How to Prepare Your Cards for Press Using InDesign

This Tutorial is Divided into Sections: What do I Need?

1. What do I Need? What is InDesign? This basic tutorial will offer you some advice on how to use
InDesign to create your content and prepare print-ready PDF files
2. H
 ow to start a new document with InDesign for DriveThruCards. It will address how to set up one digital file so
(the template explained) that both sides of the card are printed in full color.
3. W
 hat you need to know before you begin The screenshots shown in the tutorial use InDesign CS 5.5 for
(more about recommended file specifications) Mac OS. If you are using a different version of the software some
4. Getting to Know Your Workspace of the instructions and screenshots may be slightly different, but
hopefully you can find the right feature in your software version.
5. Adding Text with InDesign
6. Formatting Text and Making Style Sheets
What is InDesign?
InDesign is a desktop publishing application which is available
7. Adding Art with InDesign
alone or as a component of the Adobe Creative Suite. It is
8. Color Management in InDesign industry-standard softwear and is available for both Windows
and Mac OS.
9. Creating Master Pages with InDesign
InDesign is available for purchase from Adobe. Abobe does
10. Exporting your InDesign file as print-ready color PDF have educational discounts on its software, if you are able
to take advantage of them. You can also gain access to its
11. Packaging your Work for Archiving
software by subscribing to the Adobe Creative Cloud, which is
12. Tips and Things to Remember paid for by monthly fee.

13. I need more help! Adobe: http://www.adobe.com

Adobe Creative Suite:
http://www.adobe.com/products/creativesuite.html
Adobe Creative Cloud:
http://www.adobe.com/products/creativecloud.html

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 How to start a new document with InDesign
This is the beginning of the step-by-step process for creating a new document for your cards
Please note: For your convenience, we have created a template
file to make your work easier. You can find this template under the
Card Printing section of your Publisher Menu, on your Account
page at DriveThruCards.
bleed area
Starting your new file from a template This is required. If your art does not
First, open InDesign. Then, in the File pull-down menu, select The bleed must bleed, include a white
Open and then navigate to where you have saved your measure (0.125) or black area that will
downloaded template file. Open it. past the trim line on extend to this edge.
all four sides.
Click the Windows pull-down and open the Properties window. Do not set a die-cut for
Including the bleed, round corners in the
Lets take a look at this template. What are all these lines? your final size should layout.
measure 2 by 3
The blue area edged by the dotted black line is the safe area The final PDF file must
(2.75 by 3.75).
for your text, logos and any important images. If any of these not have crop marks.
elements run outside of this area, it risks being trimmed off when
the cards are cut after printing.
trim line
The edge of the blue area is the trim line. Literally, this is The trim area should Every thing outside the
approximately where the paper will be cut or trimmed off measure 2 by 3 dotted line will be cut off.
after the cards are printed. (2.5 by 3.5).
The pink space is the bleed area. Background images or color
must extend to this line in the file, which you can see is outside of safe area
the paper trim line. This ensures that there is no unprinted white
The safe area should All text, important
margin around the edges of your finished cards.
measure (0.125) images, and logos
inside the trim line should remain inside
on all four sides. this pink area.
The total safe area
measures 2 by 3
(2.25 by 3.25).

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 What you need to know before you begin
More about the recommended specifications page 1
CARD
BACK
The order of your document pages for correct back-to-front printing
Please create one file for your entire deck of cards. The order of the cards in the final PDF will be the
order of the finished cards in their packages.
To set up your file, you must order the pages with one card back and then one card front for each
card in the deck. See the screenshot to the right for a sample view of what your multi-page document page 2
should begin to look like. CARD
FRONT
Understanding the document order of card backs and fronts is important. This will make it very
easy to design and apply master pages for the correct card back and front pages, which we will
cover next in this tutorial.
Cards do not need to have a common border color between their backs and fronts.

Your image files need to be high resolution page 3

CARD
The images you will be using for your cards, regardless of front or back placement, need to be high BACK
resolution, which is at least 300 dpi. The physical size of the image at 300 dpi needs to be at least
the same size as the printed card or larger.
For example, if your background image is 300 dpi with a physical size of 3 by 4, you are good to go
since that is larger than the card. If your background image is 300 dpi but measures 1 (1.5) by 2,
then you have a problem. To scale up this image to meet the size of the actual printed card, your image page 4
will be degraded because the physical size of the image is not large enough. CARD
FRONT

page 5
CARD
BACK
72 dpi 120 dpi 300 dpi

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Getting to Know Your Workspace Adding Text with InDesign
This is just a few words to orient you to your workspace. You will First, click to select and use the Rectangle Frame Tool in the Toolbar.
use the Toolbar, the Control Bar at the top of your workspace, Your cursor will become crosshairs. Click and drag on the page to
and various palettes throughout your document production. What place a text frame on your master page. You can set the size and
remains open in your workspace is customizable. Be sure to frame properties in the Control Bar, or you can manually resize it by
explore the Window drop-down menu to see what palettes you clicking and dragging the blocks or handles on the Frame box edges.
may need to make your work faster.

control bar
toolbar

palettes

pasteboard handles
This is the area outside Heres a tip!
of the page and bleed.
If you select Snap to
Guides from the View
menu, under Grids &
Guides, the box you draw
should automatically
align (or snap) right to the
guides already set up in
the template for the safe
As you become familiar with your area, trim, or bleed.
needs, youll be able to hide, show,
or combine the palettes most
relevant to your production process.

4
 Adding Text (continued)
Then, select the Type Tool from the Toolbar and click into the frame To place text, open the file with your text content, select the text
on the page. Your cursor will become a blicking text cursor inside you want to place, and copy it. Go back to your InDesign file and
the box. Now, youll also notice the Control Bar has also changed click inside the text box, right-click or control-click and then choose
to reflect your use of the Type Tool. Paragraph and Character Paste to import and place all of the selected text. (Paste with
Formatting options are now available. Formatting may be an available option, but its not advisable.)

Paste with Formatting?

Why not?
Paste with Formatting doesnt
work with all text sources. It
also only copies local, hard
formatting. Its better to format text
using style sheets in InDesign.
This will allow you to make
document-wide, global changes
later with one simple command.

What does that mean?

If you paste more text than the text
frame can hold, a little crossed red
box will appear in the lower right
corner to alert you.

5
 Adding Text (continued)
Another way to place text, which is helpful if you have a lot of text The dialog box that appears next will give you some control over
to import, is to use the Place command under the File pull-down how the imported text is handled. Make sure Typographers
menu. You can import Word documents, text files, and rich text Quotes are turned on. Although you can preserve the styling on
files. Navigate to the document youd like to import. Make sure the imported text, its better to remove them and reassign those
Show Import Options is checked at the bottom of the dialog box. attributes in InDesign.

6
 Formatting Text and
Adding Text (continued)
Making Style Sheets
If the amount of text you have imported is too much for the frame Style sheets are templates for fonts and their formatting. You can
to contain, you will see the small, crossed red box in the lower create styles with specific attributes, save them, and then apply them
right-hand corner. If you click that icon and then click outside the document-wide with a few mouse clicks. InDesign lets you specify
frame, a new text box is added and the overflow text will appear. both Paragraph and Character Styles; Paragraph Styles can be
To view the link threads between these boxes, turn on Show Text applied to a paragraph or a range of paragraphs, while Character
Threads under Extras in the View pull-down menu. Styles are applied to single words or a string of words.

7
 Formatting Text and Making Style Sheets (continued)
First, well tackle Paragraph Styles. Select the text you would like Name the Paragraph Style something that will easily identify it later.
to change. You can style the text initially in the Control Bar using Now look at the Style Settings. Youll notice it has already picked up
options available through the Character and Paragraph icons. the attributes of the text you fixed and selected. You can further alter
When its close to how you would like it, select the text you have just the current Paragraph Style in this dialog box. When youre done,
altered, and then expand the icon in the upper right-hand corner of click OK to save it. Afterward, make sure to apply this style to your
the Paragraph Styles palette, and choose New Paragraph Style. altered paragraph when the style is saved.

8
 Formatting Text and Making Style Sheets (continued)
Similarly, Character Styles may be made, saved and applied. Use Things to avoid as you style text in your document:
this to italicize or bold words, make words a different color, or
underline certain words. Widows: One single word or line at the bottom of a column of text
Orphans: One single word or line at the top of a column of text
To change fonts or attributes, just update your Style Sheets. Hyphens between columns of text
The changes will be made globally throughout your document.

Suggested
Paragraph
Style attribute:
Choose Left Justify
under Indents and
Spacing

Suggested
Paragraph
Style attribute: Choose for legibility!
Specify Keep with
Next: 2 Lines under Your body text will be small, so use a
Keep Options. font that is easy to read and without
many flourishes. Industry standard
This will help you for size is 10 to 12 points with
avoid widows and leading set to auto or no less than
orphans in longer 2points more than the font size.
text passages.

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 Adding Art with InDesign
Start by adding a Rectangle Frame the same way you did when If you take a look at your Control Bar, you can see that the image
you previously added a frame for text. To turn this frame into an was imported at 100% of its size and was placed in the center of
Image Frame, click to select the frame using the black arrow, or the Image Frame. It was placed in the center because this was
Selection Tool, from the toolbar. Then, open the File drop-down the Reference Point assigned to it in the Control Bar. Most of the
menu and select Place. Navigate to the location of the image you imported image is outside of the Image Frames viewable area, so
would like to insert on the page. now were going to fix that by scaling the picture to the box.

There are 2 different arrows in the Toolbar:

The black arrow, the Selection Tool, will select the
outside frame of your image box. The smaller, white
arrow, the Direct Selection Tool, will select the graphic
object placed inside the image box.

10
 Adding Art (continued)
Fill Frame Proportionally: Under the Object pull-down menu, if you Fit Content Proportionally: Under the Object pull-down menu, if you
choose Fitting, then Fill Frame Proportionally, the image will autofit choose Fitting, then Fit Frame Proportionally, the image will autofit in
in proportion to the largest measure of the box. See the outline of proportion to the smallest measure of the box. If you choose to use
the image in the Image Frame below. this, use the Fit Frame to Content command next. Your image frame
will autofit to the size of the newly scaled graphic image.

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 Adding Art (continued)
Fit Content to Frame: If you choose Fit Content to Frame, the Here is an example of a graphic stretched out of proportion. Youll
image will autofit out of proportion to the measurements of the notice the broken chain icon to the right of the proportion fields in
box. It is not recommended to scale your images out of proportion the Control Bar. This lets you know that if the image is scaled, it
more than 2%, especially when the images are people or figures. will not be constrained proportionally.
They will look noticably stretched.

What you should know...

Images should be placed at 100%
or less. If they must be scaled
up, it should never be more than
102%. Any more than this could
result in image degradation.
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 Color Management in InDesign
Cards cannot have ink coverage that exceeds 300%. When selecting Correct Ink Coverage in Photoshop: Open the art file in
colors in layout, set blacks to: Cyan 0%, Magenta 0%, Yellow 0% and Black Photoshop. In the Edit pull-down (1) menu select Convert to
100%. If you want a richer black you can set values to: Cyan 60%, Magenta Profile (2). In the menu that opens, under Destination Space -
40%, Yellow 40% and Black 100%. The rich black may look better, but if it Profile select Custom CMYK (3). Make sure the Ink Colors is set
is layered with other elements it may push the combination to be over ink. to SWOP (Coated) (4) and change the total ink limit to 235% (5).
If you are working in any version of Adobe CS, ink coverage can be Leave all other settings as they are. Save as .tif or .psd and when
viewed and corrected in a few steps you have them all done you can relink them to the InDesign file or
replace them in the Illustrator file.
Check Ink Coverage in InDesign layout: Click on the Window pull-
down menu (1) at the top, mouse over Output and select Separations
Preview. In the window that opens, there is a little pull-down menu next
to where it says View, select Ink Limit (2) and set the percent to 302%
(3). It will show you all the things that are over ink coverage in red.

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 Creating Master Pages with InDesign
Master Pages allow you to place borders, text and other information Then, name your new Master something easy to recognize.
just once in the file. Then those elements will appear on all of the Make sure to select Based on Master: A-Master when you make
pages you select, in the exact same spot. Its very useful for recurring a new Master Page in your downloaded template document. This
items, like repeating card backs. way, the correct measurements for the safe area are applied to
your new Master Page.
First, open your Pages Palette and select New Master.

If you cant find your Pages palette,

look under the Window pull-down
menu. You can open multiple
palettes at once and customize your
workspace for maximum efficiency.

14
 Creating Master Pages (continued)
Click on the Master Page you just made to make sure youre With your Master Page highlighted in the Pages Palette, expand
actually working on that page. It will highlight in the Pages the pull-down menu from the icon in the upper right-hand corner.
Palette. Now, begin your work by adding text, images, or Select Apply Master to Pages.
graphics. When you are done, youll be ready to apply this
template page to your document.

If youre not sure what page youre

on, this corner will tell you.

15
 Creating Master Pages (continued)
In the dialog box that pops up, you can list the page numbers you Now, as with text Style Sheets, if you need to make changes to
would like to apply this Master Page to. recurring elements in your document, you can just update your
Master Page. The changes automatically update throughout your
Alternately, with your Selection Tool, you can grab the Master Page document, on all of the pages styled with that Master.
icon from the Pages Palette and drag it on top of the page you wish
to apply it to. It will automatically apply the Master to that one page.

16
 Exporting Your InDesign File as a Print-Ready Color PDF
When your work is complete, do a quick check to make sure there After youve fixed your document, youre now ready to export your
are no errors in the document, like missing fonts or broken image InDesign file as a print-ready PDF.
links. Look at the lower left-hand corner of your workspace. Preflight
will automatically give you the number of errors that will need fixing. Go to the File pull-down menu and select Export.
Double-click to open the Preflight panel and correct any errors.

17
 Exporting as a Print-Ready Color PDF (continued)
Next, in the Export dialog box, name your PDF and then choose a The Export Adobe PDF dialog box will open next. The default view
place to save it. Click the Save button. will be the General options tab. Click the Adobe PDF Preset pull-
down menu and select PDF/X-1a:2001. This sets the PDF standard
Make sure the Adobe PDF (Print) format is selected. to PDF/X-1a:2001 for print. Modify this preset by checking the box
next to Optimize for Fast Web View under Options.

18
 Exporting as a Print-Ready Color PDF (continued)
This next step is very important. Please follow it carefully.
Click the Marks and Bleeds tab in the Export Adobe PDF dialog box
to view the options. Click to select Use Document Bleed Settings.
Make sure the bleeds are set to 0.125 on all four sides. Do not check
any other boxes or fill out any other information on this page.
Next, click the Export button to make your PDF. It will be
processed and saved to the location you have indicated.
Thats it! You have created a print-ready color PDF of your card deck!

What do I do next?
Once you have your finished print-ready PDF of your entire card
deck, its time to upload them! Go to the CARD PRINTING section
of your publisher menu on the Account page at DriveThruCards.
Use the Upload and Manage printed card products tool. This tool
will walk you through the process of uploading your print PDF file
and ordering a physical proof of your cards.
When you are done with your card layout and have made and
uploaded your PDF, you may also want to Package your file for
archiving. This is a very good idea because it collects all of the
linked images and file fonts into one tidy and convenient file. If you
ever have to go back for updates or alterations later, you wont have
to search for missing linked images or fonts.

19
 Packaging Your Work for Archiving
First, make sure your file has no errors in the Preflight panel in the When the Create Package Folder dialog box appears, choose a
bottom left-hand corner of your workspace. Then, select Package location to save your package. Rename the folder, if you choose
from the File pull-down menu. The Package dialog box will open to. Make sure Copy Fonts, Copy Linked Graphics, and Update
next. The Summary tab gives you an overview of your file. It also Graphic Links are all checked. Then, click the Package button in
lists anything missing, or modified but not updated. Click the the lower right-hand corner of the dialog box. InDesign will collect
Package button, and then click past the next few windows. all of your file bits into one place for you.

20
 Tips and Things to Remember I Need More Help!
About Specifications I have questions that arent covered here...
A
 ll images must be 300 dpi/ppi resolution. The physical size of
the image should at least be the size as it appears on the card. To contact Publisher Services, please email [email protected].

Final PDF can not be over 300% ink limit. Brian will do his best to help you and answer any questions you
have that are not covered in this tutorial. Your questions will help us
A
 ll images should be CMYK. Do not use RGB or Lab colors. improve this tutorial, so it answers more questions for everyone.
The colors may shift unpredicably during the export to print-
ready PDF process. If you have decided that you dont care to do your own file layout, you
can find people with professional skills and contract them to create
P
 referred image formats are TIFF or EPS files. Refrain from using your print files. The cost of this work depends on how much of the
JPG or PNG files, which are more suitable for web publishing. work you do yourself before handing it over.
H
 eader fonts shouldnt be ridiculously large. The optimal range We can recommend someone for layout if you would like. Please
is 24 pts to 14 pts. Body Fonts should be 10 pts to 12 pts. Line contact Publisher Services for details.
spacing or leading is usually 2 points more than the font size.
You can also find freelance layout professionals at sites like
In making your text fit into small spaces, avoid Tracking your text www.upwork.com.
more or less than 20%. It will look too squished or too loose.
A
 void widows and orphans: leaving a single word at the end of a
paragraph or a single line at the top or bottom of a column of text.
B
 lack text should be made with a 100% black swatch, with total
CMYK values of 0% Cyan (C), 0% Magenta (M), 0% Yellow (Y),
and 100% Black (K).
B
 lack elements should NOT be built in Registration black or
with the 100% black swatch used for text. They should be built
out of Rich black. For best results, we recommend the CMYK
values of 60% Cyan (C), 40% Magenta (M), 40% Yellow (Y), and
100% Black (K). CMYK total value should NOT exceed 240%.
Text should be at least 0.125 from the trim edge.
E
 mbed all fonts used in the document (all font families used,
including all screen and printer fonts).
Do
 not add information or printer marks such as crop marks,
web-press comments, etc.
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