Simple tools for simple tasks

When working with multiple design programs, it can get confusing about which shortcuts to use and how to deselect objects or layers. If you work between Illustrator, InDesign, and Photoshop, you will know that each program deselects differently. So if you have forgotten how to deselect in Photoshop,...

InDesign is not primarily an image editor; you would usually need to open your photos in another program to edit them. However, there are specific edits you can make to an image, such as cropping images. Cropping images is easy because of the way the program works with photos. The way pictures work ...

One of my favorite tools in InDesign is the transparent gradient feature that allows you to fade an image or a colored shape. This feature is useful if you want to fade out a picture to add other elements in the space or add a subtle object behind a paragraph of text to allow it to show up more clea...

It’s straightforward to round the corners in Adobe InDesign, and you can achieve the rounded corner look in different ways. You can round the corner of almost any shape or path you create, including stars you make with the polygon tool or custom shapes using the Pen Tool. You can also round the co...

When creating layouts in InDesign, the default background is Paper, which is transparent, so it will be the color of the paper you print on. However, if you are designing material for a digital project, you may want to change the background color in InDesign. InDesign doesn’t have a straightforwar...

Unfortunately, Illustrator and InDesign files are not compatible with the other program since InDesign is a layout-based program and Illustrator is vector based. You can’t simply save an Illustrator file and then open it in Adobe InDesign since the program doesn’t have the capability to work wit...

InDesign is limited in certain editing aspects, and as a result, you can’t warp text in the same way you would when using Photoshop or Illustrator. You won’t have the usual arc, wave, and distort options. However, there is a customizable workaround. Here I will show you how to use the Pen Tool t...

If you are working in InDesign, you will know it’s not primarily an image editor. However, you will often need to place images in your layout or web designs. If you need to make minor adjustments to the photo, editing it in Photoshop or another photo editor is tedious. If you don’t need a high-q...