地形 and 地図: actual terrain and a map representing it
Compare a mountain road’s terrain with a mountain marked on a map, separating flat paper from level ground.
The shape of the actual ground
地形, read ちけい, means terrain or landform. この辺りは地形が複雑です。 says that the terrain around here is complex.
山の地形に合わせて道が曲がっています。 says that the road bends to follow the mountain’s terrain. 山, read やま, identifies the actual landform surrounding the route.
A map representing positions and routes
地図, read ちず, means map. 地図に山の位置を書き込みました。 says that someone marked the mountain’s position on the map.
地図を広げて道を調べました。 says that someone spread out the map and examined the route. It does not state that the route was already walked.
The medium and the terrain represented
紙の地図は平らですが、そこに描かれた地形には坂があります。 says that the paper map is flat, but the terrain depicted has slopes. Separate the paper’s shape from the ground’s shape.
地図に道が描かれていても、現在通れるかは別に確認します。 says that even if a road is drawn on the map, its current accessibility is checked separately. Representation and current access are different facts.
Does a flat paper 地図 establish that the depicted 地形 is level?
Show the answer and why
No. The paper is the medium of representation, while terrain is the actual ground. Their properties must be read separately.