How to Make Water Depth Contour Maps with Inkscape and Trace Bitmap

Inkscape tutorial showing easy design workflow by Rick Johanson in a step-by-step free course on how to make custom water depth map art. Follow along and learn the basics of Inkscape including Trace Bitmap, Drop Shadow, and custom page sizing. Two specials guests make a cameo in this beginner intermediate Inkscape 1.3 Tutorial.

📱 What screen recorder am I using?

Water Depth Data and Contour Maps provided by NOAA Office of Coast Survey:

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[nkha]

Thank you for sacrificing time from your family to share this with us. I swear this is the best channel for learning Inkscape. Still hoping for that book you mentioned in another vid

[zzziiii]

The stealth appearance, though! :D

Really appreciate your detailed instructions. It's fun to learn a skill from someone who actually loves doing it.

[WriterLady]

It's incredible, how much effort you put forth so we learn digital art skills & techniques we didn't even know we needed! So much gratitude for your expertise & your willingness to share it. 🙏

[graphguy]

Ok.. one of these is going up on my office wall!

[robp]

Another helpful guide Rick; best wishes to you and your family from the UK 🤗👍

[ltlima]

Simply amazing! Just thank you, thank you and thank you!

[ShafaqIftikhar-pwld]

What can i say another awesome tutorial from a great TUTOR!!!

[WalidDingsdale]

thanks for this great tutorial, very lovely kids

[ptredhead]

That looks so good! Thank you. I'm definitely gonna try this.

I wonder, can you do that with a topographic map, like a mountain or something showing contour lines? That might be trickier though.

[stephenbishop]

Great video, thank you! What's the font used at the end?

[zfotoguy]

This would also be handy for people using a CO2 laser to cut out topographical maps.

[NickGrayson]

Awesome guide! I was just wondering if you had a way to do this with a lake?

[justsandm]

Great video, but do you have a video that explains the what to do next? How to save the individual layers?

[MentallyHellthy]

Can you explain how to get the different depths? What does shallow contour, safety contour, and deep contour mean relative to each other? I can't figure out how to get more than 2-layers. Thank you!

[Mariam-Mina]

Nice tutorial!! And your kids are so adorable!! I’m surprised how you managed to do this tutorial with the 2 little munchkins 😅 I lock the door or wait until they go to the school to record my tutorials 😂 I record in 10-15 mins then I take hours in editing, I need to get improved in this 😅

[keyvanhasani]

Hi. Please do a tutorial on an area that has a concrete dam and a lake behind it in Blender Design.

[RahulSharma-mokr]

Rick, thank you for the most informative video.

Can I ask what software you used to capture the screen capture?

Thank you.

[janehellwig]

Hi Rick! Thanks so much for this and for introducing Crew's Reviews! When we load the website, it says "the layer, ENC, cannot be added to the map" and then shows no detail for Crane Beach or Mentor Headlands, OH lol. We've tried Chrome and Microsoft Edge with no success... Any suggestions?

[mathieubaker]

Is there any reason why i cant make the layers on the lake i want? thanks!

[dhruvasankanur]

i don't know what went wrong but i am not able to get those different colors / shades in depth. Rick can you please guide. cause when i search for "Crane beach" the result is right, but if i search for different location it doesn't show the depth.