Adobe InDesign Essentials Course
Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Onsite and ONLINE
Introduction to InDesign
Adobe InDesign enables you to create a diverse range of print design and marketing materials with the only limitations being your knowledge! To fast-track and reinforce your InDesign training, we have developed our own courseware (step-by-step printed workbooks) that you can take with you after the course.
We demonstrate best workflows and include graphic design related topics such as colour, image resolution, design layout, typography basics, printing and PDF concepts, so you will be able to produce professional projects straight away.
As an Adobe Authorised Training Partner, participants receive an Adobe endorsed Certificate.
Training Modules (Overview)
- The InDesign Interface
- Workspaces & Workflows
- Layout & Design
- Frames & Objects
- Working with Text & Images
- Paragraph & Character Styles
- Parent Pages & Layers
- Working with Colour
- Creating & Formatting Tables
- Exporting & PDF Settings
- Basic Typography & Design Tips
- Customising Preferences
What You Get
- Free Course Resit (6 Months)*
- Adobe Authorised Certificate
- After Course Help Desk
- 160+ Page Step-by-Step Printed Course Manual
- Adobe Certified Instructors
- Professional Training Environment
- Small Classes (average 4 to 8)
- High Frequency of Courses
- Adobe Training Partner
- No Risk Money Back Guarantee
SELECT YOUR COURSE
InDesign Essentials
NEED A QUOTE
Need to get approval or a formal quote
Course Outline
The InDesign Interface
- Operating Systems and InDesign Versions
- Shortcuts and Modifier Keys
- Dialogue Boxes – Efficiency Tips
- The Start Workspace
- File Types, IDML Format
- The InDesign Interface
- InDesign Preferences
- InDesign Panels, Sizing & Docking
- Workspaces & Customising
- The Tools Panel
- The Tool Hints Panel
- The Control Panel
- InDesign Online Help & Help PDF
- The Pasteboard
- The Context Menu
- Zooming and Scrolling
- Adding and Navigating Pages
- Document Tabs
- Control Panel Reference Points
- Frames: Selecting, Resizing & Moving
- Selecting Text & Shortcuts
- Hidden Characters
- Screen Modes & Previewing
- Undoing, Redoing and Reverting
Creating Documents
- Best Practice Workflows
- Filing Optimisation
- Pre-production Specs
- Collating Assets
- Backing Up Files
- New Documents: Margins, Guides & Columns
- Document Bleeds
- Page Sizes
- Modifying an Existing Document Setup
- Creating Document Presets
- Document Rulers & Ruler Guides
- Smart Guides
- Creating and Using Template Files
- Adding and Deleting Pages
Text and Images Primer
- Creating Text Frames
- Overset Text
- Adding Placeholder Text
- Importing Text Files
- Importing Images
- Resizing Images and Frames
- Fitting Images Proportionally
- Placing Multiple Images
- Placing Multiple Images in a Grid (Gridify)
- Cropping Images
- Creating Shapes: Rectangles, Ellipses, Polygons & Lines
- Corner Effects
- Live Corners Options
- Rotating Text, Images or Shapes
- Grouping Objects
- Stacking Objects
Working with Text Frames
- Text Frame Indicators
- OpenType Properties
- Text Frame Inset
- Text Frame Vertical Justification
- Text Frame Columns
- Threading Text Frames
- Text Flow: Manual & Autoflow
- Import Options for Placing Text
- Import Options for Word Files
- Using Glyphs & Special Characters
- Inserting Break Characters
Formatting Text
- Selecting a Type Face and Type Style
- Setting Type Size
- Leading (Line Spacing)
- Kerning and Tracking
- Capitalisation, Superscript
- Baseline Shift
- Paragraph Alignment
- Space Before and After
- Indenting Text
- Hyphenation
- Paragraph Rules
- Bulleted and Numbered Lists
- Splitting & Spanning Text Across Columns
- Dropped Capitals
- Setting Tabs
- Paragraph and Character Styles
- Creating and Editing Styles
- Style Overrides
- Importing & Exporting Styles
Colours and Gradients
- Colour Modes
- RGB - Primary Colours
- CMYK - Process Colours
- Out of Gamut Colours
- Spot Colours
- Applying Colour to Objects
- The Colour Panel
- Saved & Unsaved Colours
- The Swatches Panel
- Swatch Types
- Selecting Unused Swatches
- Editing Swatches
- Gradient Fills
- Loading Colours from Other InDesign Documents
- Adjusting the Stroke of an Object
- Creating Dashed Lines
- The Eyedropper Tool
Working with Images
- Image File Formats
- Image Resolution
- Info Panel
- Managing Links/Assets
- Modifying Placed Images
- The Links Panel
- Display Performance
Effects
- The Effects Panel
- Blending Modes
- Opacity Levels
- Creating a Drop Shadow
- Editing & Copying Effects
- Creating Transparency Effects
Parent Pages
- Parent Pages and the Pages Panel
- Renaming the Parent Page
- Editing the A-Parent Page
- Using Automatic Page Numbering
- Applying Parent Pages to Document Pages
- Applying the None Parent
- Inserting Pages and Applying a Parent Page
- Editing a Parent Page
- Customising Parent Objects
- Restoring Parent Objects
- Creating a Parent Page from a Document Page
Layers
- The Layers Panel
- Lock/Unlock, Hide/Show Layers
- Re-order Layers
- Expanding and Collapsing Layers
- Selecting Objects on your Page using the Layers Panel
- Naming, Creating and Deleting Layers
- Deleting Unused Layers
- Moving Objects from One Layer to Another
Text Wrap
- Applying Text Wrap
- Wrap to Options
- Contour Options
- Making Text Ignore Text Wrap
Tables
- Creating a Table within InDesign
- Importing a Table
- Converting Text to a Table
- Options for Microsoft Excel
- Options for Microsoft Word
- Formatting a Table
- Table Setup: Row & Column Options
- Cell Options: Text & Fills
- Headers & Footers
Publishing & Printing
- Preflighting Documents
- Preflight Errors
- Defining Export Formats
- Producing PDF Files for Approval and Screen
- Exporting to a High-Resolution PDF
- Packaging a Document for Print
Prefer Private Training?
- Customise your course
- Choose your own dates
- Choose your location
InDesign Course Testimonials
“This was hands down the best training that I have done in a long time! Great value for money and I will definitely recommend it to others & I will be back to do the Photoshop course.”
Ann Pocock, Customer Exp. Manager
“This is my 3rd course at City Desktop and I have to say that the trainers are all superb and the courses are very practical, which is great and means that you can go straight back to your workplace and apply what you have learnt.”
Pernilla Linden, Market. & Comm Director
“My InDesign course with Annette has been a wonderful insight to boost my knowledge and ability to use the software with confidence and a clear direction. The small class set up is fantastic to make sure everyone has one on one time as well. Would highly recommend to colleagues to participate in.”
Emma Chau, Marketing Coordinator
“This was the perfect experience for a crash course in InDesign. Having no knowledge of the program, I now feel confident in my ability to produce marketing materials. The hands on experience and great teacher really helped!”
Rosie Gillett, Marketing Assistant
“Cheryl was very knowledgeable on Indesign and producing documents within Indesign. Not only did she go into great depth about the functions of Indesign, she also went off on very useful tangents on websites for images, free publishing websites and things to remember if we are going to be printing. Cheryl was very helpful and the set up of the course was great. Highly recommend City Desktop Training.”
Caitlin Grimmer, Admin & Marketing Asst.
“Another fantastic course at City Desktop Training! The course material is comprehensive and easy to understand. David is a wonderful presenter who adds real-life situations to make the material relevant.”
Bronwyn Hart, Teacher
“Great facilities, central location, extremely happy finishing the course and walking away with new skills.”
Marc Robinson, Marketing Assistant
“Adrian is a great trainer. I started with no knowledge of InDesign and now feel pretty confident how to use it. It makes a difference with Adrian’s graphic design experience too, being able to ask him industry questions, and being taught to produce work to industry standards makes this course even better.”
Grace Grimmett, Marketing Coordinator
“Was great! Had heaps of fun, learnt a lot and would definitely like to take on the next level training as well as a few other sectors, eg; Photoshop. Loved it. Great 2 days.”
Jessica Harman, Marketing Coordinator
“David’s enthusiasm was infectious and everyone enjoyed his delivery of course. His professionalism and knowledge was outstanding. I was referred to David’s course by a previous participant and will highly recommend him to other staff members.”
Judith Burton, Cartographer
“I really enjoyed this course. It was particularly useful to learn all the tips and tricks that I think you might struggle to learn otherwise. David was a great trainer - very engaging and an expert in his field.”
Lowen Tamara, Strategic Planner
“Thank you for a fabulous course! David is an exceptional teacher and extremely knowledgeable in InDesign.”
Lisa Ariganello, Copywriter, Marketing
“Excellent starting point for someone with no adobe experience whatsoever”
Adam Parrott, Landscape Architect
“Thanks for teaching me the skills to go further, not only in my line of work but for my future venture!”
Kim Clark, EA
“I found Nikki’s class enjoyable and very informative. Her working knowledge of InDesign will help me complete the everyday tasks that are required for my job.”
Natasha Lamond, Executive Assistant
“Adrian was a great facilitator and delivered an excellent introduction to the ins and outs of Adobe InDesign.”
Abigail Jenkins, Admin Assistant
“Adrian was excellent, course was excellent, rooms were excellent.”
Dylan Coleman, Teacher
“It was a pleasure to have attended this training course with Adrian. His skill set and general friendliness made this two day course a delight. At the end I was confident with the new skills that I have learned and taking these skills into my daily work.”
Jeanette Cheney, Executive Officer
“David is a dream instructor and his knowledge phenomenal. His manner is easy and is extremely approachable. Great sense of humour adds to his charm. Totally professional!!”
Shirley Els, Executive Assistant
“The training was very well-organised and extremely informative. The take-home resource (training book) is an added benefit, and good for reference material when I’m back at work.”
Ashleigh Tomas, Marketing
“All information delivered was relevant and easy to put into use. Another great training.”
Abbie Cottell, Educational Support
“This course was very helpful and I cannot wait to go back and start using what I have learnt.”
Sherri Chapman, Group Marketing Man.
“The course was fantastic! David has the patience of a saint. The content was relevant and presented at an enjoyable even pace. The training exercise we used allowed us to practice everything we were shown. Looking forward to going back to the office to put all into action. Thanks”
Kylee Cleal, Project Officer
“Dealing with City Desktop from the Admin Staff to the trainer has been very easy and the trainer David was excellent”
Vinitha Lalvani, Marketing Coordinator
“The InDesign Essentials course was valuable and practical introduction to the software. City Desktop is a professional organisation that I would recommend to others.”
Kate Major, Coordinator
“Nikki was a great trainer - explained things well and showed us many practical tips. We ran through several exercises which helped to cement the knowledge we were taking in.”
Monica Moran, Marketing Coordinator
“David is an excellent teacher, his knowledge is priceless!”
Ashlea Elias, Marketing Manager
“Our trainer, David, was a wealth of knowledge! I love how he often gave extra InDesign tips that were not covered in the training manual.”
Kim Renton, Project Assistant
“This course was much more informative then I imagined. David is a fantastic teacher and not only taught the course thoroughly, he was also extremely helpful with any other questions. I not only learnt InDesign but more in Word that I had never known!”
Tarryn Mackey, Admin Market. & Promo.
“Thorough training with a great trainer. I highly recommend City Desktop Training.”
Sarah Levy, Project Officer
“This course was very helpful and relevant to my job. The course was clear & teacher was very helpful with explaining how to operate the program.”
Rebecca Pike, Marketing Assistant
“Nikki was a very friendly and knowledgeable trainer who was very approachable and accommodating - I would highly recommend this course or any other City Desktop course based on my experience in this course.”
Nicole Stephens, Conf. & Events Planner
“Class was well structured and covered everything you need to get started using Indesign.”
Leigh Andrews, Comm. Coordinator
“This is a great course! Enjoyable and practicable. Excellent for beginners.”
Constance Zhang, Communications Officer
“This course was a fantastic introduction to InDesign - easy to follow and practical. Thanks!”
Heather Mollins, General Manager
“This was a great course and i would recommend it.”
Katrina Davis, Executive Asst. to CEO
“Our trainer was extremely knowledgable and eager to help and took time to answer questions. The course was informative and will absolutely make my job easier and look great! Thank you David!”
Danielle Barouche, Online Operations
“Cheryl is passionate about all things design and it translates in her class. She has an incredibly kind and patient approach, and she explains things in a way that everyone can quickly understand. It’s been a pleasure learning from her.”
Jill Ruthenberg, Marketing Officer
“Adrian was a very knowledgeable trainer with lots of examples of industry related stuff and ensuring that we stick to the industry standard of working with Adobe InDesign.The course gave me more knowledge in using Adobe InDesign.”
Darren Teo, Student
“I really enjoyed the 2 day InDesign course. Adrian was very knowledgeable and patient. We were able to work at our own pace and I feel confident that the skills I have learnt will benefit me in my workplace.”
Symone Mansfield, Marketing Manager
“Fun and Well presented, Adrian was extremely patient in answering all of my questions as well as knowledgeable and not to mention, creative!!”
Lauren Fossett, Sales & Marketing Asst.
“Great course - really want to get back to work now so I can try out my new skills!”
Sarah Sullivan, Marketing Assistant
“Great class. Fantastic to be able to repeat within 6 months and call if you have questions.”
Julie Giannesini,
“Our trainer, Doug, was very patient and had excellent communication skills. The course pace was appropriate for the skill level of the class. Great course!”
Kiran Bains,
“Excellent professional presentation by the trainer. Very clear on all topics.”
Russell Hudson,
“All the staff were accommodating, patient and friendly. I am leaving with a much better understanding than I thought I would of a difficult program all achieved over 2 days. Doug was an easy teacher to learn from and have no doubt that I will be able to use the program from here out.”
Danielle Charara,
“This training was really easy to follow, well paced and a really great introduction to InDesign.”
Lauren Bolton,
“Great teacher and very open to questions all along the way.”
Edwina Adnam, Business Development
“A very practical and informative course. Trainer was extremely knowledgeable and helpful. Great course.”
Marcus Wardill, Campaign & Comm. Man.
“Great basic introduction to the features of InDesign that I’d be likely to be needing.”
Catherine Lo,
“The InDesign course was great - it helped me to better understand how to use this product”
Ashleigh Jacobs,
“Would highly recommend City Desktop. They are very patient with beginners like myself who have many questions.”
Sandra Harrison,
“InDesign was a great course that covered everything you need to know for first time users.”
Jess Vailima,
“I appreciate the knowledge and expertise of the instructor and the course content.”
Maureen Varnavsky,
“A very informative couple of days, I feel equipped and confident to go back to work and expand on what I have learnt here.”
Louise Morgan,
“Very informative and a great pace in the class.”
Michelle Scala,
“This course has given me the confidence and skills to attempt complex graphic design jobs at my workplace. It has also given me an edge above others in terms of career progression.”
Tyler Velasquez, Marketing
“Looking forward to going back to the office and putting what I learned into practice! It should be fun. I had no experience in InDesign before yesterday and now I feel confident about what i will be doing 🙂”
Lesley Kelly, Marketing Exec
“Thank you City Desktop, this is the second course I have done with you and will definitely be back for another!”
Tal Allen, Events
“This was my refresher. I have learnt a lot, it has changed completely the way I approach work and has saved lots of money to my organisation as now I am able to produce lots of documents in-house”
Cristina Marras, Comm. Adviser
“There are many courses that claim to teach Adobe InDesign, but I would recommend City Desktop in Melbourne due to quality of equipment, the environment, small class sizes and skilled teachers.”
Rebecca Trbojevich, Comm. Manager
“Very enjoyable two days. John was a fantastic trainer and an asset to City Desktop training.”
Nicole Stanbury, Management/Market. Asst.
“Doug was professional, knowledgeable and very friendly. I would highly recommend City Desktop training for the InDesign Essentials course!”
Sophie Litster, Huon IT
“InDesign training was very practical and well delivered. Nikki was a brilliant Trainer, so well informed, highly knowledgeable, and ensured the details were in easy to understand terms & simple to implement. Can't recommend Nikki or the course enough!”
Melinda Harvey, V8Supercar Team Coordinator
Training Packages
Desktop Publishing Package
With a solid knowledge of InDesign, Photoshop and Illustrator, you will be able to design anything you need for the print and digital worlds.
