GIS 6005 Module 4

This week we are working with colors and choropleth maps. We took a deep dive into the meaning of HSV in terms of colors and we learned how to use different colors for different types of data. We learned about differentiating data into categories such as qualitative, sequential or converging to determine how to best represent it on a map and in a legend. 
We got to experiment with color ramps in ArcPro and in ColorBrewer. As part of our assignment we had to create our own sequential color ramps. Below is the color ramps I created. When created the color ramps we had to carry out calculations and determine what values to use on an RGB scale to create a legible and distinctive color ramp. 

  

The first two color ramps are ones that I made by varying RGB values. I derived my second color ramp by choosing RGB values one third greater and one third less than the average difference between each color. The third color ramp is one that I derived using data from ColorBrewer. The ramp I created using ColorBrewer  data has more differences amongst the colors. ColorBrewer added green to the ramp at the lower end to create lighter more distinct colors. 

The final portion of our assignment required us to make a map depicting population change in individual counties in Colorado. The data provided allowed to compare the change in population between 2014 and 2010. Below is my final map. 

I chose to use a diverging theme to represent my data as the data has a center value and seems to diverge away from the middle value. To best represent my data I chose to use a map with varying hues. The varying hues provide a clear distinction of the counties and also are good at representing the change in the population. I wanted to keep my legend simple and legible. I did not have much room for the legend so I had to limit features such as borders and titles. I added percentage signs to all values as I did not have room to explain that numbers were presented in percentages.