tut Pro: Interior Buffers

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How To create Interior Buffers

Here is a quick tutorial on how to create "interior buffer" symbology (also sometimes referred to as "interior perimeter" symbology and similar to the "inner glow" options in Adobe Illustrator).

Here's an example of the "inner glow" effect from Adobe Illustrator:

Map of countries like China, Myanmar, and Thailand with Bengal Sea to left

And here's how I did it in ArcGIS Pro:

Select Unique Values for the polygon layer's symbology
For each polygon fill, open the symbol Properties / Layer
Turn the outline layer Off
For the fill layer, specify a Gradient Fill
Tweak the gradient properties (color, number of gradients, size, etc.) accordingly
Repeat for each country

I also did a few other tweaks to the map:

I added a semi-transparent olive-green overlay to make the whole think look more antiquey
I used a solid fill for the adjacent countries
I used a shoreline buffer layer with graduated hatched lines (changing the thickness and the transparency of the lines with distance from shore)