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Taylor in London: The Fan's Guide to the City

Mon, 09 Mar 2026 12:08:20 GMT

Mapping Taylor Swift's London

Every year or so there is a travel department workshop to brainstorm unique new titles. There are usually some amazing ideas amongst the repeating title suggestions (many of which clearly should have been published years ago), this one however was a treat.

What is trending? Well, in the late summer of 2024 you couldn't move for Taylor Swift , her Eras Tour was hitting the UK hard and one of the editors, Sarah Allen, (a strong contender as the office go-to for all things Taylor), put forward the idea for a small gift book about the singer and her connections with London.

The initial department enthusiasm was matched by the senior teams, and then, most critically, by the marketing team. It was assessed, costed and approved, meaning Sarah could take the reins.

When dealing with popular culture there is a demanding schedule. It takes months to create a book, months to print and ship from the printers (in China for this title) and then weeks to distribute for publication. To catch the trending wave this book needed to be sent to print in record time, something larger publishers sometimes struggle with. Despite this urgency, there is always a slight delay while things start gearing up and it was not until a week or so later that I was brought in after it was confirmed the book needed to have maps.

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The initial discussion around the book had been simple enough, a 'nice map' which showed all the relevant Taylor Swift sights. As the project moved on it was up in the air if there was to be a geographical sub-division which would all need their own area maps, and would there be a further afield map? The answer to all these questions depended on the locations being selected.

While the sights were being researched I awaited the first moodboards from the design team that would give direction to the title. I created a personal mood board and tried to bring the idea of sketched, distressed linework to these maps. I wanted to link the cartography to old fanzines, autograph books and joy filled teenage fanaticism. As much as I would love to have created the whole thing using a Sharpie and a Xerox machine to echo the punk zines such as Punk Planet and Maximum RockNRoll, it really was the wrong audience.

The design team's moodboard was clearly playful but also quite clean. The maps would need to follow this feel and I sought a playful solution. When working on characterful maps there are strong structural anchor points to work around. The maps must still be clear and legible (including to colour blind readers), adaptable and scalable and able to be revisited by other teams at later stages meaning they have to be vector files drawn in Illustrator.

I gathered some examples of map styles which I brought to the team to discuss direction; a mini-moodboard.

While this was happening, the team began assembling the sights to be included which was an epic task in itself. Despite my lack of Taylor Swift knowledge, I was able to contribute a few sights. Abbey Road Studios , St Pancras Hotel and a couple more, had already been part of a book I had worked toward which never came to fruition - the Music Traveller's Guide . The locations had to be accessible, visible from public land and not private residences. The responsibilities of a publisher in this regard are huge.

Another issue to take into account was the infringement of trademarks and copyright. This was to be an unofficial book and, as well as making it clear on the cover, we needed to run the pages past the legal department to ensure we had not strayed into actionable territory. Taylor Swift is rightly protective of her privacy and at the time was subject to her private jets being tracked and the usual paparazzi attention, meaning extra care was needed.

Once all the sights were confirmed, I placed their geocodes into QGIS (GIS software) along with Openstreetmap data to get an idea of the density of the sights. If they were too closely clustered it may have been that the map would have had to be split or divided up. Thankfully there was a good distance between each.

The decision was made to abandon an alphabetical listing and build the book spatially, there were to be six different areas, each needing a map and an overview map showing all the sights relative to the entire city.

The book's map list

Overview Map of London
Central London
North London
East London
South London
West London
Beyond London

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Creating Taylor Swift Walks

It was during an early progress meeting that it was suggested that there would be themed walks. The marketing team felt this would be a good sales point so there were 5 additional maps to be drawn. These soon became full spread feature maps, meaning the simple sketched idea I had would look very empty. The Beyond London chapter would not have a walk or drive as the sights were too scattered.

The editor had selected which of the Taylor related sights to include on the walks and I began building the routes. This meant selecting a starting point and an endpoint, usually a specifically linked restaurant or bar. The routes needed to be safe, easy and ideally accessible and, although not a step-by-step guide, the routes did need to depict the exact roads or paths to travel on.

I had briefly looked at including quick, line-drawn illustrated buildings to the maps but a lot of the sights were not instantly recognisable and the maps would have just become noisy with many shop fronts. It also meant in busier areas we would be restricted to what we could show due to a lack of space. The usual cartographic tool of the building footprint was used, simple and effective

I then began looking at hand script for the fonts, to pull in the handmade feel, as though the reader was sketching their way around the city. I actually pulled together an example to show to the design team. We agreed that it was conflicting with the cleaner feel of the text which was still being worked on but was more likely to be a sans serif type.

The route was also liable to be lost when thin and brushed as in the example above, and the yellow tinted road edges risked clashing in low light and a little too close for red-green colour blind readers. The text for the roads was also being lost in the hand script which meant a rethink.

The other choice that went against the usual DK style was to show the road names in title case rather than all upper case, portraying a softer appearance. The reason the road text is usually shown in upper case on city maps is due to size restrictions. Some guidebook maps are tiny with little room available for their maps. The smaller the maps then the more the road labels are severely compressed; the capitalisation helps legibility. The copious space available in these books meant this was not a problem.

I had left draft arrows on the map with a route and sights as a bare canvas to allow the design team to work in the annotated elements to echo the rest of the book. These eventually became very simple meandering arrows. They needed to be solid and tinted to match text to avoid any conflict with the coloured route line. Building them as 100% black and on overprint setting meant that if changes needed to be made for translated editions the arrows could be shortened, lengthened or replaced entirely.

To pull the feel of the maps more toward my fanzine style idea, I began duplicating road casing (the lines that make up the road) and placing behind the other road linework - to give a slightly misaligned and rushed feel. It gave a link to the ideas and aesthetic of the fanzines I had looked at earlier in the project while maintaining a precision. The centre of the roads were filled with a white tint that was then given a transparency to add a ghosted fill to the highways and paths. The roads which ran through parks had to be punched through the green area to enable the same style to be maintained.

The underground stations needed labelling as did city areas and parks. The decision was to label only elements relevant to the area or Taylor Swift. The more content on the map then the less inviting and less legible it would become.

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From the beginning of the project the design team were very keen to include illustrations across the book, these were initially to be integrated into the maps. These began to be fed through from the illustrator Jordan Andrew Carter and we pulled them across the pages. They made a strong showing on the cover alongside the illustrated portrait and also gridded on the endpapers.

The pigeon became a department favourite.

Gutters

One technical issue with books of this size and binding is the page gutter is very deep, this is the area where the paper meets at the spine, compressing in the middle so that any printed content is not visible. For maps that cover the whole double page this is always something to take into consideration; how much of the map is not able to be read. We like to avoid readers breaking the spine of a book to see the content there so we approach the problem in a couple of ways, either boxing the map into two and having the map pause between the gutter or running the map across with extended detail to fill the space. Occasionally the gods of the mapping are in our favour and the binding and map content means we can almost ignore the gutter - see the maps for Route 66 .

To let this book's maps work, I boxed the content and gave a 5mm space either side of the central gutter. This results in the maps appearing seamless but actually, if you break the spine and look, there is space. Unfortunately this does mean the PDF which is created by the ebooks team can sometimes still have this break in the maps. Ideally the map image should be replaced with a full map but in the epub files for this title the map is still split.

When Things Change

Of course, producing a guide such as this only takes account of events and locations before the book goes to print. Since the book has been on the shelves there are plenty more locations which would have been included, the Whitgift Centre in Croydon for instance was used as the location for the Opalite video. Just more content for the second edition.

Other Artists and other Cities?!

There have been fan made guides to cities for decades, the Beatles had fans drawing maps of both London and Liverpool since the 1970s , but these usually only work well if the story of the artist is deeply embedded with a location. A specific scene emerging from a small location is great, for example, the grunge movement from the Pacific Northwest (despite the music actually being varied) or cities with huge diverse musical history ( Detroit , Strasburg , Manchester) .

Upon the release of the Taylor in London book the comments section on the Amazon reviews (yes, the publishers do read these!) was full of requests, Oasis being notable due to the media's focus on their reformation in 2025.

Fan's access to mapping tools such as Google Maps means it's incredibly simple to create an online map detailing locations. Unfortunately it is all to easy for these to be shared with locations that are still 'active', the last thing a notable musician needs is their house or office locations known to the world. Obviously the keener fans will always find a way.

Some map based music recommendations,

Herb Lester produce a great selection of themed maps:

Some others

Rock 'n' Roll London: A Guide to the City's Musical Heritage

London's Lost Music Venues
Music London
The Beatles in London Walk

For some metro-style diagrammatic maps, Mike Bell has produced a wide variety covering many artist's timelines.

Credits:

Every book has a unique heart and it's the people who work so hard on it that create that spark of joy. Hopefully you can feel the passion and effort that was placed in the project but it's its architect and editor Sarah Allen who is responsible for the book. The design was built by the managing art editor Gemma Doyle (who also designed the stunning cover) and placed on the page by Kei Ishimaru.

Buy it here !

ISBN: 9780241774397

Tools and Data:

Adobe Illustrator (main mapping)
Adobe Photoshop (texture experiments)
QGIS (openstreetmap data wrangling)
Google maps (data transfer)

Openstreetmap data

Camino de Santiago - Mapping the walk

Tue, 03 Mar 2026 12:16:27 GMT

Mapping the Camino de Santiago

An overview of the work I carried out to produce the maps for the DK book Walking the Camino de Santiago , published January 2026.

All hi-resolution map images are taken from promotional material supplied by DK. Any work in progress images are from archive and/or occasionally recreated. All opinions are my own and have no connection to the publishers.

Pilgrimage Plotting and Planning

Reaching from the furthest edges of Europe and beyond, the sprawling network of paths leading to Santiago de Compostela in Northern Spain seems to take on the form of a river network with its tributaries meandering and merging as they make their way toward the city's cathedral, home of the remains of Saint James the Apostle.

It is one of the greatest and most popular long distance walks, regularly tackled in small manageable segments while others walk from start to finish in one gruelling undertaking. There is no right or wrong way to approach the journey, be it with religious intent or secular curiosity, its story is born through personal achievement and community.

Getting Started

For pilgrims and hikers alike, the Camino de Santiago is a huge undertaking spanning many weeks and months of planning. As a result, hundreds of guidebooks and maps have been printed over the years to help the traveller forward toward Santiago de Compostela . The travel team at DK wanted to publish something beautiful to introduce those who had heard of the pilgrimage but perhaps not dived deeply into the history or logistics. This was to be a welcoming introduction to the most common routes, stories and mythology.

It was designed to be a beautiful large format gift book rather than a small practical guide. The practical guides are brilliantly precise in their explanation of routes, usually focusing on just a single selected Camino from the start up to the doors of the cathedral, but this can be overkill for a reader who is interested in discovering the differing routes' variety. It can also be overwhelming when confronted by books and maps forensically outlining the pilgrimage which are more suited to later in the planning process or on the road.

The book was always intended to be a celebration of this spiritual journey.

Design

As with all new titles, it is critical to lock in the design direction from the start. The designers will look at what has already been published and then build a design which will be in-keeping with DK 's style while also avoiding replicating any existing products. A design mood board is created by the design lead to introduce the rest of the team to looks, colours, typefaces and styles in a loose and engaging way. This helps everyone understand how the book will feel.

Once the mood board has been circulated and the team are familiar with the broad visual environment the designer is working in, the different layouts and styles are gradually locked in place and the Adobe inDesign templates are created. This gives the rest of the design department the styles, typefaces and colour swatches to work from. This was also where the map styles would begin to be drawn together.

Illustration

From the very start of the project the senior designer had flagged an illustrator they were keen to commision, Claire Harrup . The maps needed to align with the style of the illustrator without mimicing or attempt to replicate Claire's fantastic work, mainly as the amount of cartography meant I was not able to commission actual illustrations of each map. I was also approaching the map elements from a cartographic angle, so had restrictions on what I could and could not show for clarity.

Map Research

As soon as the possibility of the book was raised I had began to gather examples of interesting hiking map styles so I could have an illustrated discussion with the design team regarding mapping direction once the mood boards had been circulated. The ideas are usually just screenshots or photos, I tend to squirrel away copies of interesting maps that I discover day-to-day for just such a situation. These litter my photo library and are a fantastic creative spark when building the map design.

The Routes

Deciding which of the hundreds of Camino routes to include in the book was a decision taken at the start of the project. The physical size of the book and the limitation of 224 pages all come into play when dividing the pages. Strangely, the larger the book the less likely it is to sell, there is something overbearing and unwieldy in a 400 page book as it becomes too heavy to hold, difficult to store and transport. The huge gift books are impressive gifts but dreadful to read. I often see adverts for enormous Taschen books sold with accompanying stands for thousands of pounds and wonder which financial corporate office reception they are destined to gather dust in.

The authors and editor selected eight routes which are the most established.

• CAMINO FRANCÉS

The Camino Francés (the French Route ) starts in the French town of Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port just across the French border and makes its way through the Pyrenees ' Roncevaux Pass and on through the Spanish countryside passing cities such as Léon and Pamplona . As mentioned in the book, 180,000 pilgrims make this trip each year covering just under 500 miles.

• CAMINO PORTUGUÉS

Heading north from the city of Lisbon, the Portuguese Route can be split at a later stage to either hug the coast or continue a straighter route inland, the later taking 380 miles to reach the cathedral.

• CAMINO DEL NORTE

The Cantabrian Sea is the star along the Northern Route which hugs cliffs and crosses marshes and estuaries. Passing through Santander and Ribadeo before turning inland along the Masma River toward Santiago de Compostela . At 500 miles or so this is another long Camino.

• CAMINO PRIMITIVO

Known as the Original Way , this is the oldest of the walks, first trod by King Alfonso II in the 9th century. It's a mountainous route with plenty of historical sights and natural beauty. To complete the hike it will take a fortnight to cover the 200 miles.

• VIA DE LA PLATA

The longest route in the book which snakes its way from the heart of Seville over 600 miles from the doors of the cathedral. The Silver Way (its translation) is a much less travelled route suited to the experienced hiker. This Camino is particularly gruelling in the summer heat.

• CAMINO INGLÉS

The English Route technically begins in the heart of County Durham in the north of England . There is a route from here to the ferry port in Southampton but this section starts at either A Coruña or Ferrol, the towns whose docks welcome the pilgrims. This is the shortest route and only just sneaks in over the necessary 62 miles to qualify as a pilgrimage.

• CAMINO INVIERNO

The ' Winter Way ' is a newer route to allow pilgrims to make the journey in the north year round. Only officially approved in 2016 it avoids the more severe mountains of the Camino Primitivo as it heads west toward Santiago de Compostela .

• CAMINO FINISTERRE-MUXÍA.

An oddity, as this is a trail away from the cathedral to the 'edge of the world', the dramatic shoreline at Finisterre . A further continuation of the route to the north to visit the town of Muxía is possible.

Accuracy vs Aesthetics vs Clarity

As previously mentioned, there are already many guides to the Camino routes on the shelves, mostly focusing on a specific route giving step-by-step instructions. These are brilliant resources for the hikers and are usually small enough to fit in a backpack giving support as the journey progresses. This book however was more an inspirational overview, allowing more creative freedom in producing the maps.

The 'overview' nature of the book called for larger scale maps, meaning that the accuracy was relevant only in regard to the relative locations and distance. We included where a route curves, followed rivers or avoided mountains, but the scale meant a more generalised depiction. This allowed the reader to understand the nature and progression of the journey relating to the text. It allowed us to emphasis what was important and offset what was less so. The expectation is if the reader is to actually start a Camino they will take an in-depth guide, plan on detailed CNIG (IGN) paper maps or select an up to date digital navigation tool.

Data Sources

As with all maps used in commercial products, I needed a detailed paper trail to show that there was no copyright infringement during any part of their creation. Despite map data increasingly being more casually captured, shared and adapted with technological changes and social media adaptation, I was budgetarily tied to open source data and the content provided from the authors.

All sights and locations mentioned in the author's text were plotted on a digital map (Google) which was then exported to QGIS to lay on top of Openstreetmap and Natural Earth data.

Not every location mentioned in the text was shown on the maps but from an initial starting point it is always better to have everything in place and available than have to return to the files at a later stage.

Relief

To indicate the type of landscapes the Caminos passed through I wanted to include a representations of the physical relief (hills and mountains). I tested a few ideas based around the use of contour layers (tinted fills rather than singular lines) and hillshading. Both were created using Opentopography data run through QGIS . These worked fine but the resulting maps were in conflict with the illustrated design. Too scientific and precise in feel.

Thankfully I had a rare budget allowance to commission the illustrator to produce a collection of mountain and hill profiles shapes. These I requested to range in severity from smooth to jagged, the latter representing more heavily mountainous areas. When they returned they were beautiful and exactly what I had requested and I immediately embedded them on the maps. I carefully scanned the illustrations and converted to vector paths to place within the Adobe Illustrator map files. This allowed the integration of the mountains and hills into the file's digital structure and also freed the files from requiring repeated logging of linked image files on the companies digital library.

This of course meant the same brush styles and techniques used on the beautiful illustrations now being submitted were able to be brought into the maps. I liked the really subtle hint toward the world of fantasy mapping which has a huge following.

Shell symbol

The symbol for the Camino is a yellow scallop seashell, echoing the convergence of the routes at the cathedral. This shell can be found pointing the way toward the cathedral from signs and gate posts as you walk. The symbol was to be heavily integrated into the book design appearing on the cover illustration, endpapers as small embellishments throughout. I was keen to integrate the icon on to the maps.

I investigated using the symbol as a repeating pattern to make the actual route, but his was a non-starter as it brought too much noise to the map. I also tied using an adapted version as a progress arrow along side the route line to give direction. In the end I found it worked best sparingly and so was used to distinguish the start and end point of each route, the symbol appearing within the black town stamps.

The symbol I used was created by hand drawing a segmented sea shell, this was drawn at a large scale then reduced to roughly an icon's size (roughly 80px squared at 100%), the artwork needed simplification to suit the size reduction but it worked well.

Across all maps the town symbol is a consistent black circle with a slightly jagged edge. As the route was to be split into sub-routes the towns which acted as dividing points needed to be clearly identified. I had originally planned on having the route line split either side of these symbols with the circle being modified for easy identification. This did work but on the smaller route maps it was less graceful. I instead increased the size of the town stamp to show the importance of the location. This was not hugely successful as it does look overpowering and, if there was one change to the mapping in the book I would make, it would be to revisit these largest dots and finesse them a little further.

Brush Stokes

The maps were built using vector linework (as with all DK's maps) allowing edits to be make to the position, width and style of all elements but the illustrated elements in the book were produced in Photoshop using raster structure (small grids of colour value). To match the styles the maps needed to use specific brush styles and transparency styles to appear 'drawn'.

The maps were produced using a wide variety of brush styles and brush widths, the white mask brush alone held five or six styles, these inconsistent weights and widths are what really bring handmade feeling. The lines themselves were imported as a single long element but, when adding a brush style, the characteristic is pulled across the whole length singularly. To create a more natural appearance the line was split at places to mimic the hand being raised from the page. The single line elements were maintained for future use but hidden on layers beneath the artwork; Never delete anything that you could possibly need in the future .

An Illustrated background

As well as supplying the collection of mountains and hills, the illustrator also provided a texture sheet which I used to represent land. Each route/chapter was given an indexed colour to categorise each Camino . This is a regular technique used to divide up a book as the page's appearances will instantly change as you flick through the pages dividing the routes.

These swatches were evolving and changing as the book progressed and were still 'live' until the final proofs were returned and assessed a few days before the book went to print. Colour changes were simple as the chosen colour swatch to be used were modifying a greyscale image (the illustrator's work). Changing the colour was done by opening the file and changing the colour swatch library which automatically updated the treated images.

I had earlier experimented by giving the water a texture that suggested waves. Initial tests were interesting but it really was too heavy and clashed with the map's purpose and also the differing chapter colours. In the end a single blue colour was used across the texture.

Feeding the design team - Splitting the routes and sizing maps

The routes by their nature are long and narrow. To map them clearly without taking over a whole page or squashing detail meant they would have to be split. Having multiple maps in a chapter changes the amount of available space for both text and imagery so I needed to supply the design team with approximate dimensions for each map as early as possible.

The maps were not going to be framed but had a brushed edge, meaning that the exact size and shape was not known until the map was finally drawn and checked. I created initial mock-ups for each of the maps using raw Openstreetmap data and scaled / skewed the files within object frames within the inDesign spreads until I could supply the sizes.

The split points for each map had to be at the end of a segment of the route to match the divisions in the text. I also included enough of the continuing route meaning the following map linked smoothly.

Locators

At the start of each of the chapters I drew a small locator map to show the full route in relation to the Iberian peninsula. It was a quick reference so the reader did not have to return to the overview map earlier in the book; a regular map element in guidebooks. Initial versions of the map were produced using a style similar to the main maps but at a request from the design lead it was simplified as it was felt to conflict with the chapter title. The chapter title was already heavy but they wanted no other element that could draw the eye immediately from the name of the chapter .

In the end I thinned the map style back to being a single line for the country shape and the route shown in black brush stroke with labels and symbol for the start and end of the route. This map base was duplicated for each of the intro pages.

Finding a new photographic view for design

One diverting request midway through the data gathering was to find a location on the ground where the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela would be visible in the far distance and a pathway leading to it. This was for a brief to the illustrator. After checking contours, building angles and building height data it became apparent that the image which was wanted was not actually possible. This meant the main cover image would need to be an artistic interpretation of the route rather than an actual location.

Combining all the routes - the Overview Map

The large map at the start of the book is an opportunity to show the relative paths of each of the Camino routes covered in the following chapters. The map needed to show the start and end point for the routes, how they drift and stray, and a rough indication of the landscape en-route. The file was created by importing the combined QGIS GIS files, scaling and then tracing in freehand over the routes. This is not the usual technique but it allowed me creative freedom to enhance, emphasis and build stronger relationships between the routes.

A sparse collection of principal cities and mountain range names were added, as were international boundaries and country names. The routes had to be immediate and more information merely detracts from the map's story.

To explain the scale and number of the Camino routes , there was a second map showing many of the other routes that are known to lead to Santiago de Compostela . This was very sparse and low on detail, unnamed routes and no country boundaries or scale information. It simply indicates the coverage of the routes in relation to Europe.

The City Map

The city of Santiago de Compostela was given a chapter to itself to hightlight how and where the last steps of the pilgrimage take place. We also wanted to show the city's many attractions and cultural highlights as well as indicating the different directions from which the routes enter (and exit) the centre of the city.

City plans are usually straightforward to draw and choices regarding map extent (how much of the city area it covers) and scale are dependent on the writer's text. In a progress similar to the preceding routes, the text had to arrive from the authors first and from this I was able to plot the locations of all the sights.

I sourced data from Openstreetmap and drew the street plan as a normal vector map and began styling to match previous maps using the brush tools and textured background. The white mask edge was trickier to plot as the shape of the town plan was almost square and missing an organic boundary. In the end I pulled the white mask edge into a more smudged rectangular shape to allow for parts of the city map to be given a soft non-linear edge.

All the sights mentioned within the text were included, as were arrows showing the direction of the routes into the city.

Credits:

The book design began with look and feel and illustrator commissioning by Laura O'Brien .

Midway through the project the design reins were passed to Michael Curia, with assistance from Louise Brigenshaw and Katie Thomas . Managing art editor for the project was Gemma Doyle.

As mentioned in the introduction, the illustrator who brought such life to the page was Claire Harrup .

The text itself was written by Sarah Baxter , Dayna Camilleri Clarke , and Daniel Stables which was then tailored to the page by Lucy Richards and Zoë Rutland and their team of editors.

Buy it here!

ISBN: 978-0-2417-6029-1

Tools and Data:

Adobe Illustrator (main mapping)
Adobe Photoshop (texture manipulation)
Adobe inDesign (layout)
QGIS (Openstreetmap data wrangling)
Google maps (data transfer)
Openstreetmap data

Building a Playlist for a Road Trip

Tue, 17 Feb 2026 17:03:22 GMT

Building a playlist for a road trip

Midway through the Route 66 project, the senior designer put forward the great suggestion to include a Spotify playlist for the route. With music being such an integral part of long, cross-country drives this was immediately loved by all working on the book. I began to assemble a song list to 'stress test' the idea, mainly to see exactly what the music could be and how we could best share it.

In the distant past a journey crossing the continent would have been at the mercy of AM radio - aided by all its crackles and interference. It wasn’t until the end of the 1960s and into the 1970s that the superior FM radio frequencies were opened up but these had short range and were found only in larger urban areas. Cassettes, CDs and iPods took the weight until the early 2010s when SiriusXM brought satellites to the car. Now it’s more likely a smart phone will be connected to an online and near infinite library.

What is missed is the experience of the unpredictable, you never knew what was coming next and when a song was played it was for that moment, not to be rewound. It was music chosen by somebody else from a different part of the country with differing experiences and tastes. No wonder the good radio stations and DJs had such loyal followers, islands amidst the talk and religious programming.

We wanted to become a radio station for the journey

Having been a music fanatic my entire life, often planning travel based around concerts or music history I was delighted to have this opportunity to work through the playlists. It was also a nice way of stopping me from pitching the ‘ Music Traveller’s Guide ’ again. Almost yearly for half a decade. One day...

We were initially unsure if the playlist would be a single list for the whole journey or if it would be split either thematically or geographically. As we discussed the idea it became clear that each of the states would benefit from its own dedicated playlist. The selections I then chose were songs that either relate directly to the route or each individual state. The obvious connection being an artist’s home state but with only a limited possible number of entries per state the selection became more focused, as did the order and versions of songs to include.

Although selected music was mostly commercial pop, country and rock artists, I felt it was important to include a diverse selection to highlight the different music born from each state, this is why Pantera was included alongside Garth Brookes , and The Rondelles were on the list with Miles Davis. The possibilities for each state were plentiful and it was a delight to research. The sheer variety of music was the death nail for an early suggestion to include a different cover version of the track Route 66 in each state’s playlist.

I had an additional cartographic task to take on, marking any locations mentioned in song on the maps that were being produced. I Ain't in Checotah Anymore by Carrie Underwood needed the city of Checorah in Oklahoma adding to the map as well as highway numbers mentioned within the songs lyrics. The stories in these songs can literally be seen on the road.

We needed to check that every track was available across the main sales markets the book would be sold in, although this is not guaranteed as music licences change with surprising regularity. Once printed there is obviously little that can be done. Likewise should any shocking revelation about an artist be revealed we will have to wait for the next edition to be replaced.

Once I had the list checked and approved by the editorial team, writers and international publishers, the designer was able to create the artwork replicating a traditional diner jukebox listing and we placed it on the opening map for each chapter. A cover for the playlist was created and uploaded to Spotify and the playlist shared using a Spotify barcode. This graphic needed to be printed in full black, both for the licensing by Spotify and technically this would enable us to swap out if needed in later printings. We split the black elements onto a seperate file to print making a change cheaper and quicker.

This was a lovely idea which was only marred by being anchoring to a single music provider. Spotify has regularly been criticized for its royalty payments (or lack thereof) as well as some controversial investments in military and ai tech by its founder. The obstacle to alternatives such as Tidal or Deezer was their market share and awareness was not strong enough at the time of printing to consider.

Personal Highlights from the Playlist

Route 66: Creating the Maps

Wed, 11 Feb 2026 13:56:39 GMT

Route 66: How We Made the Maps

One of the world’s most celebrated journeys, Route 66 has been capturing the hearts and imagination of millions since its inauguration in 1926. To commemorate the road's centenary the travel publishing team at DK produced a gorgeous book dedicated to the adventure of the Mother Road , focusing on all that is iconic and unique about the epic journey from Chicago to the Pacific .

Searching for the Book

It’s a hard slog to publish any new book these days, the planets have to perfectly align and ideally its subject should be high in the public’s awareness. The route’s 100th birthday was already being discussed a year or so ahead of 2026, and as the publisher had no dedicated book to the route, it was given a green light.

The editors and authors built the book’s focus and structure before they opened a discussion with the design team to create its appearance. It was then my responsibility as part of the team to plan and build the essential cartographic elements. You can’t have a book about this route without showing it.

Thoughts of old AAA and Rand McNally sheet maps that would have been integral to any US road trip came to mind, alongside the countless free promotional maps handed out at diners and hotels, all thumbed, annotated and road worn.

A week or so later the design team produced a mood board to suggest an aesthetic direction for the title. I was delighted that the sun-faded sides of old diners, bleached neon signs and mid-century illustration matched my initial thoughts on the project. Bold cracked fonts and distorted textures echoed the long and road weary narrative. A perfect launching point for interesting cartography.

Once the design team had a direction I created a map mood board to share my initial cartographic directions.

Mood boards are a really useful tool to explain an aesthetic direction in a shorthand way which designers are familiar with. The map mood boards are usually created as an answer to those created by the design team. Sometimes, if calendars matched, we could combine to produce a single document to send around to the team but this was unfortunately rare in an office with ten or more urgent titles in progress at any one time.

The map mood board was a gathering of pre-existing maps (the Rands' and AAA ) as well as some of the maps in books we had already produced in house. Symbology suggestions and font variants were also included but until the final font choices are made and locked into the inDesign templates there is no huge progression. Mood boards are a tool to explain the purpose and rough appearance of the map elements and as such I leave it as open to discussion as possible. Designers like to contribute to cartographic appearances and if I am able to subtly lead the team toward an outcome that works then all the better. Explaining decisions early on in any project avoids confusion or conflict in vision at a later, more critical, stage.

By this point it had been decided that the book was to be an inspirational overview of the route with each of the long, beautifully illustrated chapters dedicated to a different state as the reader progressed west. I would be allocated a page spread near the start of each chapter to show the shape of the route from the point it entered the state to when it left. This was the bulk of the cartographic work.

There would also be a route overview map at the start of the book to show the full extent of the route in relation to the entire lower 48 states.

It’s a matter of orientation

The nature of the journey meant the route would be travelling in almost a horizontal line across the states as it travels west. The only complications being Illinois where it heads more south west and Kansas which is a tiny dogleg into the far south east of the state. The maps would cover each state with the route progressing from east to west. To ensure the reader sees the direction of travel we would need to include arrows to the route.

Due to the route crossing the page in such a narrow band there was enough empty space available on the page spread that I had initial thoughts of including small city maps. These would have been for the main hubs of Chicago, Los Angeles, St Louis and Albuquerque but as the project continued it became apparent that this was not a practical guide and was not critical to the reader. It also would have taken more time and therefore more cost. Interestingly, the majority of city sights were found on the outskirts and were able to be included on the main map.

Another consideration with the 'empty space' was overfill. Drawing too detailed a map across the whole page would draw the eye away from the route and make a noisy layout. The road needed to be instantly visible, as did the direction of travel. Showing a simple road network, rivers and lakes as well as main towns and park areas was enough.

As we were not including the city maps we had a lot of space to fill. One suggestion was a secondary list of the sights along the route shown with a page reference to assist in cross referencing to pages in the forthcoming chapter. What soon became apparent was the labels on the map were able include these page numbers and any repetition was just filling space.

Later in the project the playlist was able to be added in the available space.

Gutters

The nature of book binding means the gutter (the part of the page which is lost in the middle where the pages meet) is always an issue for cartographers. Although this title's gutter was not as severe as those found in smaller travel guides, we still did not want the map to disappear or hide any important information. Thankfully the sights being highlighted were almost universally distributed away from the centre of each state where the split in the page was crossing.

Once combined with the scale we were using for the majority of the maps it was easy to run the map as a single image across the spread with no need to split.

Depicting the route

The route is the heart of the map and needs to be instantly understood when viewing the page. As beautiful as some artistic methods of route representation can be, if you can't immediately make out the progression of the journey they are useless.

I had played with many line styles to see how they would work on the page. Outlining the road, dotted routes, just using arrows and a number of other techniques but nothing was as instant as a single solid line. As each state had been allocated its own colour swatch by the design team the line needed to be a consistent colour as opposed to a complementary or changing colour which could cause confusion.

The chapter colours were also of varying strength so running a plain white or pale route throughout could be tricky to identify on lighter colours. A black line was the clearest style, its strength also meant we could add texture and character without losing any impact.

Textures

The design department’s mood boards for the book had many beautiful images of rusted and sun faded roadsigns and the warm welcoming curves of diner counters and petrol station pumps. This needed to be echoed on the maps and the addition of a texture was locked in from an early stage.

I had originally overlayed a temporary dotted and distressed texture which filled empty space on the map and called back to the printed texture of old mass market free sheets.

The line of the route itself was also given a distorted texture, it was too solid and imposing on its own as a wide black line so a duotone style was added. To do this the line was converted from a single stroke to a filled polygon into which textures could be added.

The single line was of course maintained, hidden beneath the other layers in the file, to ensure the map could be adapted and modified if necessary in the future. At points along the route line an additional brush stroke was added to add some organic feel to the depiction of the journey.

Working alongside an illustrator

Earlier in the project while I was building the base for the maps the senior designer had approached the American illustrator Christian Northeast to create the cover, chapter welcoming images, and other small elements through the book. DK are keen to approach creatives located in regions featured in the books for both their authentic local knowledge and also to support local artists.

The maps needed to echo and live alongside these illustrations. We commissioned a new texture directly from the illustrator to replace the original draft texture I had been using to maintain consistency. Unfortunately the returned file didn’t quite work with the maps as the patterns were not arbitrary enough. At the later stages of the project it was more important for Christian to focus on the larger illustrations than resupplying this element so I recreated the original temporary texture at a higher quality through vectorisation and distortion of a dotted grid.

I had also experimented with a parallel line texture to link closely to a theme in the supplied illustrations but it brought too much cartographic representation. It could be mistaken for a depiction of water or highlighted areas such as parks so we stuck with the dotted grid.

This was laid across the map and used a number of transparency styles to ensure it was visible but not obstructive.

Raising flags

Each sight featured within the book needed a distinct and clear label. In an attempt to link across to the road sign motifs regularly occurring in the illustrations and photographs I began with a style based on a road sign.

This became too restrictive as a number of sights were too close together to allow clear labelling. It also would have resulted in a page that was full of monotonous and perhaps overpowering boxes.

To push forward I looked at using illustrative flags at casual angles holding the names of the sights. It did still link to the illustrations but was a little too playful. It also limited the amount of space for longer names and/or page references. Another issue was it limited the space available to the co-publishers who might wish to translate labels resulting in longer names.

Discussions with the designer relating to typefaces resulted in a simplified box with the action element being an integrated arrow rather than a flag pole. The arrow links to the location precisely and could rotate around the rectangle to aid with placement. With a number of tests to check spacing and styles, the design was finalised and rolled out.

Drawing the maps

As with most maps produced for travel products at DK, the data source for the maps was Openstreetmap (OSM). The data used is actually quite sparse, with only the road, boundaries, urban area and water used as the we did not want the maps to be too busy. The map files were still cumbersome due to the large area of coverage for each state. California specifically was a challenge as the large number of roads within the Los Angeles area alone meant the map had to be simplified to allow Adobe Illustrator to display and edit the data. The file size would later cause a disruption to the technical checking stages.

Within the OSM data, each carriageway is represented by a line which splits at each interchange. Instead of a single line running through Los Angeles to show a road, the initial data used hundreds of separate elements.

Tiny Kansas

Kansas was an interesting anomaly within the book as the route only dips into the lower southeast corner of the state for a few miles. Building a chapter around relatively few entries was a challenge for the authors as well as cartographers. Thankfully there were enough interesting sights in this small segment of the route to fill a number of spreads and with a couple of large full page images it did not feel so restricted.

Cartographically it was a different matter. I was not going to be able to show the entire of Kansas and the shape of the route was the more vertical than horizontal. We experimented with a single page map instead of the usual double page but it looked unbalanced. The small area of the state was enlarged and we pulled the majority of the route onto the left hand page.

One of the styles we integrated into the maps was to include an opaque fill over areas that were not in the state in the chapter. This allows the route to continue and elements be visible in the following state for reference. For Kansas this opaque area was much larger than on other maps. To ensure consistency the depth of the transparency was lightened across all maps to ensure the map was pleasing to view.

Songs for the Road

Late in the project I was tasked with building a playlist to accompany the reader along their journey. This was a brilliant responsibility to be handed as I have always been incredibly passionate about discovering and sharing new (and old) music.

I have dedicated a separate article about this task.

The Importance of Checks

As the project progressed there were occasional changes to the entries when the text was edited and flowed into the inDesign files. These changes needed to be included on the maps. Another part of the process from a cartographic / spatial assessment was to ensure all imagery used was correct and current. This caught a few small image changes such as the recent relocation of the Gemini Giant which meant an image replacement was needed to be found . All the images which had a location mentioned in the caption or content would be checked. I would also check urban landscape images as these change at a rapid rate, the loss or addition of tall buildings is a common occurance and can date images. This has always been done for every project I have worked on.

One of the most critical parts of the project from a cartographic perspective is the checking stage. I passed all maps through the Delhi based cartographic team then through editorial and design teams. This is really important as map makers do risk checking a map cartographically rather than editorially so other team members can catch things we had passed or were awaiting confirmation of, the more eyes the better.

Once we approach the end of the project the map files are fed through an automated checking system to ensure all technical and structural elements of the files are as they should be to print correctly. The files in this book were so large that it would cause the checking program to crash. Files could take up to an hour to run through the system. With a book that had so many maps, the importance of keeping ahead of the deadlines was critical.

Once the files have been checked by the automated system they are combined with the rest of the digital files and checked again internally by a print specialist before being sent to the printers. We are then just waiting for a final proof from the printers to check before final approval. At this point it is disruptive and expensive to change so any amendments have to be essential. The misspelling of a small element unrelated to the route should have been picked up by the 5 or so check stages but will be left to be corrected at next edition at this point as the error makes no impact on the reader's use of th book.

We then wait for the first few copies of the book to be shipped by air to the office. The main book order is packed and sent to the distributors as required before being shipped to the retailers.

Tracking the Route from the Air

A few months later I was in the fortunate position of tracing Route 66 from the air from Illinois to Arizona . It was fascinating to follow the road as it headed west, knowing the history and stops we had included in the book. Recognising what city was coming next and waiting with excitement to see the Meteor Crater National Landmark toward the end of the journey - but this experience was the route without the journey.

It just left me eager to get behind the wheel and head west through rather than over the epic landscapes. To track the history and people as well as the deserts, mountains and forests.

Credits

The Senior Editor, Lucy Richards , with her team Lucy Sara-Kelly , Tijana Todorinovic , Catrina Conway took constant and detailed care of the book's content and were all more than able to help me with a slew of content based questions and comments.

Recent addition to the DK Travel department, Michael Curia as the senior designer was a beacon of enthusiastic inspiration throughout the project and was a joy to work with. Having a thousand ideas and welcoming everyone's suggestions. The design work itself was pulled to order by Bess Daley with picture research by Claire Guest .

As previously mentioned, the illustrator Christian Northeast was a keystone to the look and feel for the book and it was great to have this artist's work to align with even before the final illustrations were provided.

Buy it here !

ISBN: 978-0-2417-8474-7

Tools and Data:

Adobe Illustrator (main mapping)
Adobe Photoshop (texture experiments)
QGIS (openstreetmap data wrangling)
Google maps (data transfer)
Google Docs - Playlist cataloging
Spotify - Playlist building

Openstreetmap data

Mapping Japan with dots

james.r.macdonald@gmail.com (James Macdonald) — Wed, 31 Dec 2025 09:59:45 GMT

100 must-do experience for the trip of a lifetime

Japan is a best selling destination for all travel guide series, resulting in publishers continuously searching to create a new angle to explore the country. I have worked on twenty five different Japan titles and counting and doubt there will be a slowing going forward.

DK had already published the iconic Be More Japan back in 2019, just in time for the Coronavirus lockdowns which all but ended international travel for years (the second edition of the book was released in 2024). They wanted a larger format title written for a more universal, popular view of the country. Having already secured an author (the brilliant Rebecca Hallett ) and support from the marketing department and co-publishers, the book began to take shape.

For the map elements in the book I wanted to move in a different direction to the maps drawn for previous Japan titles.

The proposed structure of the book needed a national overview map at the start of each chapter covering themed sights. This meant the repetition of the same map throughout the book and, if we were to use a traditional topographic map, it would probably become overlooked after the second chapter. I decided to explore a more unusual way of sharing the information with the reader.

Breaking away from The Map
A common cartographic technique used to show a variation in data value is a scaled symbol grid (or proportional symbol map). This is where a repeating icon changes its size depending on a value. Its placement shows location and the size or colour shows a relative difference.

A good example can be found here showing drought levels by John Nelson.

I had always liked the elegant simplicity of this map form and had hoped to use this at some point in a guidebook. As the only data being shown was location it limited the need to alter the symbol size so why not have a sheet of symbols just depicting the land shape? The idea was strengthened when initial design plans produced by the design team included a number of red dotted lines across the page. I decided to take the dots and build the map solely from this shape. It also helped that the colour of these dots was red, a link to the flag of Japan, itself a dot in a white space.

Keep it as clear, clean and basic as possible.

I began experimenting and immediately the size of the symbol was critically important as even small changes to the spaces between the dots would affect the level of generalisation (simplification) I was already having to juggle with. How much can you simplify the shape of the country and retain its familiarity?

I created four different maps with four different widths of dot and printed these to test the appearance at arms length, up close and in low light. Although not a reliable full printer proof, these test prints are always important at the initial stages.

The next challenge was to work with the design team to make sure the colours selected for each of the chapters would translate to the dots. Consistency is important and the same strength of the colour swatch should try to be integrated within the maps. Fortunately this showed all tints would work fine, even when used in the dot form. If there was an issue with the colours not working, I would have been able to work with the design lead to adapt the chapter colours to suit the maps.

I began styling the labels and symbols on the maps to be as sympathetic to the aesthetic as possible yet still be instantly readable. The obvious option was to tint the specific circles which would represent a city location black and then label as needed. This was tested and worked great with all colours and maps.

The editorial team had introduced a numbering scheme to the sights meaning the reference numbers (called bullets by the carto team) were to be another circular motif that continued the dot style. The circular dot numbers have been a staple of the DK map design for decades meaning we could just reuse the existing custom typeface. The co-publishers all have access to this typeface so any changes to the text's order within a chapter could be updated on the maps by their own teams.

I had tried assembling the dots around the locations in cases of shared location but this just added uncertainty so it fell back to the use of a leader line pulling the dot to empty sea areas.

Japanese script?

One option when mapping Japan is to add the Japanese names to the map alongside the translated names. This can be especially useful when using the maps for navigation on the ground. This book was an inspirational rather than practical guide which meant it was not as critical.

Initial tests did include the Kanji text for major cities as it brought an interesting aesthetic but the detail conflicted with the simplicity of the dots so I dropped them. It also meant another checking stage by an editor fluent in Japanese, another cost.

Mapping the tours chapter

The Journeys in Japan chapter was a collection of curated tours criss-crossing the country with the chapter opener map style being slightly adapted to depict the routes in the text. I began testing different ideas such as a solid line for each route on the map, just showing the routes as the dots on an outlined map and another selection of possibilities which all had issues.

The simple black solid line option felt sterile and was working against the aesthetic of the map. In the end it was simple, we just highlighted the existing dots which would be found on the route and shaded these with more strength and included a subtle shadowing to boost the visibility. This would not have worked if the routes had been too closely aligned or too intricate.

Chapter route maps

At the close of each chapter we commissioned a themed tour to join together the sights mentioned over the previous pages. These tours were more visually complex with routes occasionally revisiting locations and requiring an indication of direction, as a result the dotted mapping would not work as a clear base map. To build the page the maps were pulled back to the most basic forms we were happy to work with; a coastline, the cities and a progress line. The simpler the map then the easier for other editorial and design elements to be added. The style of the chapter opener maps was echoed by the route line being formed of dots.

 The boxed detail - to inset or to not inset

As a cartographic element, insets are usually only used when it helps reveal the subject of the map more clearly. A detailed focus area such as a city centre for example, or if the scale of the map means elements further afield are outside the map area. The main map should be scaled to show the relevant content as clearly as possible, ensuring that nearby reference points are present to enable an instant understanding of place.

Sometimes elements need to be shown that are more distant which would result in the map being too crowded in one critical area and too empty elsewhere, this is when an inset to show more distant sights can be used. The main map should still cover the main area with as much clarity as possible.

What is important is that the inset map is not perceived to be forming part of the main map. This is visually acheived by titling, adding a unique scale bar and either framing or using a framing device such as tinting the background colour differently from the main map. The map inset boxes in Ultimate Japan were frameless and tinted darker. In a slightly unusual choice, I did not include a scale for these inset maps as the space available was limited and the main map had a clear scale which could be understood in relation to the inset area.

Credits:

This was another lovely book to work on, with great design by Laura O’Brien , Cristina Antequera and Matt Cox. Gemma Doyle was the design guru whose guidance was so strong.

The author Rebecca Hallett did a spectacular job of making the country, which is already fascinating, become even more engaging. The senior editor Zoë Rutland fielded the team's queries and requests with a superhuman patience.

Picture research was undertaken by Yoshimi Kanazawa (who I had worked alongside decades ago at Apa Publications).

Buy it here!

ISBN: 978-0-2417-6031-4

Project data:

Natural Earth for initial country outline

Openstreetmap for locating sights and towns for route planning

Tools:

QGIS

Adobe Illustrator

Adobe Photoshop

Mapping the North Coast 500

james.r.macdonald@gmail.com (James Macdonald) — Wed, 10 Dec 2025 09:59:45 GMT

A big scale adventure on a slightly small scale

Compared to the scale of some long distance routes such as Route 66 , the Trans-Siberia or Cape Town to Cairo, the North Coast 500 is a more sedate challenge which can be completed within a week. It's arguably no less breathtaking.

The route was developed locally to help promote the far northern extremes of Scotland to the many tourists who may stick to the confines of Edinburgh or Skye . It was a huge success, perhaps working a little too well as complaints began to surface regarding facilities to handle the increase in visitors.

This book was an opportunity to assist the traveller to explore the route sustainably.

Building the Maps

The smallish size of this book meant a narrower canvas to work with, but, as with a number of the titles from DK, the idea was not to be a complete step-by-step guide showing every turn, junction and petrol station, but to be an inspirational celebration of the route. This allowed some freedom to play with the map's appearance to echo the route and book’s individualism, while knowing it was not specifically produced for navigation.

Approaching the title alongside the design team, the early discussions were around earthy, natural landscapes and curved, organic lines. This immediately turned my mind to natural ways to show the route on a map. The first step was to build a map moodboard to explain to the team where I was trying to position the maps.

I was pulling together all manner of textures and imagery. I loved the idea of a carved, organic and natural representation of the route and had begun to look at ways to produce this in the book within a digital environment and on a sensible (low) budget.

The carto moodboard had a number of other maps whose style would match the board created by the design team. These were initial jumping-off points before any research work started. I also included existing mapping from other publishers’ books covering the routes, so we could assess what worked and what we felt we didn’t need to replicate.

Above: Elements of the 6 page map moodboard

I initially researched the possibility of using a linocut or woodcut technique to show the route.

This is a costly but beautiful style, which I knew might limit the ability to alter any map elements as the project continued. The book needed to be updated and distributed to other co-publishers, which resulted in restrictions on the methods of production. To address this, I began experimenting with digital methods to recreate the style. All text elements had to be in black ink, and all linework (roads, rivers, etc.) needed to be editable to enable adaptation of existing elements when updates or reuse in other books was needed.

The cost and time needed for this style were not going to work. It was not possible, and the digital mimicry of the style was not authentic enough to move forward. Such a shame, as once the artwork was produced, there was an option to use it in further products such as promotional canvas prints or tote bags — great to bundle with the books.

I took map data and mocked up a few initial designs to begin the conversation with the other project stakeholders. Even if there was no intention of using these styles, it was a good method to see what the senior team were really wanting. They are more direct if they see something totally distant from their initial thoughts, rather than something close, but not quite.

Above: Initial brainstorm ideas, a couple using Photoshop neural filters to mimic terrain.
These were launch points for discussion and the level of detail was already too strong

As expected (and hoped), the design team agreed to keep the maps as simple as possible to allow the commissioned photography to really sing, I began forming the look and feel for a digital map that could appear more natural.

Stripping back everything that was not needed or helpful resulted in a single line to progress the route’s journey around the coast. We had a number of diversions to explore which needed to be included, but not be seen as part of the main route. This was simply achieved by halving the width of the main route line.

Each section of the book covered a separate part of the route, and to show the flow of the route I knocked back the route line to 50% transparency where the line was beyond the extents of the section. This allowed the route to be seen across the map. We pulled up the start and stop points in size to make them instantly recognisable on the page.

Designing Styles

Red Lne

I loved the slightly off-red, faded lines seen in a number of the moodboard examples, which I wanted to echo. This would also work with the decision to use only three colours on the map: text black, the blue water and the route colour. The page itself would be a browny colour throughout the book.

I had played with including arrows along the route, but they were not needed. The numbered dots across the map provided navigation in themselves, and the arrows were just more noise along the route.

Dot to Dot

Towns were originally shown in a traditional circular ‘town spot’, but when the numbered symbols I was using to link to the text were included, the map became too crowded. Sights that were not towns were shown with small square blocks, which worked well, so we swapped the towns to match.

I then dropped the blocks when there was a dot and allowed the numbered circle to carry both the reference and the location of the site. Much tidier.

The Water’s Edge

As a style, we had been avoiding placing solid coastlines on maps for a while, to soften the maps. The water colour is usually designed to contrast enough to depict the oceans.

In this book, I wanted to bring the coastline back, but also add a graduated echo of the coast, with gaps to depict water movement. This was solely for tidal coastal areas, meaning the lochs remained simply depicted.

Above: Detail of coast from printed book, note the print adding texture to the red line

Inverness in a box

The start of the NC500 features a number of sights nestled within the heart of Inverness. Initially, we investigated having a separate city map sitting amidst the photographic images rather than breaking the route maps. I decided this would have felt at odds with the rest of the book.

As the edit of the book’s text progressed, the route changes allowed a small inset map showing the centre of Inverness to be placed in the bottom left of the first full-page map.

I chose not to frame this, as it would have been too overpowering on the page. Instead, I added a small percentage of black to the inset map’s background tint to represent an urban area.

The abruptly cut streets, rivers and parks create a naturally implied frame.

Above: Initial first map spread showing placement of the Inverness inset map

Overviews and locators

To introduce the route, we like to include a full-spread map. This was no different, and once we were happy with the route map style, it was simple to bring it across to this overview map.

The route line was split to display the sections of the route, and a reference box was placed next to the route to link to the starting page of each section. These boxes were styled by the design team to mirror the information boxes on the main pages of the book.

Above: overview map showing the boxed reference panels to mimic those found on internal text pages - see below

Credit

This was a lovely book to work on covering an area I'd mapped many times but from a new perspective.

Des0pite being beset by some truly abysmal weather during the commision, photographer Daniel Alford managed to produce some wonderful images which capture the spirit of the rocks, sea and air.

The author (and initial project champion) Rachel Laidler wrote the journey with great beauty and care, her love of the region is clear on every page.

Senior designer Laura O’Brein and the Managing Art Editor Gemma Doyle were a great team to help pull the pages together into something beautiful .

[ Get a copy here ]

Data:
Openstreetmap

opentopography.org

Tools:
Adobe Illustrator

Adobe Photoshop

Qgis

option-1

Taylor in London: The Fan's Guide to the City

Mapping Taylor Swift's London

✶

The book's map list

✶

Creating Taylor Swift Walks

Gutters

When Things Change

Other Artists and other Cities?!

Some map based music recommendations, Herb Lester produce a great selection of themed maps:

Credits:

Tools and Data:

Camino de Santiago - Mapping the walk

Mapping the Camino de Santiago ﻿

Pilgrimage Plotting and Planning

Getting Started

The book was always intended to be a celebration of this spiritual journey.

Design

Illustration

Map Research

The Routes

Brush Stokes

Credits:

Tools and Data:

Building a Playlist for a Road Trip

Building a playlist for a road trip

Personal Highlights from the Playlist ﻿

Route 66: Creating the Maps

Route 66: How We Made the Maps

Searching for the Book

﻿

It’s a matter of orientation

﻿

Gutters

Depicting the route

Textures

Working alongside an illustrator

Raising flags

Drawing the maps

﻿

Tiny Kansas

Songs for the Road

The Importance of Checks

Tracking the Route from the Air

Credits

Tools and Data:

Mapping Japan with dots

100 must-do experience for the trip of a lifetime

﻿ Mapping the tours chapter

Chapter route maps

Credits:

Mapping the North Coast 500

A big scale adventure on a slightly small scale

Building the Maps

Above: Elements of the 6 page map moodboard

Above: Initial brainstorm ideas, a couple using Photoshop neural filters to mimic terrain. These were launch points for discussion and the level of detail was already too strong

Designing Styles

Red Lne

Dot to Dot

The Water’s Edge

Above: Detail of coast from printed book, note the print adding texture to the red line

Inverness in a box

Above: Initial first map spread showing placement of the Inverness inset map

Above: overview map showing the boxed reference panels to mimic those found on internal text pages - see below

Some map based music recommendations,

Herb Lester produce a great selection of themed maps:

Mapping the Camino de Santiago

Personal Highlights from the Playlist

Mapping the tours chapter

Above: Initial brainstorm ideas, a couple using Photoshop neural filters to mimic terrain.
These were launch points for discussion and the level of detail was already too strong