Where to begin?

[HarryWraith]

So, for reasons which would only bore you, I find myself with some time on my hands for the next couple of months. So I've decided to follow a long term aim I've had, which is to get into fantasy cartography. I already use photoshop for my photography so that seems the logical tool for me to use. I appreciate I'll be learning a more artistic skillset, but I have the basics nailed down already so the learning curve won't be so steep as I'm not picking up new software from scratch.

My question is this: if I want to 'hand draw' maps, where should I begin?
Who does good tutorial vids?
What resources would you recommend?
Are there online learning resources other than youtube?

I'll expand to area, continent and world mapping at some point, but right now I'm mostly interested in doing town and city maps in an orthographic top-down style.

Many thanks in advance.

[Kellerica]

If you are wanting to actually do your drawings by hand, the first thing I would do is invest in a graphics tablet, if you haven't already. It really makes all the difference when it comes to drawing things digitally. I personally use a Wacom Cintiq (mine's the 22HD model from a few years back), which I can recommend, but Wacom's products are defnitely more pricey. Huion seems to have a good selection of more reasonably priced tablets that I have heard a lot of really good things about, and that's probably where I would turn now if I had to replace mine. My partner uses a XP-Pen which also seems like an excellent product.

I personally steer away from Youtube as much as I can, I much prefer written tutorials over video one.

The Guild actually has a really good collection of Photoshop tutorials that I can personally recommend. I didn't know a thing about how to make maps or anything else with PS when I found this forum ten years ago, and it was the tutorials I found here that got me started. Here's a few town related ones I found in the PDF listings:
https://www.cartographersguild.com/s...ad.php?t=18390
https://www.cartographersguild.com/s...ead.php?t=1150
https://www.cartographersguild.com/s...ad.php?t=10421
https://www.cartographersguild.com/s...ead.php?t=4313

Some of them might be a bit older at this point, but defnitely still worth taking a look at. They can at least give you some ideas on how to approach things.

As for resources... Everyone is different when it comes to maps, but for me one of the most important tools in my trade are good textures. My own maps lean heavily into the antique parchment type of aesthetic, so for me my large collection of high definition paper and parchment textures are an absolute must. A lot of my best parchment textures come from this amazing collection by CoyoteMax, I've also made some myself, and the rest I've bought from Shutterstock. Textures.com also has a really good selection of seamless textures and patterns for things like rock, dirt, vegetation, tiles, water and the like for more realisctic, satellite style maps.

[HarryWraith]

If you are wanting to actually do your drawings by hand, the first thing I would do is invest in a graphics tablet, if you haven't already.

The Guild actually has a really good collection of Photoshop tutorials that I can personally recommend.

As for resources... Everyone is different when it comes to maps, but for me one of the most important tools in my trade are good textures. My own maps lean heavily into the antique parchment type of aesthetic, so for me my large collection of high definition paper and parchment textures are an absolute must. A lot of my best parchment textures come from this amazing collection by CoyoteMax, I've also made some myself, and the rest I've bought from Shutterstock. Textures.com also has a really good selection of seamless textures and patterns for things like rock, dirt, vegetation, tiles, water and the like for more realisctic, satellite style maps.

Thank you for taking the time to reply. Yes, I purchased an XP deco pro medium. I think this is enough for now.

Textures is a great suggestion and I had already begun to collect rocks and other nature textures. Advantage of being a photographer is I'm constantly snapping interesting textures while I'm out and about. But having a good library to hand is definitely a great suggestion. I hadn't thought about 'paper' though.

I'll be sure to explore this see to see what there is.

[psyekl]

For education I say "use what works": for me it's visual sources such as pictures, video and lecture. For my brother YouTube is nothing but a distraction and he prefers text and books. YouTube is a phenomenal source, and many professional companies use it for formal training, so it definitely works for me.

Another excellent resource is to use historical references: medieval maps were often drawn in pictorial view. It is amazing to see how the simplistic imagery used by the cartographers manages to make such wonderful images. By researching historical and real references, you will also not only gain a sense of how to realistically organize different settlements but discover what types of buildings and resources were required for everyday life that may go unconsidered.