How to Learn InDesign
- Published on February 7, 2018
Learning InDesign is important for modern marketing professionals, visual designers and graphic designers. InDesign is a versatile digital publishing application used for creating printed and digital content including flyers, brochures, books, magazines, newspapers, and posters. It is used by millions of professionals globally. InDesign projects can be printed, saved as PDF file format, or exported into a variety of other digital formats including the digital book format EPUB. InDesign also can export documents into HTML and XML formats, although it is not specifically designed for web publishing. There are classes, private training, online training and tutorials to learn InDesign quickly and easily.
Classes and workshops to learn InDesign
A classroom environment allows students to acquire general knowledge of InDesign and obtain immediate feedback and get questions answered from a live instructor. InDesign classes range from introductory through advanced levels. Beginner courses focus on foundation skills such as the creation of master pages, use of styles and working with graphics. An immediate course typically covers ways to improve productivity in InDesign, while an advanced course might show students how to use InDesign’s long document features and XML capabilities. American Graphics Institute offers InDesign courses in Boston, as well as InDesign classes in NYC and InDesign training in Philadelphia.
Learning InDesign with private training
Students can also receive InDesign training as a private class, which is often used for students with specific needs. For example, a private InDesign class can focus on material that isn't covered extensively in the regular classes, or work with specific types of files or processes. Private InDesign classes may be taught on-site at a client location or in a classroom, and are generally available for both individuals and groups.
Learn InDesign online with a live instructor
Online options for learning InDesign allow students to attend an InDesign course from the comfort of their home or office and cover the same material as in-person classes. Online InDesign classes are led by live instructors, typically the same ones who lead regular in-person classes. Students can see the instructor’s screen their monitor and listen to the instructor through a headset or their computer’s regular speakers. Participants can also ask the instructor questions in real time.
Books & video tutorials to learn InDesign
Some students learn more effectively in a solitary setting or at their own pace, which typically includes the use of books and videos. Multimedia tutorials can be a particularly effective method of complementing a textbook. Self-learning with InDesign books allows students to learn at their own pace and set their own schedule. It also eliminates the need to travel to another location.
About the author
Christopher Smith is president of American Graphics Institute in Boston, Massachusetts. He is the publisher and editor of the Digital Classroom book series, which have sold more than one million copies. At American Graphics Institute, he provides strategic technology consulting to marketing professionals, publishers and to large technology companies including Google, Apple, Microsoft, and HP. An expert on web analytics and digital marketing, he delivers Google Analytics training along with workshops on digital marketing topics. He is also the author of more than 10 books on electronic publishing tools and technologies, including the Adobe Creative Cloud for Dummies. Christopher did his undergraduate studies the at the University of Minnesota, and then worked for Quark, Inc. prior to joining American Graphics Institute where he has worked for 20 years.
