Getting Started in Adobe InDesign: 8 Essential Tips for Beginners

Not everyone has a graphic design background. I’ve found that there’s quite a few things that most people need designed, but may not have the skills to do it themselves.

This post is for anyone that has never used Adobe InDesign.
This post is an introduction to the basic features of InDesign.
This post is NOT for seasoned InDesign users or those that are already using it.
This post is NOT a project tutorial.

So what are some things that you can use InDesign for? You can use it to design your resume, a brochure for your business, or an invitation for your grandma’s birthday. Whatever the case, Adobe InDesign is an excellent tool to do any of those projects, and you can do it yourself. Don’t be intimidated. I believe in you!

By the end of this post, you will be able to:

1. Create a new document

2. Set your document size

3. Make a text box

4. Style text

5. Change Color

6. Working with images

7. Arranging Objects
8. Adding and Deleting Pages

Saving Your work

Conclusion

A lot of these may seem so rudimentary, but it’s all you need to start creating.

Things you’ll need

InDesign – any version will work. If you don’t have InDesign, you can find a free 7-day trial here.
A playlist – although optional, I find music meditative when I’m designing.

1. Create a New Document

First, open InDesign.

You should this screen above. Pardon the blurred thumbnails. That’s the recent project section and the once blurred aren’t launched yet!

On the left side, click “Create New.”

2. Document Sizes

There are quite a few options to work with here. Here is a break down of the options available:

Skip to the right side and let’s set the Document Size. First, change the units to inches.

The default is 8.5” x 11”, most of you will be printing at this size, but if not, you can set the page size here.

The option for “Facing Pages” is checked by default. Unless you’re designing a book or brochure, you should uncheck this option.

I also want to call out to choose how many pages you want to start with here. You can add and delete pages after this step, which I will note again further down in this post.

Click Create.

Before we move on, I want to start with the Tools Panel, which is on the left side. This is where the most common tools live, such as making a text box, creating a shape, or moving objects around.

On that note, the top arrow icon is the Move Tool, which you’ll be using the most often. The shortcut for this is “V“.

3. Make a Text Box

Alright, so let’s create a text box. On the left side panel, click the Text Tool Icon. The shortcut for this is “T”.

Now, click and drag on the document to make a box. You’ll see a cursor blinking and now you can start typing or paste in text from somewhere else. The same shortcuts apply in InDesign to copy (Command + C) and paste (Command + V).

4. Styling Text

Let’s change the font! At the top, go to Window > Types & Tables > Character. The shortcut for this is Command + T.

The Character Panel window will pop up. Here’s a breakdown of the options to work with.

I want to define each field in case you aren’t familiar.

Font: The typeface family. (i.e. Helvetica or Arial)
Typeface: the specific variation (i.e. Helvetica Bold or Arial Italic). Please note that there’s no shortcut for Bold or Italic. You have to choose it from this dropdown.
Point size: how big you want the tex to be
Leading: the space between each line
Kerning: the space between 2 letters
Tracking: the space between a group of letters as a whole
Vertical transform: stretches your text vertically
Horizontal transform: stretches your text horizontally
Baseline: the default bottom of your text
Baseline shift: brings your text up from the baseline
Slant: Skews your text. You can use a negative degree value to skew it to the left.

If you’re trying to change the font of the entire text box, make sure you’re on the Selection Tool. Then, click the text box before changing the typeface in the Character Panel. I’m asking you to click the icon here because if you use a shortcut while in a text box, it will just type the letter.

If you want to change the typeface for a line or a word, use the Type Tool to highlight the word(s) first. To highlight, make sure you’re in text mode and then select the word(s) in the text box. Then, change the typeface in the Character Panel.

Please note that you can’t use a shortcut to Bold or Italic. You have to choose it in the Typeface dropdown.

5. Changing Color

For changing color, you can use the Color Picker. On the bottom left of the Tools Panel, you’ll see two squares.

Double click the top left square to bring up the Color Picker. Let’s look at the options:

Click Ok.

The Color Picker changes the color of what you have selected. If you want to change color the box, make sure the box is selected. If you want to change the color of your text, make sure your text is highlighted.

6. Working with Images

Time to add a image! In InDesign, you have to “place” images into the document. There are few ways to do this, but for now, let’s do it this way.

Drag a photo (from desktop or another folder) onto your document.

Click to go back to InDesign.

Then, click and drag a box to place the image.

To crop, select the image and go to the corner or edge and drag in/out.

To scale the size, hold down Command + Shift and then drag from a corner or edge.

7. Moving Objects Forward and Backward

When you’re creating text boxes and images (objects), InDesign stacks them on top of each other. They’re stacked in the order you created them.

If you want to bring an object forward or backward, make sure the object is selected first. Then, at the top, go to Object > Arrange. Choose the option you want. For clarity:

8. Adding and Deleting Pages

Let’s visit the Pages Panel where you can add or delete pages. At the top, go to Window > Pages. The shortcut for this is F12.

These are your options:

To add a page, use the Add Page Icon. It’s the plus sign next to the Trash Can Icon in the bottom right of the panel.

If you’d like to duplicate a page, click and hold the page thumbnail and drag it to the Add Page Icon.

To delete the page, you can drag the thumbnail to the Trash Can Icon or you can right click (Control + Click) and select “Delete Spread“.

Saving Your Work

This isn’t really a tip, but it’s necessary to include. To save, go to File > Save The shortcut is Command + S.

Save your file wherever is best. I cannot stress the importance of saving your work. I have PTSD from design school and early on in my career for closing without saving or InDesign accidentally crashed. With that, I am constantly hitting Command + S as I work.

Conclusion

These are the main features you’ll be needing to start creating in Adobe InDesign. You can now set up your file, add/style text, place/crop an image, and add or delete pages. I will be posting tutorials with project files going forward to help you further.

For now, keep on creating!