Aesthetics is key in GIS
Blender GIS
I recently discovered Blender software, which has been a game changer for improving the aesthetics of my GIS outputs. As someone who identifies as more of a technical expert than a visual artist, I have struggled with creating maps that are both technically accurate and visually appealing. Even when producing elevation maps that are color graded, I have received feedback from non-technical viewers that the maps are difficult to read and understand. It's frustrating to spend so much time and effort creating a map only to have it be poorly received due to its lack of visual appeal and clarity.
Since incorporating Blender into my workflow, I have found that creating visually engaging and intuitive maps has become much easier. With its powerful tools for 3D modeling and animation, Blender allows me to create stunning visualizations of spatial data that are both technically accurate and aesthetically pleasing. By combining my GIS data with Blender's tools, I am able to create 3D models of landscapes and terrain that give viewers a more realistic understanding of the spatial data.
For example, when creating elevation maps, Blender's ability to generate realistic terrain models has been particularly helpful. By using a combination of elevation data and color grading, I can create a 3D visualization that accurately depicts the terrain while also being visually appealing and easy to understand. This has greatly improved the feedback I receive from non-technical viewers and made my maps more accessible to a wider audience.
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Its powerful tools for 3D modeling and animation have piqued my curiosity to explore how I can better utilize this software for GIS purposes, and the exciting thing is that Blender is open source and free to download. I am now looking into creating animated scenes for my GIS outputs and possibly dive deep into using blender as a simulation engine for coastal flooding.
In a later post, I will discuss how you can use blender for your own GIS outputs.