qgis basics for journalists

QGIS export happens in the print dialog box. You can save your map as an image or one of two formats than can be read in Adobe Illustrator.

Go to the File menu and select New Print Composer. Set your page size and orientation. 

Next, click the Add Map button and click and drag a box to add the map to your page. You can resize by grabbing the corner adjustment handles.

Both PDF and SVG can usually be opened and edited in Illustrator. Just know that the file conversion can cause things to go a little wonky at times.