InDesign Skills

The next project that we were asked to do was to create a sample product in InDesign. InDesign is an Adobe effects programme that allows you to create media products. As I am not familiar with the software we were taught some basics. 

We imported and placed images into the document. You cannot copy and paste an image into InDesign as you will have problems with the image further down the line. To insert an image into InDesign you click the grey square with the cross in the middle, this is located in the effects bar usually on the left hand side of the document. You then draw a box on the page and you navigate to file, and then place. You locate your image and then import. Once you have followed these steps, the image selected will be successfully placed into your InDesign document.  

We were also taught how to insert text. Including text in a document is very important, therefore it is essential to correctly import text into InDesign. To insert text into InDesign you click on the box down the side of the document that does not have a cross through. You create your text for example in a word document. You cannot create text in InDesign as the document will not format correctly. You then navigate to file, then place and find the text document and import. This imports the text into the selected area. If the imported text is too long to fit in the text box, you can click on the little red box located at the bottom right of the text box and drag it into the next text box. As shown above the text for the article is spread into multiple text boxes. Using this feature is essential as if the size of the text boxes is adjusted, the text adjusts too.

To also attract the target audience you need a bold masthead. To create a masthead you click on the text icon located in the menu bar on the right and side of the document. Then you click where you want your text to be and you can start typing. You can then double click on the text and use the formatting options to make the text unique. 

An article always needs an indication on where to start reading. This is called a drop cap. A drop cap is when the first letter of an article is over sized. As you can see from the image above I have created a drop cap. The drop cap is essential as it stands out and clearly shows where the article starts. To create a drop cap you highlight the first box of the article, you then click the properties tab and then create drop cap. 

Furthermore we investigated the use of strokes. I inserted a line into InDesign and I used the white arrow tool to create an effect on the line. I changed the width of the line, I changed the pattern of the line and I changed the stroke effects. Using these features allow me to create a product that will stand out and attract the customers eye.