1> Window Menu: Use the Workspace menu to personalise your interface workflow

3>

2>

Bleed (outer red guides)

4>
Industry standard 3mm

Margin

Layout area

1. Int roduction t o InDe sign / 1> Main InDesign application menu

Int er f ace / Tools and t ool panels / 2> Tool bar
3> Control panel (Area for selected tool options)
4> Tool panels
Note: Further tools and tool palettes can be accessed via the main
Window menu drop down.
 A> B> C>

Selection tool (V)

Direct selection tool (A)
Page tool
Gap tool
Content collector tool
Type tool (T)
Line tool (/)
Pen tool (P)
Pencil tool (N)
Rectangle frame tool
F>
Rectangle tool (M)

Scissors tool
Free transform tool
Gradient swatch tool
Gradient feather tool
D> E>
Note tool
Eyedropper tool (I)
Hand tool (H)
Zoom tool (Z)

Colour: Fill and Stroke

Colour: Object or Text

1. Int roduction t o InDe sign / Common Panels:

Int er f ace / Tools and t ool panels / A> Pages Panel. To order pages in your document
B> Layers Panel. To work with objects on multiple layers
C> Paragraph Styles Panel. To set the appearance of text
D> Colour Panel. To work with colour for individual assets
E> Swatches Panel. To set and edit colour swatches
F> Align Panel. To align and distribute objects/assets
 New document setup -
Platform Intent
startup panel

Document size
Orientation
Number of pages Facing Pages: Multi-page design

Columns and ‘gutter’—meaning the

inter-column spacing

Document margin: Individually set or

constrained

Bleed: An additional printable area

used for ‘full bleed’ image composition
Alternate new document
or any element that crops beyond the
setup panel
page edge
Slug: An additional unprintable area used
to specify artwork information

2. Document set -up / P latform int ent / Dimensions / Note: InDesign is more than a page layout application for print. Documents
Bleed / Margins / Cre at e guide s / can be created for on-screen, online, and moblie platforms. InDesign also
has the option of working with a wide range of media depending on the
intented output. This includes; images, video/animation, audio, and has a
range of interactivity features.
 Number of rows Number of columns
Inter-row spacing Inter-column spacing

Relationship to page
Option to remove existing guides

2. Document set -up / P latform int ent / Dimensions / Note: Guides can be created either as a modular grid or customised.
Bleed / Margins / Cre at e guide s / Consider the number of columns and rows in relation to your design
and the desired aesthetic. A grid is intended to be a compositional aid,
not a rigid structure — You can break the grid!
Basic shape tools: Basic shape tools: Step and Repeat: Pen Tool:
Select: Can be used to create vector objects, with or
Use the Selection tool (V) or free transform Use the Direct selection tool (A) to select and Edit without a fill and/or stroke. This is a common
tool to move, rotate and scale the object. modify indivudal anchor points. > Step and Repeat (Alt + Command + U) tool in all core Adobe applications.
The Add and Delete Anchor tool, and convert
Select the designated number, and the Direction Point tool can be used on any
Frame tools: horizontal and vertical offset object.
All shapes can be converted into frames, and
Basic shape tools: vice versa. Pen tools (Tool bar):

3. Working with vect or object s and frame s / Ba sic shape s /

St ep and repe at / Introduction t o the Pen t ool / Stroke / Pathfinder /
Applying colour Stroke palette

Use the Swatches or Colour palette to apply, Use the Stroke palette to add, remove, or
or change the fill and/or stroke colour, or set adjust the thickness of a stroke or path.
as transparent. Further stroke style options can be modified.

3. Working with vect or object s and frame s / Ba sic shape s /

St ep and repe at / Introduction t o the Pen t ool / Stroke / Pathfinder /
 Minus back
Exclude overlap
Intersect
Subtract
Add/combine

3. Working with vect or object s and frame s / Ba sic shape s /

St ep and repe at / Introduction t o the Pen t ool / Stroke / Pathfinder /
 Swatch palette:
Can be used in combination with the Colour
palette to change the fill or stroke colour of
an object, as well as to manage the docu-
ments used colour (excluding raster images).

4. Working with colour / S wat che s / G radient s /

 Gradient and Swatch palette:
Gradients can be applied to either/both the fill
and stroke. Adjust the gradient range using the
slider in the Gradient palette. New colour can
be added by dragging the swatches from the
Swatch palette onto the gradient slider.

4. Working with colour / S wat che s / G radient s /

 1 2 3

4 5 6

5. Packa ging your work pulls t ogether all 1. Select Package... under the File Menu
the a sset s you have inser t ed int o your docu- 2. This screen gives a summary and may also indicate broken links
ment , and put s them int o one place 3. Printing Instructions may be required in situations where files are being remotely upload-
ed to a print bureau
4. Select a place to create a Package folder
5. Packaging may take a while if there are a lot of assets
6. The packaged folder contains every asset required to recreate your document
 1 2 3

5. Expor t t o a PDF for the most effecient 1 . U n d er th e f i le m enu - S elect A do be PDF pre s et s > [High Q ua lit y
me ans of printing and publishing your work Prin t]...
2. S ave it some w here s a fe - net wo rk drive o r US B
3. E x p or t P DF Pa nel ha s m a ny o ptio ns fo r o ptim is atio n, keep def ault s
select ed un le s s yo u need t o reduce the file s ize
4 . A little p rogre s s ba r a ppe a rs in the ba ckgro und. This ca n t a ke a
wh ile, w th is will dis s a ppe a r o nce PDF cre atio n is co m plet e