I need to know changing the size of a document and what the lines mean indesign

[debbiea22675948]

Hi I made a document with 3 pages, one for my letterhead, one for an envelope size and last one for a business card with measurements provide by my professor, I went ahead and put them in the window from file document setup, but my business card came out too big. I don't know if I am going too far with my design and maybe I am getting out of the space that I am supposed  to be working on. I don't know what the color lines mean.

can you tell me how to change the pages size without changing all them.

what I am doing wrong?

[Michael Bullo]

The Document Setup is a global dialog box for your whole document.

If you want to change the size of individual pages, use the Page Tool. Select a page with this tool and you will be able to resize it from the Control panel running along the top of InDesign or from the Properties panel.

[debbiea22675948]

it tried to do it from file document setup but it changes all of the pages

sizes, it wouldn't do it to just 1 page even when only the business card is

highlighter

I am not sure what I am doing wrong.....

my business card is supposed to be 3.5" x 2" so I believe it should be 3.5"

W X 2" H, right?

On Tue, Jun 4, 2019 at 7:01 PM Michael Bullo <forums_noreply@adobe.com>

[Michael Bullo]

The "color lines" you are referring to are margins. They are there as a guide to help you layout the content on your page. You can set them to whatever will serve you best for any given project. You can just ignore them if you don't need them.

[debbiea22675948]

Michael so for the business card do I stay inside the inner red ones?

On Tue, Jun 4, 2019 at 7:04 PM Michael Bullo <forums_noreply@adobe.com>

[Michael Bullo · Accepted solution]

The white area represents the actual page. You can put anything you like, wherever you like. Those inner lines are just those margins (guides) to help if you wish.

You want to make sure you don't have text right at the edge of a page (or business card) as it could potentially get trimmed during the printing process. This is where those margins can be helpful. You could, for example, set the margins to a specific number and then make sure no important elements of your design fall outside of those margins. Again, these margins are just a guide to help you layout the page.

[debbiea22675948]

so only the white part inside the red lines? but it looks so small?I am

supposed to do 3.5" x 2"

On Tue, Jun 4, 2019 at 7:11 PM Michael Bullo <forums_noreply@adobe.com>

[Michael Bullo]

No. The white is the business card. Anywhere on the white is ok.

[debbiea22675948]

Ok thank you

On Tue, Jun 4, 2019 at 7:51 PM Michael Bullo <forums_noreply@adobe.com>

[Michael Bullo]

No worries

[Test Screen Name]

What we're saying is that you should CHOOSE where to put your lines. Pick a margin, maybe half an inch, then set your guides to help you get a tidy design running to the edges and balanced.

[Bo_LeBeau]

Those .5 inch margins on the business card are way too big for a normal business card.

Take a regular business card and measure how far the text is from the edge of the card.

Since you are just learning, try .25 inch margins.  You could have slightly smaller margins, but play it safe for your class assignment.

It seems that the instructor hasn't mentioned bleeds yet.

If you are just creating a plain BC with no backgrounds or other elements that go to the edge of the card then your 3.5 x 2 inch card with .25 inch margins is OK.

However, sooner or later you will need to create BC with backgrounds, etc. For these you will need Bleeds of approximately .125 inch on ALL 4 sides of the BC.

Don't worry, you will still specify the final trim size of the card as 3.5 x 2 inches.

The .25 inch margins will still specify the SAFE area in which to place text and other elements.

But the Bleed size will be 3.75 x2.25 inches. This is set up in the Bleed section of the setup dialog, the same place you specified the margins.

Bleeds are necessary any time a background or other element goes to the edge of the card. The background needs to extend into the bleed area. This is because every piece of paper that goes through a press or digital printer will have slight variations of where the ink or toner hits the paper.

If you have the background just touching the Trim edge of the card, when cutting/trimming the cards you will have a white area of any of the 4 sides, and this may vary from card to card. When you extend the background to the bleed guide, you will be trimming into the background and the problem to white edges go away.

Specs:

Document size 3.5 x 2 inches (the final size of the BC) This is the BLACK outline you see in InDesign.

Internal Margins: .25 inches - all 4 sides (the SAFE area for text and other important elements - 3 x 1.5"). This is the MAGENTA outline.

Bleeds: .125 on all 4 sides. This is the RED outline (3.72 x2.25) outside the final trim area. All backgrounds need to touch the Red outline.

If all this seems too much. Google for a US business card template (a good template will show the Bleeds)

[debbiea22675948]

I just to want to say thank you so much to all of you for your help.

I have learned so much because of all of you

I appreciate

[Test Screen Name]

Yes, Document Setup does the whole document. Are you trying to make a business card and something else a different size in the same document? If so, why?

[debbiea22675948]

we are making a stationary, with letterhead, envelope and business card

On Wed, Jun 5, 2019 at 3:42 PM Test Screen Name <forums_noreply@adobe.com>

[Barb Binder]

Hi Debbie:

I would advise a new user to do this in three separate files: one for the letterhead, one for the envelope and one for the business card because yes, Document Setup will update the page size for all pages in a single file.

An intermediate to advanced user might decide to define each page size in a single file using the Page tool. This tutorial will walk you through it.

https://indesignsecrets.com/making-indesign-work-illustrator-multiple-artboards-large-pasteboard.php

Did your teacher tell you to put them all in single file? If he didn't, I wouldn't.

~Barb

[debbiea22675948]

he did he wants all of them in a single file, but when I change the size it

changes my letterhead too.

[Barb Binder]

Hi Debbie:

In that case, use the Page tool to change each page independently.

InDesign Help | Mixing page sizes with the new Page tool

~Barb

[debbiea22675948]

I tried that but it changed the size for the letterhead too even though it

wasn’t selected...

[Peter Villevoye]

You probably had multiple (facing) pages selected.

First, switch off Facing Pages in the Document Setup, otherwise you'll be presented with pages next to each other, as if you're creating a book or brochure. Then select each page with the Page tool and change its size. This Page setting overrules the Document Setup size. (Document Size is useful for setting the majority of pages in a document, in case you're again creating books, brochures, and reports.)

[Test Screen Name]

You said you used document setup. Don’t. Does the client want INDD or PDF?

[debbiea22675948]

Indd

On Wed, Jun 5, 2019 at 4:39 PM Test Screen Name <forums_noreply@adobe.com>

[Frans v.d. Geest]

Don't mind me saying, but... as you have not even grasped the very basics of inDesign on an absolute beginner level, woud it not be a far better idea to let someone else, with knowledge, do this design...?

Or if I misunderstood: get some better education?

[Barb Binder]

Hi Frans:

Debbie is taking a class on InDesign and is earnestly trying to figure out what the teacher assigns for homework, but doesn't appear to explain.

~Barb

[Steve Werner]

Speaking as a long-time InDesign instructor, I'm a bit shocked by how much it appears that Debbie's teacher is NOT teaching her.

The lesson about the InDesign interface and what the "colored lines" mean is in Session 1 of every InDesign class I've ever taught or heard about. And, I agree with Barb that including multiple page sizes in the same document isn't for a beginning/fundamentals class. It's definitely an intermediate-level feature.