Page 56 - CC 2019 ID Look Inside

STAGE 4 / Creating and Formatting Basic Text

InDesign is ultimately a page-layout application; page layout means combining text and graphic
elements in a meaningful way to convey a message. Text can be a single word (as in the logo used in
this project) or thousands of pages of consecutive copy (as in a dictionary). Virtually every project
you build in InDesign will involve text in one way or another; this letterhead is no exception.

Create a Simple Text Frame
Adding text to a page is a relatively simple process: draw a frame, and then type. Note:
In this exercise, you’ll create a new text frame and add the client’s tag line, then apply
some basic formatting options to style the text. Remember from the
Keep in mind this project is an introduction to creating elements on a layout Getting Started section
page; there is far more to professional typesetting than the few options you use here. at the beginning of this
InDesign provides extremely precise control over virtually every aspect of every book: to complete the
letter and word on the page. In the following projects, you will learn about the vast projects in this book,
number of options available for setting and controlling type, from formatting a you should install and
single paragraph to an entire multi-page booklet. activate the ATC fonts
provided with the book’s
1. With gcm-letterhead.indd open, select the Type tool in the Tools panel. resource files.
2. Click in the empty space above the green-filled shape and drag to create a frame.

To type text into a layout, you must first create a frame with the Type tool; when you
release the mouse button, you see a flashing bar (called the insertion point) where
you first clicked to create the text frame.
Insertion point Type tool cursor

Type tool

The tag line for the letterhead is supposed to appear in the black area to the right of
the logo. However, if you click inside that area with the Type tool, it will convert the
existing shape to a type area. In this case you want a simple rectangular text frame, so
you are creating it in an empty area and then moving it into place.

66 Project 1: Letterhead Design