Level lines map

[Megahercio]

Besides that, a river is a bit wonky in the lower right middle. I think.

Yes, you are right eViLe_eAgLe, I have corrected the area.

Attachment 45434

[Megahercio]

This is looking very cool! And wow, the work involved in doing this whole thing with a bezier pen. Hats off, and have some rep

Thanks very much Gidde. I never use the bezier pen. The reason is that for me is easier to work with the pen... surely that the problem is that I have not met the way to handle the bezier properly... but now is an habit.

[Megahercio]

Looking good. Look forward to seeing more.

I moved your thread to the regional WIP area. The redirect will expire in a day so come back here after that.

Thanks Jaxilon

[Megahercio]

Hello

To make the level-lines is so boring that in the meanwhile I have been proving new colours, softer (cause the names of cities, countries, etc... have to be perfectly readables) and at the same time with a good contrast between them. My system is to prove untill I think I have get it. I say "I think".

The new colours:

7bb1b606.jpg

As you can see the relief is going on slowly.

If I want to give the map an old patina, I take an old paper-background with any texture could make it even older. Then I put the map over the paper layer and make a change of transparency or a similar action.

489ae0a9.jpg d67a342f.jpg

I suppose people here knows how to make it.
It is just a test of colours.
As a old map-looking needs old symbols too, I have been searching in old books to see what I "fish"

By example from this link, I have get a "North":

http://echo.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/ECHO...1355&wx=0.1354

From Vitruvius, then I copy it in vectorial an keep it to put in the map in his moment.

6a8f8329.png

And go on with the level-lines.

[Hai-Etlik]

The term you want is "contour line" or if you want to get really fancy "isohypse". A map showing precise elevation is generally called "hypsographic". Detailed, large scale ones are often called "topographic", though the scale on yours is rather small for that.

[Megahercio]

Hello Hai-Etlik
Thanks for give me your opinion.
Then, in this kind of small scale maps... what way to represent the relief do you should employ? This map is the result of a personal development in the representation of relief in historical maps. Then it is not close at all and any idea of example will be wellcome.
In internet the most I have met is this kind of relief or in the google maps:
http://www.maps-for-free.com/index.html

[Hai-Etlik]

Hello Hai-Etlik
Thanks for give me your opinion.
Then, in this kind of small scale maps... what way to represent the relief do you should employ? This map is the result of a personal development in the representation of relief in historical maps. Then it is not close at all and any idea of example will be wellcome.
In internet the most I have met is this kind of relief or in the google maps:
http://www.maps-for-free.com/index.html

I wasn't saying you should do anything different, I was just explaining what to call what you were doing rather than "level lines".

[Megahercio]

I wasn't saying you should do anything different, I was just explaining what to call what you were doing rather than "level lines".

Yes, but as a separate chapter,I was asking you, that have experience in the matter, if you think there is a more advanced way to make that, not now and in this map but in general. Would be of great help for me to give one more step in my next maps.

[Hai-Etlik]

Yes, but as a separate chapter,I was asking you, that have experience in the matter, if you think there is a more advanced way to make that, not now and in this map but in general. Would be of great help for me to give one more step in my next maps.

There are pretty much three ways used to show elevation on modern maps. Contours, like you used, whether simple lines or coloured regions. It's very effective and is widely used. Continuous colour gradients can also be used; they can show more detail sometimes as you are flattening things into sharp bands, but sometimes they can also loose it as the colours are so close they blur together. The can also make it hard to figure out exactly what elevation a point is. Finally there is shaded relief which represents the light and shadow hitting the slopes, often from an impossible angle (The sun never shines from due north-west if you are in the northern hemisphere, but that's the most popular angle. Shaded relief is quite good at showing small details, but useless for understanding absolute elevations.

You can combine them if you want. There are even maps that use all three at once. There are certain ways of combining smooth elevation colours with shaded relief called "Swiss Shading", and this is often topped off with contour lines.

In your case, you might try locating a shaded relief layer for France. You could also get a DEM or Heightfield and build your own shaded relief layer from it using the right software.

[Megahercio]

There are pretty much three ways used to show elevation on modern maps. Contours, like you used, whether simple lines or coloured regions. It's very effective and is widely used. Continuous colour gradients can also be used; they can show more detail sometimes as you are flattening things into sharp bands, but sometimes they can also loose it as the colours are so close they blur together. The can also make it hard to figure out exactly what elevation a point is. Finally there is shaded relief which represents the light and shadow hitting the slopes, often from an impossible angle (The sun never shines from due north-west if you are in the northern hemisphere, but that's the most popular angle. Shaded relief is quite good at showing small details, but useless for understanding absolute elevations.

You can combine them if you want. There are even maps that use all three at once. There are certain ways of combining smooth elevation colours with shaded relief called "Swiss Shading", and this is often topped off with contour lines.

In your case, you might try locating a shaded relief layer for France. You could also get a DEM or Heightfield and build your own shaded relief layer from it using the right software.

Maybe my next step would be, reading your pieces of advice, to get a Heightfield program, mainly for battle maps and use the "Swiss Shading" for maps like this of France, although the technical aspect must not be any easy and the work infinite. The thing is to practice enough... Thanks very much, a great answer.