Indesign Drawing and Objects

1. Clipping Paths: a type of mask or graphics frame that is often saved with images. When imported into InDesign, the clipping path lets only that part of the image it encloses appear on the page. Clipping paths are often used to remove a background from an image. To choose a path as an InDesign clipping path: Select the placed image that includes a path. Choose Object>Clipping Path. A dialog box appears. Use the Type menu in the Clipping Path dialog box to select the Photoshop Path option. Use the path menu to select which path should be used as a clipping path. Click OK. 2. Frames: Any path in InDesign can be a container or frame for text and images. Frame content is distinct from a paths fill; you can always change a frame paths fill color without affecting the contents of a frame. Type converted to paths (outlines) can also be used as a frame (at large sizes). Selecting any path and then placing content through either the Place command or the Paste Into command will turn any path into a frame. Text to Paths (aka outines) InDesign lets you convert text characters to compound paths. Once you convert selected text to paths, its not longer text; instead its an object composed of one or more paths. You cant edit the text anymore, but you can treat the text characters as graphics: you can put stuff inside the outlines of the characters or you can change the space of a character. To make text outlines: Select your text. Choose Type>Create Outlines. The original text disappears after conversion, so if you want to retain in, choose Type>Create Outlines while holding down Option. The outlines are created above the original type. 3. Drop Shadow and Feather: Drop shadows can be applied to objects and text by selecting the drop shadow dialog (Object>Drop Shadow) Feather will create a halo effect around the edges of an object or text. Once applied you can choose how far you want the feather to protrude into the object, and whether the corners should be diffused, rounded or sharp. Feather will not affect the shape of a frame, because it acts like a clipping path. 4. Transforming Objects: Transformation refers to changing the size, shape, angle and visual orientation of an object. Transformations have the potential to significantly slow printing and

final imaging. If you need to rotate images, youll get better results if you rotate them in Photoshop before placing them into any layout program. Printing will be a lot faster if the layout program doesnt have to spend extra time calculating rotations, which can be especially timeconsuming for high resolution images. Scaling images is probably the most destructive transformation one can perform. Within a range of +/- 10%, you can usually get away with scaling an image in InDesign. If you start scaling up too much, the image becomes pixilated. Scaling down is less visually destructive, but major reduction can result in fuzzy images. Always try to produce images in their final placement size when scanning or creating them. This only applies to bitmapped images. Vector artwork can be scaled up and down as much as you like. Shearing or distorting really only works well with type and vector objects. You can shear an image. But chances are it will look terrible when printed, and will probably take a long time to print. Reflection doesnt alter content, it just changes the visual orientation. Reflecting an image causes the same processing slowdowns that rotation does. If you select an object with the selection tool, the entire thing is transformed. If you select content with the direct selection tool, the content is transformed within the frame, but the frame remains unaffected. If the frame contains a single object that was created within InDesign, like a path drawn with the pen tool, the entire frame is transformed even if you select the object with the direct selection tool. 5. Setting a point of origin: In the transform palette, selecting one of the nine little squares in the proxy sets the point of origin for any transformation that follows. The default is set for the center. 6. Scaling: Scaling: There are a few different ways of scaling a frame in InDesign. You can scale a frame, scale a frames content, and scale both. The content scales or doesnt according to whats in the frame. - To scale a frame, grab one of its bounding box handles with the selection tool. - To alter a frames shape, modify or move one of the points that make up the frame with the direct selection tool. - Dragged and dropped items, art pasted in from other programs, grouped objects, or objects drawn in InDesign, will scale along with a frame. Placed items and text within frames will not scale. To scale placed art or images along with the frame, hold Command while scaling the frame with the selection tool. Add the Shift key to maintain proportions. - Images with clipping paths must be scaled carefullyalways press command when scaling frames that contain images with clipping paths; otherwise, the frame and the clipping path

are scaled, but the image isnt. Add the Shift key to maintain proportion when scaling with this method. Important Scaling Points: - It is extremely important to be aware of whether you have selected a frame or have selected content before scaling anything. This might sound a little obvious, but its really easy to mix up the two selection contexts. - Using the Transform palette to scale a frame by percentages results in everythingframe, content including text, and any clipping pathsbeing scaled as set by you, as long as youve selected the frame with the selection tool. If you select the content with the direct selection tool, then scale it with the Transform palette, only the content is scaled. 7. Stacking Order: Objects created or placed on a page observe a stacking order, even within the same layer. New objects always appear in front of existing objects. It can be difficult to select an object if its overlapped by another object. You can cycle through a stack of objects by holding Command + Option and clicking on the stacked objects.