In this tutorial i am going to show a context of a large scale map;this gives a sense of where it is in relation to a smaller scale map.

I am currently doing my final year project and my area of study is Nairobi County.Part of what is required in the write-up is to provide an overview map.

1.The first step is to load your area of study into the map canvas using the Layer>Add Layer and add the format that your data is in.For my case it's a shapefile.

2.Load the smaller scale map.For my case i want to give the context of Nairobi County within Kenya.

3. The next step is to compose a map.Go to Project>New print Composer and give it an appropriate name.

4.In the print composer window go to Layout>Add New Map or you may use the Add New map icon at the side bar.

5.Make sure that the the map you want to make is the one displayed on the QGIS canvas.Drag the rectangle on the the white area.Ensure you leave some space all around for the grid and the title.

You can mess around with the scale to ensure the map fits well in the box.

 Ensure that you have enough space where the smaller scale map will fit in.Use the Move item tool(Layout>Move item) to move the map around

6.After being satisfied with the larger scale map,Lock it by checking the lock check box.

7.Go back to the QGIS canvas and display the larger scale map.Zoom in to it.

8.Follow the same procedure as before to add the map onto the white box on the print composer.

You can once again change the scale to fit the map on the required area.
An arrow can also be added(Layout>Add arrow) to link the two

Finally you can export the map to a format of your choice;jpeg,svg or pdf.

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1.I will be using QGIS 2.8 for this tutorial and an excel file containing X and Y coordinates of crops affected by bacterial diseases in Western Kenya.The data was collected using a handheld GPS.




2.In QGIS go to Layer>Add Layer>Add delimited layer.




3.Browse the location of the excel file and under the x-field,put the column containing the Easting,and y-field the northings.

4.Click OK and choose the appropriate reference system in the coordinate reference system selector window that pop-ups.



5.Finally,right click on the loaded excel file and save it as a shapefile.

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