InDesign Tutorial 1

Different purpose demands different style - Lucian Bernhard

Contents
1
2
3
6
8
10
11

Introduction
The InDesign Workspace
The Toolbox
The File Menu
Creating a New Document
The Panel Dock
Creating Text

Shaun Minahan 2014

InDesign Tutorial 1

INTRODUCTION
This is the first in the series of InDesign Tutorials that will
allow you to learn InDesign at your own pace. InDesign is the
industry standard layout application for design.
In this tutorial, you will learn some basics of InDesign and
familiarise yourself with the workspace, toolbox, panel
dock and some design elements. There are also several
exercises for you to do which will help you get a grasp of
using InDesign. Follow them carefully and save the files in the
Tutorial 1 folder which is located in your personal folder.
Further tutorials will have a continuous exercise format.
That is, you will start with the one file that you will work on
throughout the tutorial, using new tools and design features
that you will learn as you progress through the tutorial.
I hope you enjoy learning and using InDesign. Once you have
become familiar with it, you will be able to think beyond
simple layout. InDesign will help you be creative in ways
you never thought possible. Youll find yourself being able to
design newsletters, business cards, invites etc.

Simplicity is the
ultimate sophistication
Leonardo Da Vinci

Shaun Minahan
September 2014

Shaun Minahan 2014

InDesign Tutorial 1

Page 1

THE INDESIGN WORKSPACE

Menu
Control Panel
Document Tab

Rulers
Page Border
Panel Dock

Toolbox
Margin Guide
Column Guide

Pasteboard

Current Page
Shaun Minahan 2014

InDesign Tutorial 1

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THE TOOLBOX
Toolbox Mode Selection

Selection Tool
Direct Selection Tool
Page Tool
Gap Tool
Content Tools

Scissors Tool
Transformation Tools
Gradient Swatch
Gradient Feather
Note Tool

This is a view of the two

column Toolbox. It expands
the Fill and Stroke area and
below making them easier
to use.

Navigation Tools
Hand Tools

Type Tools
Zoom Tool
Line Tool
Pen Tools

Fill and Stroke

Pencil Tools

Apply to Container

Frame Tools

Graphics Frame Tools

Shape Tools
Screen Views

Shaun Minahan 2014

InDesign Tutorial 1

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THE TOOLBOX
Flyout Menus
Some tool buttons have more than one function.
A flyout menu appears when the tool button is
clicked.
Toolbox Mode Selection
When the double arrow is clicked, the toolbox
toggles between single and double column
formats.
Selection Tool
This lets you select single or multiple objects.
Adding objects can be achieved by choosing
one object then choosing extra objects while
the SHIFT key is pressed. Multiple objects can
be chosen at once by holding the left mouse
button down and sweeping across a selection of
objects.
Direct Selection Tool
This lets you select points on a path or contents
within a frame.

a path. Erase tool lets you delete points on a

path.
Content Tools (Flyout menu)
These function like a permanent clipboard.

Type Tools (Flyout menu)

Use to create text boxes, edit text and create text
on a path.

Line Tool
Allows you to draw a line segment.
Pen Tools (Flyout menu)
Allows you draw straight and curved paths,
add or delete anchor points to an existing path
and lets you convert corner points and smooth
points.

Shaun Minahan 2014

Shape Tools (Flyout menu)

They will allow you to draw squares, rectangles,
circles, ovals and polygons which can be filled
with colour, gradients and transparencies.

Scissors Tool
The Scissors tool can be used to split paths,
shapes and frames and to reshape them.

Page Tool
Allows individual pages in documents to have
different page sizes.
Gap Tool
Used to adjust the white-space in-between and
around page items.

Frame Tools (Flyout menu)

Frame Tools create boxes (or frames) for
graphics. They will allow you to draw squares,
rectangles, circles, ovals and polygons which you
then import (or link) picture files into.

Pencil Tools (Flyout menu)

Pencil tool lets you draw a freeform path.
Smooth tool lets you remove excess angles from

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THE TOOLBOX
Transformation Tools (Flyout menu)
Rotate, scale and shear objects around a fixed
point.

Gradient Swatch
This will fill selected objects with the current
gradient. It also works on strokes. It works hand
in hand with the Gradient Palette.
Gradient Feather
Allows the selected object to fade gradually from
opaque to transparent.
Note Tool
Applies a note to a specified area of the
document.
Navigation Tools (Flyout menu)
Eyedropper tool lets you sample color and apply
it to another object. Measure tool measures the
distance between two points.

EXERCISE 1
Hand Tool
Moves the page view within the document.
Zoom Tool
Adjusts the view magnification in the document.

Fill Colour
Defaults
to no Fill
and black
Stroke

Stroke Colour

Formatting
affects
container

Formatting
affects text

Apply colour

Apply none
Apply
gradient

Normal view

Shaun Minahan 2014

Swap Fill
and Stroke
Colour

Toggles
between
views

Open InDesign and identify all the items in

the Workspace as described on page 1.
Using the mouse, click on the items in the
toolbox. If a tool has a flyout menu, click
the tool and hold your mouse button down
for a second and it will appear.

HANDY HINT
When using an application such as
InDesign or other Adobe products such as
Photoshop or Illustrator, it is important to
remember this:
Keep one hand on the keyboard and the
other on the mouse.
As the majority of commands in InDesign
have shortcuts and can be accessed
quickly from the keyboard, it is wise to
remember and use them. You will increase
your productivity by taking less time to
execute a command, instead of using the
mouse and the main Menu. Furthermore,
both hands will be moving at once.
With practice, youll notice youll be doing
a lot more in a shorter amount of time.

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THE FILE MENU

The Pull-down File Menu
This menu appears when File is chosen from
the Menu. Items marked with a red dot will be
discussed in this section of the tutorial.

Opening Documents
Opening documents with InDesign is pretty
much the same as opening documents with any
program.
Simply choose File then Open or press Ctrl+O.
Locate and click the document you want to work
on, and then click Open.
Another way is to locate the file on your
computer or network, then double click on it.
This will also launch InDesign if it is not already
active.
InDesign can have several files open at once and
will display them with individual tabs like this:

Closing Documents
Choose File then Close or press Ctrl+W. This
closes the active document. If the document has
never been saved or if it has been changed since
it was last saved, a dialog box appears that lets
you save, close without saving, or cancel and
return to the document.
Another way to close a document is to click on
the x on the right hand side of the document
tab as illustrated top right.

Shaun Minahan 2014

Saving Documents
Choose File then Save or press Ctrl+S. This
saves changes youve made to the active
document since you last saved. If you choose
Save for a document that hasnt yet been saved,
the Save As dialog box appears. This dialog box
lets you name and choose a storage folder for
the document.
Similarly, with yet unsaved documents you can
choose File then Save As... or press Ctrl+Shift+S
which will also bring up the Save As dialog box.
Revert
As the naming suggest, this function will revert
to the last saved version of the document.
Unfortunately, all changes from then will be lost,
so use with care.
Exit
This will close down InDesign. Either choose Exit
from the File Menu or press Ctrl+Q. Another
method is to click the X on the InDesign
window in the top right hand corner.
All active documents will then close and you will
be presented with the opportunity to save any
unsaved documents.

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THE FILE MENU

Common Sense
NOMENCLATURE

Unsaved Files
When a file has had any changes to it since the
last time it was saved, the Document Tab will
have an asterisk ( ) in front of the file name.

EXERCISE 2
Open the file The Good Herb in the
Tutorial 1 folder using any method you like.
Save the file in the Tutorial 1 folder using
the Save As function (either method).
Name the file Exercise 2

The Golden Rule

Close the file then Exit Indesign.

Many designers will tell you stories of losing

hours of work when an application has frozen, a
power failure has occurred and their computer
has turned off or some other catastrophe has
happened (Catastrophe is an apt word. Cats
are usually involved when you leave a keyboard
unattended).
The solution; Save early. Save often.
Pressing Ctrl+S every minute or so is a very
good habit to get into.

Nothings impossible - The Doorknob, Alice in Wonderland

Shaun Minahan 2014

In a nutshell, naming things.

The way we organise ourselves when
using multiple files is important. And it
must be a process that is understood by all
those involved. Naming files correctly and
explanatory when saving is vital so that
errors can be minimised and files can be
located quickly.
If, for example, you are saving a document
you have created that consists of business
cards for Peter Johns of DKR Computers,
then instead of naming the file BCards, it
would be better if you named it:
Peter Johns DKR Computers BusCards
I have worked in many print, design
and advertising companies where the
organisation and naming of files has varied
from outstanding to ridiculous.
Once I had to retrieve a picture of a City
Mayor for another design job. I found the
original layout file and found the picture.
It was named Man1. A search on the
system revealed over 100 instances of
files with this name. It took over an hour to
find the picture that was required.

InDesign Tutorial 1

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CREATING A NEW DOCUMENT

per side) and then folded in half to give us the

final product. Some pages will have two columns
and there needs to be a 10mm gap between
them. We will also have a non-text area at the
edge of the brochure of 15mm.

Before you begin a new document, you must

answer several fundamental questions about the
publication you are producing:

In the figure above we can see the information

entered in the New Document box reflected
in the requirements. We have chosen a Print
document of four pages with numbering starting
at page one. The Facing Pages box has been
ticked which means that the two centre pages
will appear together (this will be explained later).

What are its dimensions? How many pages will it

have? If it will be a multi-page publication, will it
have facing pages like a book or a catalogue, or
will it be single-sided like a flip chart?
How many columns will each page have? How
wide will the margins be?
These and many other considerations must
be taken into account when creating a new
InDesign document.
To create a new InDesign document, choose File,
New, Document or press Ctrl+N.

New Document dialogue box

When you create a new document, the New

Document dialogue box, (Figure next column)
appears.

number of columns, and margin width. Although

youre free to change your mind later, you
save yourself time and potential headaches by
sticking with the basic page parameters you
establish in the New Document dialogue box.

It is here that you implement many of the

decisions you arrived at during the planning
stage, including page size, number of pages,

To our example; We have been given the task of

producing a four page A4 brochure. This will be
printed on both sides of a sheet of A3 (two pages

Using the dropdown menu to create a new document.

Shaun Minahan 2014

We have chosen a page size of A4 with a

Portrait Orientation and two Columns with a
10mm Gutter. The Margins have been set equally
to 15mm. This was automatic as the box has
been switched on which links all Margin sizes.
Note the terminology of the Margins. Top and
Bottom are self explanatory. The Inside Margin
refers to where the pages meet and Outside to
the Margin on the outer of the page. If the box
Facing Pages had not been ticked these would
then be Left and Right Margins. The Bleed and
Slug options will be discussed in a later tutorial.
This document will have pages that look like the
figure on the next page.

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CREATING A NEW DOCUMENT

15mm

Portrait vs Landscape Orientation

You can choose whether your document is
portrait or landscape orientation.
EXERCISE 3

15mm

15mm

Open InDesign and create a new

document with the following specifications:
Intent: Print

Portrait

Landscape

Number of pages: 1

210mm

Facing pages: Off (not ticked)

Orientation: Portrait

When you set up your new document, choose

the orientation in the New Document window.

Page size: A4
Number of Columns: 2

10mm
210mm

Gutter: 10mm

Portrait

Landscape

Margins: All 15mm

Your document should look exactly like the
figure to the left.
15mm

Save this file as Exercise 3 in the

Tutorial 1 folder.

The big problem is most contemporary design practiced today is

not really graphic design, but graphic decoration - Art Chantry
Shaun Minahan 2014

HANDY HINT
You can use the shortcut key W to switch
between Preview and Normal modes. In
Normal mode, you will see all frames,
guides margins and columns. Preview
mode hides these elements so you can
view the document with just the printable
objects.

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THE PANEL DOCK

Document Control

Fills and Strokes

To collapse the flyout, click on the double arrow

shown here circled in yellow.
Panels provide a more interactive method of
working with features because the screen is not
obscured by a large dialogue box and you can
access the controls quickly.
InDesign places a set of panels in a dock at the
right edge of your screen to keep them in a selfcontained area. When an item in the panel group
is selected, a flyout panel will appear as in the
following illustration.

Each Panel has its own sub-menu which is

accessed by clicking on the Menu icon, shown in
the illustration circled in red.
EXERCISE 4
Open the file called Numbers from the
Tutorial 1 folder and select the Pages
panel. You will see the single page in the
panel and a large 1 on the page. From
the sub-menu, select Insert Pages. Insert
two pages after page one. You should see
the three pages in the Page
panel like this:
Click on each of the page icons
and watch them highlight in
light blue. Double click a page
and you will go to that page.
Click the double arrow to close
the Pages panel.

Typography

Save this file as Exercise 4.

Transformations

The figure above is a personalised Panel Dock the Author has. As per the illustration
on page 1 (The InDesign Workspace) it is permanently located on the right hand
side of the workspace. The Panels stay docked (collapsed) and are accessed when
required.
For ease of use and functionality they are in four groupings as outlined above.

Shaun Minahan 2014

Here, the Pages panel has been selected. The

flyout also includes the other three panels in the
group which are visible as tabs (Links, Layers
and Info).

HANDY HINT
Made a mistake? Just press Ctrl-Z or
choose Edit then Undo from the Menu.

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CREATING TEXT
All text blocks, called stories, in an InDesign
document are contained in text frames. Unlike
a word-processing program, which lets you
just start typing text on a blank page, InDesign
requires you to create a text frame before you
can add text to a page.
To create a text frame, choose the type tool. Your
mouse pointer will change appearance to this:

Use this to draw a text frame. Click and hold

the mouse button, and while holding down the
mouse button, drag in any direction. As you
drag, a cross-hair pointer appears in the corner
opposite your starting point; a blue rectangle
indicates the boundary of the frame. Also, the
height and width of the frame will follow the
cross hair in a grey box. Release the mouse
button to complete the frame. Click the selection
tool and select the new text frame you have
created. You will see the text frame with its
various attributes which are explained in the
following figure.
Note: If you want a square text frame, hold the
Shift key down while you draw the frame.

Shaun Minahan 2014

Sizing the Text Frame

Anchoring
Handle
Port In (for
linked text)
Sizing
Handles

Rounded
Corners
Handle
Port Out
(for linked
text)

Choose the type tool again and click inside the

text frame. You will see a small flashing line
cursor. You can now begin to type.
EXERCISE 5
Create a new document and draw a text
frame. Type in a few lines of text to get the
feel of using the type tool. If you have used
a word processing tool like Word before,
youre probably used to doing this.
Mental blank? In a few sentences, type
down what you did this morning, or what
you plan for this weekend. Save this file as
Exercise 5.

Drag the handles to resize the frame. This may

require a bit of practice. Draw a Text Frame on a
new document and practice resizing. Remember,
there are eight handles that resize on all
dimensions.
Importing Text
There are a few ways to import text from various
sources.
Placing Text from a Word File
Sometimes you may be supplied with a Word
file that you have to use for your publication. The
easiest way is to Place the Word file into your
InDesign document.
From the File menu, choose Place, or you can
press Ctrl-D. This opens the Place window
where you can choose the file you require. Once
chosen and OK is pressed, you will see your
mouse pointer become something like this:

Choose a location for the text by clicking on the

page. If necessary, use the handles to resize
the placed text frame. The text can then be
formatted as you wish.

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CREATING TEXT

EXERCISE 6
Create a new document with the following:

Copy & Paste

Number of Pages: 1 Facing Pages: Off

Size: A5 Orientation: Landscape
Columns: 3 Gutter: 10mm
All Margins: 15mm

This is useful when you need to bring in text

from a web page, an email or an application
other than Word.
Highlight (choose) the text that you need to copy.
Either press Ctrl-C or use the applications Copy
feature. Draw a text frame in InDesign then press
Ctrl-V or choose Edit then Paste from the Menu.
Hyphenation
Hyphenation is rarely used these days, looks
a bit messy and can make some text harder
to read. If your new text frame has text that
is hyphenated you can switch it off using the
Paragraph panel.
Select all text within a text box by choosing the
type tool and clicking onto the text. Either press
Ctrl-A or select Edit then Select All from the
Menu.

Text Overflow
Text frames are finite in size and can only
contain so much text. When there is too much
text in a text frame, a special symbol will appear
where the Port Out box is.

Then place the overflow text into the next

2 columns. Save your file as Exercise 6.
If you click on this red symbol, you cursor will
change to something like this.
HANDY HINT

Click the Paragraph Panel in the Panel Dock so

the flyout appears.
Click off the Hyphenate box. This will rid
the selected text frame of any automatic
hyphenation and stop any occurring in the future.
The Hyphenate check box has been highlighted
in yellow in the figure centre top.
Shaun Minahan 2014

Place the file Green Tree Frog located in

the Tutorial 1 folder into the first column.
Turn off the Hyphenation.

This allows you to place overflow text in another

text frame when you place it on the page. The
two text frames will be linked and all text in both
frames can be edited as one.

If you have a text frame selected when you

Place a text file (or copied text), InDesign
will automatically place the text in that
frame. If not, it will allow you to place the
text anywhere you like. This also applies to
picture files and frames.

InDesign Tutorial 1

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