Craft a map with 8 paper and 1 compass to make an empty locator map
Open the map to create the first map area
Craft more paper from sugar cane
Use a cartography table to expand the map with paper
Place the map in the cartography table with one paper to increase the zoom level
Repeat the expansion up to the maximum size
Use the expanded map while exploring new areas to fill in more terrain
Make multiple adjacent maps for even larger coverage
Keep the maps in item frames or a map wall to view the full area
In Java Edition, use the cartography table for cleaner map scaling
In Bedrock Edition, use the cartography table or crafting table to expand maps
Start from the center of the area you want to map for better coverage
Carry extra paper and empty maps when exploring far distances