Adobe InDesign is the last program we will cover in the course of this semester. Unlike Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, InDesign is not primarily for creating and editing graphics (bitmap or vector). Instead, InDesign is used mostly for layout of existing text and images. It combines much of the layout functionality of Illustrator with advanced text-layout capabilities and the ability to work on a large number of pages at once. This makes InDesign an excellent program for creating both electronic and hard-copy publications, including brochures, PDF pamphlets, newsletters, and books.
We will be using InDesign to create a multi-page PDF portfolio of the work you have done in Digital Studio this semester. As you are preparing to make your portfolio, you should gather all of the images you have produced in class this semester, preferably in their high-resolution versions (for bitmap images), and make sure they are clean, flattened, and ready to insert into a PDF. Similarly, before starting to lay out your PDF, you should prepare your text for each project in Microsoft Word or another wordprocessing program, so the text will be ready to insert once you start assembling your PDF. I will outline below the basic steps to creating a professional PDF using InDesign.
Getting Started- Creating a New Document
Start up Adobe InDesign (you may want to move the application icon to the Dock for easy future reference). Go to File: New, and select Document. This will bring up the New Document dialogue.
1) First, select the number of pages in your PDF. You can always add more pages later, but start with an estimate of what you will need. The minimum for your portfolio is seven pages.
2) Uncheck the Facing Pages box. This function is for creating print documents which are laid out like books: we will simply be building a multi-page PDF for viewing on a computer.
3) Select Letter under Page Size: we will be using standard 8.5” x 11” pages for your PDF.
4) Hit OK.
This creates a multi-page blank document: InDesign shows you the first page initially: you can scroll down to work on subsequent pages.
Adding Text and Images
Initially, the InDesign interface looks quite a bit like Illustrator: in many respects, the tools in InDesign behave the same way as those in Illustrator. However, there are some important differences to bear in mind. Unlike Illustrator, InDesign functions by creating ‘frames’ for text and images. This means that rather than simply drawing or placing an image, you first create a space for that image in the InDesign document. You can then place the image, and adjust its size to fit the frame you have created for it. InDesign does this so that documents can be laid out before all of the content is finished: by laying out the fields in advance, you can simply plug in content as it is completed. Let’s give this a try with an image.
Inserting Images in InDesign
You can insert an image in several ways. First, let’s try the simplest way.
1) Go to File: Place. Like Illustrator, this brings up a dialogue which allows you to select an image from your hard drive.
2) Select an image, and click OK.
3) InDesign shows a pointer and a thumbnail of the image. Click where you would like the image to be in your document. InDesign then creates a frame and inserts the image at its finished dimensions into your document.
4) You can then use the Move tool to relocate the image.
Let’s try inserting an image in another way, this time by creating a frame first, and then inserting the image.
1) Click on the Rectangular Frame Tool in the Tools palette. This looks like the Rectangle tool in the palette, except with an X through the rectangle. Click and drag to draw out a rectangular frame of the size you’d like for your image.
2) Select the Move tool from the Tool palette, and click on the frame you just drew. Now, go to File: Place.
3) As before, select an image from your hard drive to place into the frame.
4) Hit OK. This will place your image in the frame.
You will probably notice that you’re seeing only part of your image. This is a key difference between InDesign and Illustrator. You have a few options at this point. First, using the Move tool, grab a corner of your frame and drag out until you see the entire image. This does not change the size of the image: instead, it just opens up the frame so you can see more of the image.
If you need to change the size of your image, as opposed to just changing the size of the frame, select the image with the Move tool. Then, select the Scale tool from the Tools palette. (this looks like a series of shrinking rectangles with an arrow). Click and drag a corner of the image to change the size of the image.
Hint: If you’d like to maintain the proportions of your image, hold down Shift as you’re dragging the image to scale. This will prevent it from becoming distorted.
If you’d like just to display part of an image in your InDesign document, you can also use the your frame to ‘crop’ your image, by leaving the frame smaller than the finished image. Similarly, the Circular and Polygonal Frame Tools allow you to show a circular section of your image.
Using the Fitting Tools
InDesign also has a set of tools which allow you to fit an image exactly to a frame, or vice versa. Once you have placed an image in a frame, go to the Object menu, and roll over the Fitting section. This will bring up some options for fitting your image to your frame.
Selecting Fit Content to Frame will stretch or shrink your image to fill the frame you have selected. Conversely, selecting Fit Frame to Content will stretch or shrink your frame to fit your image. You can also use the Center Content in Frame function to center an image in a frame.
Adding Text to Documents
Adding text to an InDesign document works a lot like adding an image. You must create a frame for your text prior to inserting or typing it. Once you’ve created a frame, the text you add will automatically wrap to fit your frame. So, you can easily create a small, paragraph-shaped body of text to fit above, below or beside your image. Again, there are several ways to do this.
First, let’s try creating a frame using the Type tool.
1) Click on the Type tool in the Tool palette. Unlike Illustrator, you cannot simply start typing with the tool: first you must click and drag to create a rectangular field for the text. Once you’ve created a field, you can simply click inside it and start typing, or copy and paste text from Microsoft Word or another wordprocessing program. That’s it. You can use the Move tool to scale your frame to fit more text if needed.
2) You can also create a text frame using the Frame tools, much like we used the Frame tools to create frames for images. So, you can create circular or polygonal text frames as well. In essence, any shape you draw, whether with the Pen, Pencil or Shape tools, can become a frame: just click in inside it with the Type tool and start typing, or paste in text from another program.
Creating a Background
You can use the Rectangle tool, as in Illustrator, to create a field of color for the background of your PDF. Once you’ve drawn it, go to Object: Arrange: Send to Back to place the rectangle behind all of the other frames in your document.
Adding a Page
If you need to add another page to your portfolio, go to the Layout menu, and select Add Page. This inserts a page above your current page. Similarly, you can use this menu to delete pages you do not need.
For Next Week:
Start gathering images and text for your portfolio PDF, and begin layout.
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