Tom Patterson (cartographer)
Encyclopedia
Tom Patterson is a cartographer
working for the United States
National Park Service
in Harper's Ferry, West Virginia. He has developed several widely used open-source tools and bases for cartographers.
His earliest public work aside from maps for the Park Service was a set of papers in 1997 and 1998 explaining techniques for generating shaded relief
using Adobe Photoshop
and Bryce
.
In 2000, he explored ways of digitally producing panoramic maps like those of Heinrich Berann.
In 2005, he released the open-source Natural Earth
database, which combines land-use data with shaded relief for land and ocean areas. It was inspired by the cartography of Hal Shelton. A second release in 2007 (Natural Earth II) used more generalized land-use information based on natural rather than human-made landscapes.
In 2006 he released plan oblique relief, inspired by Erwin Raisz's
physiographic map. These maps are in "2.5 dimensions", allowing the relief equivalent of an axonometric plan. His resulting physical maps of the world and the United States are, as with Natural Earth, free for public use.
In 2007 he released Flex Projector together with Bernhard Jenny (cartographer at the ETH Zurich), an open-source tool to develop pseudocylindrical projections, including his own Natural Earth projection.
Cartography
Cartography is the study and practice of making maps. Combining science, aesthetics, and technique, cartography builds on the premise that reality can be modeled in ways that communicate spatial information effectively.The fundamental problems of traditional cartography are to:*Set the map's...
working for the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
in Harper's Ferry, West Virginia. He has developed several widely used open-source tools and bases for cartographers.
His earliest public work aside from maps for the Park Service was a set of papers in 1997 and 1998 explaining techniques for generating shaded relief
Cartographic relief depiction
Terrain or relief is an essential aspect of physical geography, and as such its portrayal presents a central problem in cartography, and more recently GIS and 3D Visualization....
using Adobe Photoshop
Adobe Photoshop
Adobe Photoshop is a graphics editing program developed and published by Adobe Systems Incorporated.Adobe's 2003 "Creative Suite" rebranding led to Adobe Photoshop 8's renaming to Adobe Photoshop CS. Thus, Adobe Photoshop CS5 is the 12th major release of Adobe Photoshop...
and Bryce
Bryce (software)
Bryce is a 3D modeling, rendering and animation program specializing in fractal landscapes. The name is taken from Bryce Canyon—a rugged region with many of the same landscapes that were first simulated with the software.- History :...
.
In 2000, he explored ways of digitally producing panoramic maps like those of Heinrich Berann.
In 2005, he released the open-source Natural Earth
Natural Earth
Natural Earth is a public domain map dataset available at 1:10 million , 1:50 million, and 1:110 million map scales. Featuring closely integrated vector and raster data, with Natural Earth one can make a variety of visually pleasing, well-crafted maps with all commonly used cartography and GIS...
database, which combines land-use data with shaded relief for land and ocean areas. It was inspired by the cartography of Hal Shelton. A second release in 2007 (Natural Earth II) used more generalized land-use information based on natural rather than human-made landscapes.
In 2006 he released plan oblique relief, inspired by Erwin Raisz's
Erwin Raisz
Erwin Raisz was a Hungarian-born American cartographer, best known for his physiographic maps of landforms.-Biography:...
physiographic map. These maps are in "2.5 dimensions", allowing the relief equivalent of an axonometric plan. His resulting physical maps of the world and the United States are, as with Natural Earth, free for public use.
In 2007 he released Flex Projector together with Bernhard Jenny (cartographer at the ETH Zurich), an open-source tool to develop pseudocylindrical projections, including his own Natural Earth projection.
External links
- Natural Earth project website
- Outside the Bubble: Real-world Mapmaking Advice for Students by Tom Patterson, Cartographic Perspectives, Winter 2010