Recently in Infographics Category

Special SPD Member Discount: Infographic/Data Viz Workshop March 24-25

As you know, being an SPD Member gets you discounts on our own SPD events and competition fees, plus a complimentary annual, and we're working on adding even more great benefits to the list. We're happy to announce one of those now...

The Data Viz Challenge: Who Better to Win $5K with Mad Infographics Skills than an SPD Person?

We've got infographics on the brain, with the ART+INFO Master Class just two days away, and then, at the same time, it's tax season too. What a collision of events then to find this Data Viz Challenge from Eyebeam and Google, awarding a jury prize of $5,000 to the team (and they encourage teamwork!) that comes up with the best data visualization of how the government actually spends the tax money. We can't imagine there aren't some brilliant ideas for this out there in the SPD community, so get to it and good luck if the ideas strike you! (And don't forget us little guys when you're famous...)

SPD Presents: ART + INFO Master Class with STEVE DUENES

I don't pretend to be an expert on infographics. In fact, I'm pretty intimidated by all but the ones that have lots of cool spot illustrations (pretty pictures--I get that!), and wish that I could wrap my brain around organizing sometimes-difficult information like a real pro. I believe that it takes a special kind of design thinker to make sense of small bites and facts. Or maybe I just get a whiff of math and head for the hills, which is silly. This stuff is actually fascinating, and, in all seriousness, it's a crucial skill for a designer today.
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Pimp my Data!

Cool motion info graphics are nothing especially new, but when they start popping up at the end of Will Ferrell movies they certainly do grab your attention. In a bid to get the lucky attendees of Steve Duenes' "Art + Info" masterclass in February all inspired, check out these cool end credits from last summer's Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg movie "The Other Guys".

Watch the credits after the jump... … MORE

The Joy of Stats: 200 Years of Health and Wealth

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New York Magazine Graphics Get Love From Creative Review

New York magazine's infographics got some major love recently from UK advertising and design magazine Creative Review. Their blog did a loving post called "New York magazine: Data done right," and Monograph, their subscriber bonus publication, reproduced a stack of New York pages. And best of all, the latest cover of Creative Review features a nifty guide to the contents of the magazine, created as a chart by New York design director Chris Dixon and his crew.

The 7 1/2 Steps to Successful Infographics

Infographics maven Sarah Slobin has a great new advice article about the preparation and care of infographics. Slobin has cooked up graphic brilliance at The New York Times, Fortune, and now the Wall Street Journal, so she knows her stuff. The 7 1/2 Steps to Successful Infographics is a fun, step-by-step guide, filled with good learning and smart advice. Sample quote: "You may want your data to tell a certain story, or think that it tells a certain story, but you must respect what the numbers actually say." And when you're done reading, you can cruise on over to Slobin's website and see some nifty infographic examples of what she's talking about.

Stardate 11.08.2009

I dunno, does anybody think the maps on the jump of the Perseid meteor showers tonight could get a little sexier? Of course in infographics / mapping simplicity is key, especially if you're cranking your neck up to the sky at 4am to catch a glimpse of 80 meteors shooting through the sky, but don't you think they could get a little pizazz?

Just for kicks I think I'll make it my personal project to mix the universe with a little humanity and fun a bit; an airbrushed defeated Medusa above might be too much, but what about a little wink to Harry Hamlin as the original Perseus, or a simple line illo to bring it together, or plop in the lovely Cassiopeia in the *original* Battlestar Galactica just to spice things up?
 
At Discover we watched in the desert which was awesome, but might not be too pretty in Gotham, anyway...after the Secret Science Club and my insomnia kicks in anyone in NY is welcome to come up and try to see these darn things on my roof tonight. You can check out Twits around the world on #meteorwatch too. /// HJ
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Is it me...

...or does someone really need to redraw this map of the LA street closures tomorrow?

It hurts my eyes. And makes me think of how much I like taking the train.

Convention Crashin'

Hi all, though I am still kicking myself for not getting to Malofiej this year, the rest of 2009 has a lot in store for all you information-lovers out there. Here's a little summer conference rundown from your roving illustrator, bowling correspondent, datatickler...

Most of the below focus on infographics / tech / creativity / media, and whether American or sprinkled around the world most give group discounts...I know this Wednesday I'll be workin' the room for sure...here kitty kitty CaT!


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Let's Talk About Maps...

Visual journalist Sarah Slobin talks to longtime Time Magazine cartographer Joe Lertola and looks at some examples from his body of work.

The population maps are really nice, and I think its cute at the end when he says his cat likes to walk on his keyboard and send unfinished emails;) Check out the interview here.

Heavy Metal Band Names Infographic

Fürther proof that infographics need not be a 3-D extravaganza. 

It's All Greek To Me!

VOMIT.
MOTHER-IN-LAW.
SQUEEZE.

What do these words have in common?
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A (Live) Infograph Worth a Thousand Words

Noticed that at the nytimes.com all morning they were featuring a live streaming infograph of the Dow Jones Industrial Average in a prominent spot usually reserved for journalistic photography. As an image alone, I think it might just capture a bit of the anxiety (and some reflief) we've experienced over the past few days.

For People Who Give A Damn! Some GOOD news

Were you handed something different while paying $5 for that Mint Mocha Chip Frappuccino blended coffee drink this morning?  I'm not talking about someone's wailing kid, I'm talking about the premiere of GOOD SHEET.

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All Graphics, All The Times©

Check out the torch decoder the NY Times cranked out, (do any of them sleep over there?)
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Charts Don't Have to Suck

As anyone I work with will testify, I hate me some charts. To me, they're a tool of the lazy editor, a way to excise a particularly verbose or complicated section from the third section of some bloated profile of yet another middle-aged white guy. "Just make a chart; it's the art department's problem." But seriously, charts suck, right? Not necessarily! Check out this badass box office tracker on xach.com. It's truly a gem. Almost as good as the Jedi Name Generator.