Design Projects Using Adobe InDesign

Create real-world projects and digital publications

These projects help you learn the basics and explore advanced features of Adobe InDesign by creating the same type of projects you might tackle as an in-house or freelance graphic designer. The 12 categories of tutorials include business cards and letterhead, magazines, newsletters, and newspapers, and posters. In most cases, tutorials start with setting up your document (or some start with the initial sketches and planning) and go all the way to printing or saving as a PDF or a digital publication.

01
of 12

Ads and Direct Mail

Woman having a Skype meeting
Gary Houlder / Getty Images
02
of 12

Brochures, Leaflets, Pamphlets

Tutorial image for InDesign.
  • How to Make a Print Ready A5 Leaflet in InDesign CS5: Beginner level tutorial for creating a 4-page leaflet or brochure uses some of the typesetting features that were new in CS5. 22 steps. From Gavin Selby at envato tuts+.
  • Create and Print a Brochure with Photoshop, InDesign, and UPrinting.com: Part 1: (14 steps), Part 2: (9 steps), from Collis at envato tuts+, the artwork is created in Photoshop then placed into InDesign for further work.
03
of 12

Business Cards and Letterhead

Person holding business card.

Tero Vesalainen / Pixabay

04
of 12

Digital Publications

A magazine and iPad.
05
of 12

Invitations

A Halloween invitation made in InDesign.
06
of 12

Magazines, Newsletters, Newspapers

Magazine designe tutorial screenshot.
  • Magazine Design With InDesign: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3. At Layers Magazine, this basic 3 part tutorial by Chad Neuman includes master pages, auto page numbers, shapes, text import from a Word file, text wrap, and other features. Uses Illustrator for some steps. Downloadable files provided.
  • How to Create a Professional Magazine Layout: A envato tuts+ intermediate level tutorial for CS4/CS5 from Otto Coster.
  • Design a Multi-Page Mag Feature: Jo Gilliver of Computer Arts demonstrates how to set up a complex multi-page mag including grid setup, creating a template, and adding finishing touches. Downloadable support files. The tutorial is a PDF download as well.
  • Create a Newsprint Magazine: Download the PDF tutorial from Computer Arts which includes tips on designing a "complex, versatile grid system" and how to work with black and white images and cheap paper but get great results.
  • Magazine Cover Design in InDesign CS3: 13-step tutorial by Terry White at Layers Magazine includes techniques for making a cover that stands out on the magazine rack.
  • How to Create a Music Magazine Cover in InDesign: From envato tuts+ and Simona Pfreundner, this is an introductory or beginner level tutorial.
  • Create a Newsprint Publication: From Computer Arts, topics covered include grids, consistency, and use of two-color printing. For InDesign and Photoshop CS3 or later.
07
of 12

Menus

Sample coffee shop menu.
  • Design a Coffee Shop Menu Layout From Scratch With Photoshop and InDesign CS5: Part 1: (24 steps), Part 2: (35 steps). Intermediate level tutorial by Alvaro Guzman at psd tuts+ using Photoshop to create the artwork to be imported into InDesign for the addition of more text and print to PDF.
08
of 12

Photo Albums, Photobooks, Yearbooks

Person holding an open book with 2 children on the pages.

 ATDSPHOTO/Pixabay

09
of 12

Portfolios

Portfolio sample made in InDesign.
10
of 12

Posters

Red poster displaying creative fonts.
11
of 12

Resumés or CVs

A sample resume for a graphic designer.
12
of 12

Other Miscellaneous Projects

Sample tickets made with InDesign.
Format
mla apa chicago
Your Citation
Bear, Jacci Howard. "Design Projects Using Adobe InDesign." ThoughtCo, Sep. 8, 2021, thoughtco.com/design-projects-using-adobe-indesign-1078509. Bear, Jacci Howard. (2021, September 8). Design Projects Using Adobe InDesign. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/design-projects-using-adobe-indesign-1078509 Bear, Jacci Howard. "Design Projects Using Adobe InDesign." ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/design-projects-using-adobe-indesign-1078509 (accessed March 28, 2024).