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Thread: Graticule and circular borders

  1. #1
    Guild Member urxed's Avatar
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    Default Graticule and circular borders

    I'm wondering if anyone knows how to create this in Photoshop:

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    The easy way, or the hard way - I don't care. Any tuts or advice? I really would like to make my own, but I don't know where to start.
    And I would also like to learn how to make graticule like these. Am I doomed as a PS user? Or is this a quest only for the jaded and weathered software pro? I am also willing to use Inkscape (though I must say it scares me a little).

  2. #2
    Professional Artist Carnifex's Avatar
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    I'm sure I saw someone that posted a base projection for this kind of map not long ago. I'd start there and also have a look at the tutorial forum.

  3. #3

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    I have two suggestions, one of which can be done entirely within Photoshop.

    In Photoshop, assuming you have a recent version that includes the 3d functions:

    Step 1: Create an equirectangular graticule. That is, an image that is twice as wide as it is tall including the grid lines that you want to see in your final image.
    Step 2: Go to 3d > New Shape from Layer > 3d Panorama. You are now looking at the interior surface of a 3d sphere
    Step 3: Select the 3D Pan Tool and dolly backward until you see the viewpoint pass through the front surface of the sphere. Then dolly forward to just inside that surface.
    Step 4: Increase your canvas size dramatically until you can see both poles.

    You should end up with something like this:

    Click image for larger version. 

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    You could even draw your map in the equirectangular projection and use this technique to distort it, although you'll notice that it does introduce some perspective distortion as the image moves away from the center. Things get wider and blurrier as they approach the camera. If I were to use this technique, I'd probably make the graticule and the coastal outline, distort, and then redraw to correct the artifacts.

    The other suggestion is to look up a piece of free software called g.projector. It's published by NASA and can convert projections from one to another. I've never used it, but several people in this community have.

    Thanks for the mental exercise! Just what I needed to get my Sunday morning started!
    Bryan Ray, visual effects artist
    http://www.bryanray.name

  4. #4
    Guild Member urxed's Avatar
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    Thank you! I'll look in to some different methods.

    Anyone got any advice for the round border: the one marked within the red lines (the black/white/black/white 3 degree markings).

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    Software Dev/Rep Hai-Etlik's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by urxed View Post
    Anyone got any advice for the round border: the one marked within the red lines (the black/white/black/white 3 degree markings).
    Repeated rotation by a fixed angle.

  6. #6
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    1. create guides where you want the center of the circle to be

    2. use the circle marquee tool. draw from the center point holding option and shift. this draws from center and constrains it to a circle.

    3. fill with black or whatever color you want the outer ring to be.

    4. select->modify->contract enter the number of pixels you want the width of the outer circle to be. probably somewhere between 5 and 15 depending on the resolution of your file.

    5. select->modify->smooth this makes sure the circle stays perfectly round. sometimes photoshop does weird things. 3 - 5 pixels should do the trick.

    6. create a new layer and fill selection with white or whatever color you want

    7. select->modify->contract enter the number of pixels you want the width of the inner circle to be. probably somewhere between 40 and 65.

    8. select->modify->smooth this makes sure the circle stays perfectly round. sometimes photoshop does weird things. 3 - 5 pixels should do the trick.

    if you want to do a solid inner line, create a new layer and fill with black, then repeat steps 4 - 6. you can adjust each layer to give them texture or gradient fills, etc. and then merge the layers, delete the center white circle and place over your map.

    if you want to do the dashed line, i'd say get illustrator cuz it takes all of 5 seconds. if that's not an option though, here's the photoshop way. (if anyone knows an easier method, i would love to hear it!)

    1. keeping your selection active, create a new layer on top. you should have 3 total now.

    2. switch to the pencil tool (click and hold on the brush tool and you'll see it, or press shift-b) i used a 20px tip

    3. under brush options click "brush tip shape" and adjust the spacing to somewhere between 150 and 200%. you'll want to play with both the size of the tip and the spacing depending on the look you're going for.

    4. click on the paths tab and at the bottom, click "make work path from active selection". it should be the left most active button.

    5. now click the second button from the left in the paths tab, "stroke path with brush". this will draw a dotted line on the path you just made from the selection.

    6. unless you want dots, here's the pain in the ass part: click the 3rd button in the paths tab "load path as selection".

    7. select->modify->contract this might take an adjustment or two since you want to have the new selection cut off about a quarter of your dots. i used 3 pixels.

    8. select->modify->smooth whatever value you had in there should be fine.

    9. hit delete!

    10. select->modify->expand for this i used 7 pixels. it should be double what you just contracted the selection by.

    11. select->modify->smooth whatever value you had in there should be fine.

    12. select->inverse invert the selection

    13. hit delete! and there you go.. one dashed line.

    it is a whole lot easier to dashed lines when they are straight by using a square brush tip, but with circles, this is the only way i could think of off the top of my head.
    also, with the values i used, the dashed line is not as thick as the outer line. if you want a thicker dashed line, just use a bigger brush. the other option would be to expand your white circle on layer two or shrink the outer circle layer.

    hope this helps! let me know if this makes no sense at all.

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