at normal, and recolor the island.
You should have something like this
10. Names. We have borders...but they're corresponding to what? It's probably better to name them. Use text tool you used for cities.
Hmm. It looks bad.
We need to improve the name of départements.
Use the pen tool.
Contrary to the pencil, it would only make one path, no consecutive.
Draw a line for each text. Now curve the path following the position you want for the text.
Now, clik on "Text" in the menu. Choose the option "Put the text following the path". And, magic! It's follow the path. You have only to adjust the text or the path to improve.
Make sure to supress the size of the path once the work done. Be careful, don't supress the path itself, it would cancel the text changes.
COntinue like that.
And voila!
11. Size. It's okay, but it's small...
Let's up that.
First, we need to group all these objects. Click outside the drawnings, and select them all in one square by clinging shift. Then : CLTRL+G, they will be considered as linked and when you make a change, all of them will be concerned.
Now, size. You see this numbers?
First, clik on the lock to preserve the proportions of your picture.
Then, instead of px, choose "%". Choose H (or whatever the letter right to the lock) and instead of 100,000, put 150. It would up the size of 150%.
TIP : for degroup, it's CTRL+SHIFT+G
12. Legend.
Well we need a legend. Use what you learn here to make one.
Remember, make a square, put paths, copy paste, text etc.
Here's an exemple of a finished map.
12. At this point.
Select all the islands and make an union.
Go in the "path" submenu and choose "union" or CTRL + "+".
You can have issues with islands disappearing but with the scaling tool it would be okay.
At the contrary of group, union merge all the paths and objects, making them loose their own properties.
Group the others objects between them, names of towns, towns, names of departements, etc.
I hope it was useful. Of course it's a basic help, so ther's many things not mentioned here. I would likely make some adds concerning tips, if you're asking for it. (Like "How can i make this sort of things")
Last edited:
