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Saturday, May 5, 2018

How To Get Started with InDesign: Templates, Tips & Tutorials

How To Get Started with InDesign: Templates, Tips & Tutorials

By on May 2, 2018 in How To
How To Get Started with InDesign: Templates, Tips & Tutorials
I started off my writing career in print, and over the years I've been the editor of multiple magazines. I even have a book on restoring Chevy trucks that's out on Amazon right now. And one constant over most of those years has been Adobe InDesign. It's the go-to tool for print designers the world over, and it's what I've always used to get the job done.
But, like many Adobe apps, InDesign can be intimidating for first-timers. There are a lot of weird things that don't look like Photoshop in there, and if you don't know much about print, it's tough to break into. So what do you do to get going with InDesign? Well it's not that bad if you do what I did, and that's to start off simple and move forward from there.

What is InDesign, anyway?

To answer that question, let's take a look at the Creative Cloud suite as a whole and break it down:
  • There's Photoshop, a program made for manipulating raster images in a number of ways.
  • Illustrator lets you work with vector graphics, tweaking and tuning the geometry of the designs however you like.
  • Premiere is for working with video, and is one of the main tools for video editors across the country.
  • So then InDesign is a tool that lets you put together parts of all three to create either physical or digital products that use a paginated layout.
I've used InDesign to build magazines, brochures, resumes, sponsor pitches, and a number of different designs before, and most of them have either been professionally printed or delivered in a high-quality PDF. I've even done a short ebook with InDesign, since you can create interactive epub and PDFs, too.
What it's not built for, however, is manipulating text and graphics. It is not a word processor. If you want to write your print publication, then either use InCopy — Adobe's writing app — or Microsoft Word. If you want to tweak your graphics, then go with Photoshop or Illustrator. Use the right tool for the job, basically.
Now that you've got that figured out, where's the next best place to get going?

Start with a template

When I first started out with InDesign, everything seemed so scary. I didn't quite understand the logistics of how the page laid out, where everything went, and how pagination worked at all. Know how I broke out of the slump? I bought a template. Then I broke it.
A template is, in essence, a completed document. Yes, it's filled with dummy text and content that you may not want. But by using that as your guide, you can figure out a lot of things quickly. Click on objects. Right click on them. See what happens. Slowly but surely, you'll figure out how the nuts and bolts of an InDesign doc (.indd) go together.
And if you need to find some templates, we've got a ton of them right here.
     

Check out some tutorials

Now there are many great places to pick up tips on using InDesign. Adobe has a ton of InDesign tutorials that range from the very basic to the more advanced. For example, there's the obvious one for newbies: Get started with InDesign, and when you're more experienced, check out Improve readability by adjusting letter spacing.
If you want to go the paid route, consider Lynda. My wife and I have an account there, and they have hours of courses dedicated to InDesign and its various uses. It's anywhere from $25/month on up, but you get lots of options there for not just InDesign, but lots of other design programs.

Pick up some tips and tricks

Of course, we've got a few tips and tricks of our own. In 20 Diagrams That Make Print Design Much Easier, there are a ton of great resources for putting together your next big print project. And since InDesign is all about print, this is a good place to start.
That article features handy diagrams like the InDesign Shortcuts summary below:
Remember how I suggested buying a template and breaking it to figure out how it works? In A Simple Guide to Edit a Brochure Template, you can do just that, but you get a little bit of guidance, too.
And along that same vein, Brilliant Ebook Templates to Design Your Next Bestseller gives you a lot of ebook templates to work with. Why ebooks? Because even though they're not technically a print product, InDesign can create ebooks, which gives you a ton of flexibility with layouts.

Wrap it up

I've used InDesign over the years, and even though many of us work in a mostly digital medium, knowing how to work in print is still a very handy skill. It lets you approach things from different angles that you might never have considered. They may say that print is dead, but as long as people are using InDesign, it never will be.

Saturday, March 31, 2018

A Collection of Vintage Distressed Textures and Effects

From 19th century engraving and delicate Victorian florals to the bold, hand-lettered look of 1950s advertising, what's old is new again in the world of design. Textures, lettering styles, and photo effects add the look of bygone eras to projects of all kinds — and this collection of vintage and distressed textures and effects has it all.
Letterpress & Dry-Ink Print Textures
The Letterpress &Dry-Ink Print Textures set is a handmade pack of 20 textures scanned at high resolution for posters, cards, marketing materials, and more. The pack includes a bonus set of 30 edgeless brushes.

70s Text Effects for Photoshop

This set of fully editable text effects captures the psychedelic spirit of the '70s with a variety of letter styles and text effects for promotions, event posters, headers, and invitations. The set includes 10 high-resolution PSD files, plus free fonts.

Alternative Printmaker

Inspired by the alternative music scene, the Alternative Printmaker set includes layer styles, texture patterns, brushes, and gradients for projects such as posters, prints, headers, and book covers. The set also includes a handbook of all effects for easy reference.

Vintage Offset Printing Effects Kit

The Vintage Offset Printing Effects Kit adds the irregular, hand-designed look of old-fashioned offset printing to posters, prints, and packaging. The Kit includes seven Photoshop actions, plus a pack of vintage dry offset ink textures and a set of instructions.

Old Stamping Grounds

Old Stamping Grounds is a new smart PSD product to recreate the look of vintage postage stamps. The set includes textures, artwork and stamp materials, plus editable Illustrator and Photoshop files of 29 postage marks and a retro color guide.

RetroInk

With over 71 different retro text effects, RetroInk includes graphic styles, textures and ink actions for adding vintage style to packaging, branding, posters, and prints. Designed for Adobe Illustrator, the set features the RetroLift effect, plus 3D styles.

The Ultimate Texture Toolkit

The Ultimate Texture Toolkit includes 700 vintage, grunge and photo-poster texture effects for posters, prints, packaging, and branding. The set features layered PSD templates for creating photo effects, plus additional abstract photo and texture effects.

Atomica

Atomica recreates the look of the mid-century Atomic Age with a variety of Photoshop actions for prints, book covers, posters, and headers. All actions come in both fully customizable and fully automatic formats, and the set includes a video tutorial on using all features of Atomica.

Retroset

Inspired by the dry transfer sheets of pre-digital typography, Retroset is a collection of 18 retro ink and dry transfer effects for headers, posters, and marketing materials. The set includes individual Illustrator files for all effects, plus a PDF reference guide.

Timeless - Actions for Illustrator

Timeless transforms text into authentic vintage lettering for prints, posters, branding and more with four actions for Adobe Illustrator. The set also includes six bonus textures in PNG format, plus detailed instructions for use.

Vintage Old Photo Effect Overlays

With actions and textures that simulate the colors, scratches, and wrinkles of vintage photographs, this set of Photoshop actions and effects adds a retro look to digital images of all kinds. The set comes with high-resolution texture files and an overlay action, plus a user guide.

Automatic Texturizer

The Automatic Texturizer adds the look of retro newspapers to headers, posters, book covers, and prints. The set features a vintage Photoshop effect file, plus a bonus set of halftone textures, blank vintage papers, and a manual with all instructions.

SuperGrain

Inspired by '70s T-shirts and classic album covers, SuperGrain adds grain effects to posters, apparel, headers, and branding materials. SuperGrain comes with extra ready-to-use ink textures and paper effects, plus a quick start guide.

Etch Vintage Photoshop Effects

Etch Vintage Photoshop Effects is a set of engraved Photoshop effects for use in projects ranging from branding to invitations. The set includes a background texture file and is intended only for use in Adobe Photoshop.

Vintage Letterpress Effects

Featuring 10 fully layered PSD files, the Vintage Letterpress Effects set adds retro color and texture for posters, prints, and headers. The set comes with a bonus graphics file and a complete set of instructions.

Quick Engrave Engraver Effect

The Quick Engrave effect adds an engraved look to photographs, artwork, and text. The Quick Engrave effect is fully customizable and includes two different engraving methods, plus a variety of different effects and a colorways generator.

VHS Effect Template

The VHS Effect Template adds the analog footage look of old VHS tapes to logos, posters, book covers, and prints. The template is fully editable in Adobe Illustrator and includes 31 unique elements, plus a free font.

Ink Stamp Effect for Illustrator

The Ink Stamp Effect set makes it easy to add realistic ink stamp effects on lettering and other graphics for prints, posters, invitations, and more. The set is designed for use only with Adobe Illustrator and also comes with an instruction file.

InkPad Rubber Stamp Effects

InkPad adds a genuine rubber-stamped look to text and graphics of all kinds with a single smart PSD that creates a variety of rubber stamp effects. The set comes with a choice of landscape, portrait, or square orientations, plus a set of vector background textures and a detailed set of instructions.

TexturePress Ink Stamp Effects

The Texture Press Ink Stamp Effects set adds easy ink stamp effects to text, graphics, and artwork of all kinds. The set also comes with added vintage and grunge textures and Photoshop brushes, as well as complete instructions.
Vintage and retro styles are here to stay, and these textures, brushes and other assets can add a touch of nostalgia, whimsy or elegance to thoroughly modern design projects of all kinds.

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