InDesign Basics: How to Work Effectively in Adobe InDesign
InDesign Basics: How to Work Effectively in Adobe InDesign
Estimated study time: 3h
Total video time: 1h 50m
Award-winning instructor: Jeff Witchel
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Beginner
No prior experience needed
Bite-sized content
Learn at your own pace
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What you’ll learn
Set up InDesign to work best for you.
Build a strong foundation for your layouts with the most basic features.
Format your type with great efficiency.
Work with graphics, color, and effects in your layouts.
Work with a commercial printer.
Learn basic features of Adobe InDesign including (but not limited to) setting up new documents, creating custom workspaces, setting up pages and layouts, and exporting PDFs.
In this course, you'll learn how to:
- Set up InDesign to work best for you.
- Build a strong foundation for your layouts with the most basic features.
- Format your type with great efficiency.
- Work with graphics, color, and effects in your layouts.
- Work with a commercial printer.
Syllabus
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1
New document setup Picking the right settings for your document will get your project off to a great start. After this lesson, you'll be able to identify the various options for setting up new layouts. 4m
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2
Creating custom workspaces Setting up a custom workspace is kind of like setting up your office for work. After this lesson, you'll be able to set up a well-thought-out custom workspace. 4m
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3
Setting up your preferences Everyone has their own ways of working. By learning how to set up preferences, InDesign will work the way you want. After this lesson, you'll be able to work more efficiently by matching the way InDesign works with your likes and needs. 4m
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1
Adding pages Pages are the most basic part of a layout. By understanding the features of the pages panel, you have a solid foundation to begin building a great layout. After this lesson, you'll be able to set up your pages correctly for a variety of kinds of layouts. 4m
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2
Parent page efficiency Parent pages (formerly known as master pages), are kind of like templates that can be applied to pages with the same design structure. After this lesson, you'll be able to set up the basic structure with all the elements positioned perfectly, simply by applying a parent page. 5m
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1
Creating objects Objects are everything in an InDesign layout. After this lesson, you'll be able to conquer object creation by learning to use InDesign's "drawing tools." 4m
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2
Transforming objects Now that you've learned how to create objects, the next step is being able to "transform" them—scale, rotate, shear, and flip (reflect) them from a preselected part of the object. After this lesson, you'll be able to move and change the size of objects precisely without ever pulling out a calculator. 4m
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1
Character of type Most of what makes up the "look" of the type you use (the type's character) happens in the character panel. After this lesson, you'll be able to identify and apply the basic features of the character panel. 4m
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2
Paragraph formatting Unlike character formatting, which is the look of the selected characters, paragraph formatting is the look of the entire paragraph. After this lesson, you'll be able to control type alignment, paragraph indents, spacing between paragraphs and more. 4m
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1
Formatting tabs While tabs are an important basic feature of type formatting in InDesign, its inner workings are a mystery to many beginners. After this lesson, you'll be able to format tabs with ease and apply your skills to align text in columns. 4m
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2
Adding space From em spaces and en spaces to hair spaces and flush spaces, InDesign has it all. After this lesson, you'll be able to identify the various kinds of type spacing and add these to your designs. 4m
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3
Give me a break Paragraph breaks are just the beginning of the kinds of breaks you can apply to type in InDesign. After this lesson, you'll be able to identify and apply various kinds of type breaks. 3m
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1
Paragraph style efficiency As the main type formatting feature, paragraph style is, by far, the most efficient way to format type with total consistency, and to update or totally change that formatting throughout a document in seconds. After this lesson, you'll be able to format multiple pages of type with amazing speed and consistency. 4m
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2
Character style precision After setting up and applying your paragraph styles, you may want to finetune the character formatting of some of the text within a paragraph. After this lesson, you'll be able to apply character styles to take the precision of your formatting within a paragraph to the next level. 4m
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1
Text wraps Text wraps allow you to have your text run around various objects on a page. After this lesson, you'll be able to describe all of the ins and outs of wrapping text. 4m
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2
Text frame options While formatting text is important, controlling the options within the object that contains the text can be equally important. After this lesson, you'll be able to uncover the many important options available to allow you to format the object that contains your text. 4m
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1
Placing graphics Graphics of any kind are Placed (File > Place) into an InDesign layout, NEVER copied and pasted. After this lesson, you'll be able to place graphics into an InDesign layout and be in control of all the images in your layout. 4m
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2
Controlling linked graphics Sometimes mysterious things can happen with graphics in a layout when you first open it. The links panel will help you easily solve these mysteries without losing a beat. After this lesson, you'll be able to navigate the various options in the links panel. 4m
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1
Creating swatches You can imagine how important color is to any beautiful layout. Creating and applying your colors easily is the purpose of the swatches panel. 4m
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2
Stroke of genius Color can be added inside an object as a fill or along its edge as a stroke. This lesson will concentrate on the many options available in the Stroke panel. 4m
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1
Adding transparency Imagine being able to see through parts of your design to the objects below. That's what opacity and blending modes allow you to do, which can literally add a whole other dimension to your design. After this lesson, you'll be able to apply a whole variety of blending modes to unlock the innermost secrets of using transparency. 4m
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2
Adding effects When InDesign was first introduced over 20 years ago, one thing that separated it from any layout application that came before was the ability to apply Photoshop-like effects right in a layout. After this lesson, you'll be able to apply various kinds of shadows, glows, feathering, and dimensional effects that will spark your imagination with innovative ways of designing a page. 5m
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1
Exporting to PDF PDF has become the most important export out of InDesign. After this lesson, you'll be able to demystify the vast number of PDF Exporting choices and decide the best option for your needs. 4m
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2
Package your layout Sometimes, a commercial printer will want to print from your native files instead of a PDF. After this lesson, you'll be able to apply the Package feature to automatically collect all linked images and typeface used in a layout. 3m
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1
A final word Thank you for watching this course! Now that you've completed this course, you have a vast toolset of basic InDesign features for creating beautiful layouts. Get ready to put the power of InDesign to work for you. 1m
Certificate
Certificate of Completion
Awarded upon successful completion of the course.
Instructor
Jeff Witchel
Jeff Witchel is an Adobe Certified Instructor for Creative Cloud Design & Layout Solutions (Adobe InDesign, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop). Jeff is also Adobe’s Co-Representative to the InDesign User Group of New Jersey, an Adobe community professional, and an adjunct professor at Kean University at the Robert Busch School of Design. As an Adobe Certified Expert, Jeff has been a speaker at Adobe Groups across the United States and at creative conferences.
Jeff Witchel
Adobe Certified Instructor, Entrepreneur
Accreditations
Link to awards
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