Best practice for text and images in InDesign

[OzPhotoMan]

Hi all,

More newbie questions.

As a person who is used to MS Word, if I needed to increase paragraph spacing I would normally use carriage returns, paragraph breaks or whatever the current terminolgy is to create new paragraphs. If I needed more than one line between paragraphs I would use multiple breaks.

Enter InDesign. My current document was imported from Word and I need to insert images. The document is in A5 format, eventually to be printed as a book of around 150 pages. The text on each page is in one text frame per page.

At this stage I feel I don't need to have images surrounded by text, mainly due to the fact it is A5 and the images would be too small, so they will probably be about 2/3 to full page width.

As far as I can see, to achieve this between sentences or paragraphs, I need to enter multiple paragraph breaks so I have space to insert the image, as per attached screen shot. Is this the best way?

If I do not need book text at the bottom of the image, I have used a page break which seems to work well.

Regards,

Steve

[OzPhotoMan]

Edit: Finally figured how to drop a photo into a paragraph without having to use paragraph breaks.

Google provides a treausre trove of info. I might even become proficient with InDesign in a few years!

Thanks to https://www.rockymountaintraining.com/adobe-indesign-drop-a-photo-into-a-paragraph/

Sorry if I am annoying anyone with these questions then finding answers before replies. Problem is, it sometimes takes me hours to find the right answer and practice the method.

Regards,

Steve 

[Bevi Chagnon - PubCom.com]

InDesign is a pro-quality design program, not something as elimentary as Word or any other word processor.

Everyone struggles with it until they get training in how to use it.

So why not end the misery and take some training?

Barb Binder's group, www.RockyMountainTraining.com is excellent, as well as the videos at LinkedIn Learning.

It would help minimize spinning your wheels and spending hours trying to search for answers on the web or figure things out on your own. You seem to be stumbling over the elementary tasks, let alone the more complex tasks.

[OzPhotoMan]

Hi Bevi,

I am using InDesign for a one off project, so spending a small fortune on training is not an option as I am on a pension.

Regards,

Steve 

[Rishabh_Tiwari]

Hi @OzPhotoMan ,

Thanks for reaching out. To get started with InDesign you can refer to this user guide https://helpx.adobe.com/indesign/user-guide.html and tutorials https://helpx.adobe.com/indesign/tutorials.html 

Feel free to reach out if you need any further assistance.

Regards

Rishabh

[OzPhotoMan]

Hi Rishabh,

I have been reading those but I find they are sometimes confusing. I have decades of experience as a senior technical instructor and technical writer in the IT industry so I know good documentation when I see it.

Regards,

Steve

[Bevi Chagnon - PubCom.com]

I am using InDesign for a one off project, so spending a small fortune on training is not an option as I am on a pension.
By @OzPhotoMan

Hi Steve,

I want to put an addition on the back of my house, just a simple porch and deck.

So I bought an expensive pro-quality CAD software program and a bunch of contractor-quality power tools from the hardware store...drills, saws, nail guns, etc. I could build a skyscrapper with this stuff.

I read the CAD program's user manual, watched a couple of free online tutorials, drew up my plans, and started building the addition.

But the deck is uneven (a mess) and the porch keeps collapsing to the ground.

• What's wrong with the CAD software?
• Or maybe the problem is with the power tools?

This is a one-off project (I'm not going to build another addition on the house in the future, the kids have grown and left home, and I'm planning to retire in a few years so I have to save money). I've already spent so much money on the software and power tools, I shouldn't have to spend a "small fortune" on training, too.

Truly, I'm insulted by the suggestion to get training with my software and power tools in order to do this project.

After all, when I purchased my copy of MS Word and an expensive laptop to run it on, the literary awards came with the purchase. I can now call myself a professional writer because I have a Pulitzer Prize, Nobel Prize for Literature, Hugo Award, and Nibbie.

I expected that the purchase of the CAD software and powertools would have included a Pritzker Architecture Prize, as well as certification as a building contractor.

And I have a degree in architecture so I know good architecture when I see it.

— Bevi

(who really does have an undergraduate degree in architecture)

[Bevi Chagnon - PubCom.com]

@OzPhotoMan 

Curuious: what's the reason for using InDesign for your project rather than Word?

There's nothing in your screen capture that can't be done in Word.

We might be able to help you better if we knew your project's purpose and reason for doing it in InDesign.

[Robert at ID-Tasker]

Glad you found the solution 🙂

Another one is to put graphics over / under the text frame and turn on TEXT WRAP - step 4) from your link. This is preferable when gaphics needs to be on the top / bottom of the page - unrelated from the surrounding text.

If it needs to flow with the text - then you should do it as per link.

[Dave Creamer of IDEAS · Accepted solution]

Hello again, OzPhotoMan

In Word and in InDesign, multiple paragraphs returns to space text is frowned upon. Both have options for paragraph space before and/or after each paragraph. (This is not to be confused with leading, also called line spacing.)

In your example, however, you need more than pargraph spacing. You have a couple of options to place the photo, depending on what you want to happen if the text changes:

• Use inline graphics, so the images move with the text. 
• Use text wrap on the images so the text is "pushed" out of the way. This would be used if the photos should stay put on the page, even if the text moves. (Captions can be handles a couple of ways--text wrap or ignore text wrap.)

Since you are on a budget, sign up for a free month of LinkedIn Learning (formally Lynda.com), and watch the training videos.