1. Adobe InDesign
L/O: to know how to use the tools in
InDesign in order to create and
design ancillary texts

2. Purpose
• InDesign is a program to design print layouts
such as:
– Posters
– Brochures
– Magazine spreads
– Leaflets
– Stationary
– etc

3. Setting up files
– Opening files/setting up
– Saving files
– Exporting PDF
– …
– …

4. Creating a file
• Choose create new
document
• (don’t ever need to
choose book/library)
• Or you can open an
existing file

5. Creating/setting up a new file
• -click off facing pages
• Page size = A4 (just leave on this – or A3)
• Orientation – portrait or landscape
• Leave columns
• Leave gutter
• Can change margins if you wish
• (chain icon means to keep proportion)

6. Once open, it will look like…

7. Rulers/grids/guides Grids/guides on page
Quick tools
(such as text
stuff, opacity,
Effects etc.
windows
toolbar
Options
(file, edit,
Layout,
Notes etc.)
How to view whole
page

8. To discuss…..
• Windows & dock
– Expanding dock/windows
– Moving windows
• Multiple pages (master/none)
– Shortcuts and trashcan
• Using rulers/grids/guides
– Right click
– View = hide frame edges/hide grids
– Grids & guides

9. Toolbar and it’s tools
• Black arrow (direction selection tool)
• White arrow (indirect selection tool)
• Pen tool
• Text tool
• Pencil tool
• Line tool
• Rectangle/ellipse/polygon frame tools (placing images)
• Rectangle/ellipse/polygon tools
– Alignment
– transform
– arrange
– grouping
– locking
• Rotate tool
• Scale tool
• Eyedropper tool
• Hand tool
• Zoom tool

10. Other stuff with toolbar
You will see little black
arrows, click and hold
and you will get more
options

11. Other stuff with toolbar
Fill colour
Switch pages
outlines
Switch the
pages
text
Red line through
something means
not visible
(i.e. = this means
no fill colour)

12. Text tools
– Titles
– Paragraphs
– Size
– Style
– Colour of text
– Tracking/Kerning
– Creating outlines

13. Other stuff…
• Stroke
• Placing images
• Making backgrounds
• Making shapes

14. Colours
• Anything print = printers are CYMK (called a 4 colour process)
Cyan (blue)
Yellow
Magenta (pink)
Black
You MUST make all colours CMYK before printing….
• Using colours
– Choosing
– Changing
– CMYK