InDesign: Layout and Composition

Course details

This course presents key design concepts and techniques that you can use to improve your designs. Designer Nigel French takes you through a series of projects to help you sharpen your layouts and compositions with Adobe InDesign. Nigel uses business cards to show you how to arrange multiple elements in a small space and have them be both readable and visually compelling. Next, he moves on to determining a cohesive layout, exploring different configurations, and using scaling and active white space in a full-page magazine ad. Nigel walks you through structuring space for a magazine spread, establishing hierarchy in your page layouts with an event poster, and working with scale, symmetry, and asymmetry as you design a book cover. He finishes up by showing you how you can use text wraps to create more dynamic and visually interesting layouts.

Concepts

0. Introduction

01 - Learning layout and composition using InDesign
02 - What you should know

1. Creating Visual Relationships Using a Business Card

03 - Arranging elements
04 - Experimenting with different configurations
05 - Exploring alignment and repetition
06 - Challenge - Business card

2. Exploring Layout Possibilities for a Digital Magazine Ad

07 - Determining a cohesive layout
08 - Exploring different configurations
09 - Using scaling and white space
10 - Challenge - Full-page ad

3. Structuring Space

11 - Microspacing and macrospacing
12 - Using white space in a magazine layout
13 - Integrating white space
14 - More ways to use white space
15 - Working with a feature article
16 - Organizing a page with rules
17 - More ways to use page rules
18 - Even more ways to use page rules
19 - Working with a floating column
20 - Working with tint boxes
21 - Challenge - Magazine spread

4. Establishing Hierarchy

22 - Establishing hierarchy in a table of contents
23 - Establishing hierarchy in an exhibition poster
24 - Challenge - Event poster

5. Working with Scale, Symmetry, and Asymmetry

25 - Scale, symmetry, and asymmetry in a book cover design
26 - Symmetry and asymmetry in a magazine layout
27 - Challenge - Book cover

6. Integrating Text and Images

28 - Working with text wraps - Part 1
29 - Working with text wraps - Part 2
30 - Working with text wraps - Part 3
31 - Working with text wraps - Part 4

Conclusion

32 - Goodbye