Overview
Adobe InDesign is the industry standard for creating professional layouts—magazines, brochures, reports, books, and digital publications. This two-day course takes you from zero to confident, covering everything from basic document setup through intermediate production techniques like master pages, paragraph styles, and professional output.
You’ll learn to build multi-page documents with consistent formatting, manage text flow across layouts, work with images and graphics professionally, and prepare files for both print and digital delivery. Whether you’re designing marketing materials, corporate reports, or editorial layouts, you’ll gain the foundational and intermediate skills that professional designers rely on every day.
Format: 2 Days | VILT
Who Should Attend
- Graphic designers transitioning from other layout applications
- Marketing professionals creating their own materials
- Publishing and editorial staff managing document production
- Anyone who needs to create professional multi-page layouts
What You’ll Learn
- Navigate the InDesign interface and set up professional documents
- Work with text frames, threading, and professional typography
- Place and manage graphics with proper linking and embedding
- Create and apply paragraph and character styles for consistency
- Build master pages and templates for efficient production
- Prepare files for professional print and digital output
Course Outline
Module 1: InDesign Fundamentals and Document Setup
- The InDesign interface: tools, panels, and workspace organization
- Creating new documents: size, margins, columns, and bleeds
- Understanding pages and spreads
- Essential preferences and workspace customization
- Navigating and viewing documents efficiently
Module 2: Working with Frames and Objects
- Creating and manipulating text and graphics frames
- Selection tools and object transformation
- Aligning and distributing objects
- Working with layers for organization
- Grouping, locking, and managing frame stacking order
Module 3: Typography and Text Formatting
- Importing and placing text content
- Character formatting: fonts, size, leading, and tracking
- Paragraph formatting: alignment, indents, and spacing
- Threading text across multiple frames
- Special characters, glyphs, and OpenType features
- Text wrap and object interaction
Module 4: Graphics and Image Management
- Placing images: linking vs. embedding
- Scaling, cropping, and fitting images in frames
- Managing linked files with the Links panel
- Working with different image formats (TIFF, JPEG, PSD, AI)
- Image resolution and quality for print
- Wrapping text around graphics
Module 5: Color and Effects
- Understanding color modes: RGB vs. CMYK
- Creating and applying swatches
- Gradient fills and gradient feather effects
- Transparency and blending modes
- Drop shadows and basic effects
- Color management basics
Module 6: Styles and Consistency
- Creating and applying paragraph styles
- Character styles for inline formatting
- Object styles for consistent graphics formatting
- Updating and managing styles across documents
- Style overrides and how to resolve them
Module 7: Master Pages and Templates
- Understanding master pages and their purpose
- Creating and editing master page elements
- Applying masters to document pages
- Automatic page numbering and sections
- Building reusable templates
- Overriding master page items when needed
Module 8: Tables and Data
- Creating tables in InDesign
- Importing table data from Excel or Word
- Table formatting: rows, columns, and cells
- Header and footer rows
- Cell styles and table styles
Module 9: Output and File Preparation
- Preflight: checking documents for errors
- Package: collecting fonts and links
- Exporting PDFs for print and digital distribution
- PDF export presets and settings
- Printing from InDesign
- Understanding printer’s marks and bleeds
Prerequisites & Technical Requirements
- Basic computer skills and file management
- Familiarity with design concepts helpful but not required
Customization Options
This course adapts to your production environment. We can focus on the modules most relevant to your work. Bring your actual files and challenges, and we’ll work through them together.