This pdf is meant to introduce students (and clients) to the idea of a process book. It includes a brief introduction to Adobe InDesign.

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Process Book BasicsIndustrial Design/
Carly Hagins, Assistant Professor
Wentworth Institute of Technology
Version 1 / Fall 2015

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DISCLAIMER!
This is only a guide. It’s always important to clarify deliverables (including process
books) with instructors/professors/clients at the beginning of each new project.

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What is a process book?
A process book is a document (often a print or digital pdf) that
communicates a designer or team’s process for completing a given
project.
The process book should reflect the true process of the project,
highlighting struggles as well as successes that led to the eventual
design solution.
The process may be communicated using photography, sketches
(thumbnails, iterations, renderings, etc.), and/or written explana-
tions. Digital process books may also include video footage.
{process}

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http://architecture-design-photo.blogspot.com/2015/06/workspace-from-last-week-illustration.html
Photographs of messy desks add context and personality to the process (and are usually very visually
appealing.) Step-by-step photos are sometimes appropriate for more complex prototyping techniques.

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http://www.coroflot.com/hastings/Brand-Identity
Sketch pages should be arranged in a way that shows thought process. Consider hierarchy of information
to help show beginning, middle, and end.

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Why is it important?
The design process is not frivolous; it’s intentional and includes
methods that insure the final result is the best possible solution.
Documenting your design process validates your final solution.That
validation can help insure good grades and, later, good pay.
Many people can make things pretty. Designers are trained to
make things better, and the proof is in the process.
http://dschool.stanford.edu/fellowships/files/2013/11/Design-Process-Redux-1.png

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When should it be considered?
A process book should be assembled as the project is happening,
not after all other work is complete.
As a designer, it’s important to get into the habit of documenting
your process as you go.The act of assembling sketches, photos, and
notes into one cohesive statement (i.e. process book) often leads
to breakthroughs that can have a positive impact on the final out-
come.

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Why InDesign?
InDesign is Adobe’s page layout program. Put very simply,
you need to make a book and InDesign is a tool made for
page design and layout (i.e. making books.)

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File Management
File management is key when setting up an InDesign document.
I like to set up a folder
on my desktop for each
InDesign document.
(‘Process Book’)
I make a ‘placed’ folder inside the document folder.
This is where I’ll put sketches and photographcs
that will be used in the document.

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Starting a new file
Navigating to File > New > Document will bring up this window.
Choose your number of pages.You
can always add/subtract pages later.
Facing pages create a document with
spreads instead of single sheets. Facing
pages can be appropriate if you plan to
print on both sides of paper. PDFs that will
be viewed primarily on a computer typically
don’t have facing pages.
https://sharkingkelldmt.files.wordpress.
com/2014/03/photograph-magazine-inspira-
tion-by-matteo-gualandris.jpg?w=600
http://s1.ibtimes.com/sites/www.ibtimes.com/
files/styles/pulse_embed/public/2015/04/01/
cards-against-humanity-science-pack.jpg
Facing Pages
Not Facing Pages
Preview gives you an opportunity
to visually check that you’ve made
all the correct specifications before
clicking ‘OK.’

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Basic Tools Selection Tool (V): select, move, and scale images and text boxes
Navigating to Window > Tools will
bring up this window (although it
should be visible by default.)
Learning the shortcuts will make
your life easier! Type Tool (T): click and drag to create a text box
Line Tool ()
Pen Tool (P)
Rectangle Tool (M) (this is also where you’ll find the ellipse
and polygon tools)
Eyedropper Tool (I)
Hand Tool (H, spacebar): used to pan around the document
Zoom Tool (Z, command +/-)

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Pages
Navigating to Window > Pages will
bring up this window.
The pages window shows a preview
of each page in the document and
lets you add, delete, and rearrange
pages.
Changes made to the master
page will be applied to all
pages in your document.
Double-click a page to
jump directly to that page.
Click and drag to change
the order of pages.
Right-click anywhere with-
in the window to bring
up a drop-down menu of
options.
Edit page size
(not often necessary
for process books)
Create new page
Delete selected pages
This drop down
menu reveals
useful options.

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New color group
creates a folder for
a set of swatches.
This can be helpful
for staying organized.
New swatch
Delete swatch
Double-clicking a
swatch brings up
options for that
color.
CMYK
RGB
Swatches
Navigating to Window > Color >
Swatches will bring up this window.
The swatches window provides easy
access to colors used in the document.
Color mode

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CMYK vs RGB
(A quick refresher)
CMYK is used for high-quality printing processes (nicer
home printers and professional print shops.) Are you
creating a document specifically for print? Make sure your
file is in CMYK.
*It is important to reference Pantone swatches, the in-
ternational standard for printed color, when using CMYK
to be certain the final print will match your expectations
RGB is used for any document that will ever be viewed
on a screen. Making a process book that will be emailed
and also printed? Keep it in RGB. Digital pdfs have a hard
time interpreting CMYK, but most printers can make a
good approximation of RGB colors.
CMYK - Cyan / Magenta /Yellow / Black RGB - Red / Green / Blue
http://www.seanrees.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/SeanRees_Posters_CMYK.jpg http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/91zhsBYJxGL._SX522_.jpg

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Character
Navigating to Window > Type & Tables >
Character will bring up this window.
The character window offers
control over typographic elements.
Font size Leading
Kerning Tracking
Typeface
Weight
Typography: a visual reference
Read more on the Creative Market blog: https://goo.gl/UcxGIX
Knowing your type
Industrial designers are generally not trained to
be experts in typography. So keep things simple,
use well-respected fonts (Myriad, Helvetica, Cen-
tury Gothic, and even Arial), and ask your graphic
designer friends for help.

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View (Overprint Preview and Guides)
Grids and guides are helpful for creating a consistent layout. Navigate to
View > Grids & Guides to turn them on and off. (Learn the shortcuts
for these commands—they will save you time.)
*Keep in mind that grids and guides applied to the master page will
show up on every page of the document.
InDesign defaults to showing a blue border around every object in a
document.This makes it easy to see edges, but can be distracting.
Navigate toView > Overprint Preview to hide those blue borders.

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Preferences
Navigating to InDesign > Preferences
will bring up a number of options for
customizing your workspace.
‘Units & Increments’ controls the
units for document rulers and stroke.

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Inserting Images
Navigate to File > Place in
order to insert an image
into the document.
*Keeping files organized makes it
quick and easy to find and place
images. (See pg. 10 of this document.)

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Fitting
When an image is placed in InDesign,
it has an imaginary frame around it.
It’s important to scale both the image
and the frame in order to position the
content within the document.
Holding down shift constrains
the proportions of the image
and frame, therefore avoiding
warping and distortion.
Shift + command scales the frame and
image concurrently.
Once the frame is scaled correctly,
right-click it to reveal this drop-down
menu. Choose Fitting > Fit Content to
Frame to fit the image to the frame.
Shift + option scales the frame around
its center point (instead of a corner
or edge.)
*Learning the shortcuts for this drop-down
menu will save a lot of time, especially when
compiling image-rich documents like process
books and portfolios.

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Align
Align arranges all selected elements (images
and text) along the same imaginary vertical
or horizontal line.This can be done based on
the left, right, top, or bottom edges or the
midpoints of the elements.
Navigating to Window > Object & Layout >
Align will bring up this window.
Aligning images and text increases organization
and legibility in a document.
Distribute inserts an equivalent amount
of space between selected elements
based on the left, right, top, or bottom
edges or midpoints of those elements.

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Thanks for reading
Please get in touch if you have any questions or comments.
haginsc@wit.edu