Summary

Course Aim:

The Publishing Overview course examines the stages of Publishing production and techniques. Participants will be able to efficiently identify each stage of production and the software and hardware required for each stage. This workshop is aimed at professionals providing support within the publishing industry who require a working knowledge of the workflow and each stage of production, but not opertor level skills. Comprehensive skills are gained from out L1, L2, L3 courses in each application (Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator, Acrobat). Courseware supplied; Alpha designed 250 pages.

Course Prerequisites:

The prerequisites for this workshop is that you have some experience within the publishing industry and experience using applications on a PC or Macintosh is an essential prerequisite for this course.

Course Duration:

Three days (2-day version available, topics marked * are either not included or content reduced); 9:00am - 4:30pm

Classroom courses include:

• Adobe Certified instructors (with min 10 yrs experience)
• Alpha prepared comprehensive coursenotes with tutorials and exercises (updated frequently to reflect industry trends)
• Certificates
• eLearning DVD Package (FREE at course registration where available, see our SPECIALS)
• After course support, unlimited HELP DESK (via email, to reinforce the learning), helpdesk@alphacc.com.au
• Training guarantee
• FREE repeat of public course within 6 months (where required, and on same version), see terms & conditions

Content

Course Content

During this course you will learn about:

Section 1 Publishing Stages of Production

*Topic 1 Digital Publishing Workflow

• Did you know?
• Printing Processes

• Common forms of Printing in Australia
• Classifications

Section 2 Photoshop Overview

*Topic 2 Photoshop Overview

• Topic Objectives
• About Photoshop
• Bitmap images and Vector graphics
• The Photoshop Interface
• Using panels
• Using the Tools panel
• Workspaces
• Viewing file information
• Mini Bridge
• Zooming in and out

• Navigating around the image
• Correcting mistakes
• The History panel
• Setting and Restoring Preferences
• Overview of Photoshop’s Preferences
• Adding Metadata to an Image
• Print
• A Photoshop Primer
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 3 A Suggested Image Correction Strategy

• Topic Objectives
• Preparing an image for screen and print
• Step 1: Check your Colour Settings, open an image and choose a colour working space
• Step 2: Size, Resolution and Cropping
• Step 3: Tonal Correction

• Step 4: Colour Correction
• Step 5: Save the RGB image
• Step 6: Change Colour Mode to CMYK
• Step 7: Apply the Unsharp Mask filter
• Step 8: Save the corrected CMYK image
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 4 Making Selections

• Topic Objectives
• Why make selections?
• Overview of selection tools
• Selection tool options
• Anti-aliased selections
• The Marquee Tools
• The Lasso tools
• The Quick Selection tool

• The Magic Wand tool
• Refining selection edges
• Inversing the selected areas
• Working with Selections
• Feathering a selection
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 5 Layers

• Topic Objectives
• The Layers panel
• Creating a new layer
• Converting a background into a layer
• Changing the visibility of layers
• Changing a layer’s opacity
• Selecting layers
• Moving objects on layers
• Selecting the contents of a layer
• Applying a blending mode for a layer

• Duplicating a layer
• Renaming a layer
• Rearranging layers
• Deleting layers
• Linking and unlinking layers
• Merging layers
• Flattening layers
• Layer styles
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 6 Type

• Topic Objectives
• Creating point type
• Creating paragraph type
• Committing changes to type
• Selecting type
• Formatting type
• Transforming the type bounding box

• Warping type
• Applying layer styles to type layers
• Rasterising Type
• Saving type as vector type
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 7 Image Retouching

• Topic Objectives
• The Clone Stamp tool
• The Spot Healing Brush tool
• The Healing Brush tool
• Content-Aware fills
• Content-Aware Move
• The Patch tool

• The Colour Replacement tool
• Removing red eye
• The Dodge and Burn tools
• The Sponge tool
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Section 3 – Illustrator Overview

*Topic 8 Illustrator’s Interface

• Topic Objectives
• The Welcome Screen (pre CS6)
• The Tools panel
• Working with panels
• Customizing your workspace
• The Application bar
• The Control panel
• The context menu

• Zooming in and out
• Scrolling the view
• Preview and Outline Views
• Illustrator’s preferences
• Undo, Redo and Revert commands
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 9 Artwork Essentials

• Topic Objectives
• Vector graphics
• Bitmap images
• Creating a new Illustrator document
• Opening a file
• Templates
• About Adobe Bridge
• The Illustrator artboard
• Creating, editing, and deleting artboards
• Creating artboards
• Editing or deleting artboards

• Artboard options
• Working with rulers
• Changing the measurement units
• Working with the Grid
• Working with guides
• Snapping objects to anchor points and guides
• Use smart guides to align objects
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 10 Drawing Vector Art

• Topic Objectives
• About vector paths
• Drawing lines with the Line Segment tool
• Drawing rectangles
• Drawing ellipses
• Drawing polygons
• Drawing stars
• Drawing straight lines with the Pen tool
• Tips for drawing curves with the Pen tool
• Drawing curves with the Pen tool
• Changing the curve direction (method 1 - preferred method)
• Changing the curve direction (method 2)
• Adjusting the shape of a curve
• Adding or deleting anchor points

• Converting between smooth and corner points
• The Pencil Tool
• Smoothing paths
• Finding and deleting stray anchor points
• Erasing artwork
• Simplifying paths
• Joining and cutting paths
• Aligning the position of anchor points
• An Introduction to the Stroke Panel
• Adjusting the thickness of a path
• Adding arrowheads to paths
• An Introduction to the Pathfinder Panel
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 11 Transforming objects

• Topic Objectives
• Transforming objects
• Using the Transform panel to transform
• Using the bounding box to transform
• Scaling objects
• Rotating objects
• Reflecting objects

• Shearing objects
• Distorting objects with the Free Transform tool
• Warp Effects
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 12 Clipping Masks, Transparency, Gradients & Patterns

• Topic Objectives
• Clipping masks
• Creating a clipping mask for objects
• Creating a clipping mask for a group or layer
• Editing a clipping mask
• Adding or removing objects from a clipping mask
• Releasing objects from a clipping mask
• Transparency

• Using the Transparency panel
• Illustrator’s blending modes
• Gradients
• The Gradient tool
• Gradients on Strokes (CS6)
• Creating Patterns
• Create pattern swatches
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 13 Saving and Exporting from Illustrator

• Topic Objectives
• Saving and exporting artwork
• Saving in Illustrator format (AI)
• Illustrator format (AI) options
• Saving in EPS format
• EPS format options
• About Adobe PDF format
• Saving in Adobe PDF format
• Creating a layered Adobe PDF file

• Adobe PDF presets
• Customizing PDF presets
• PDF presets locations
• Exporting PDF presets
• Importing PDF presets
• Exporting artwork to other formats
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Section 4 – InDesign Overview

*Topic 14 The InDesign Interface

• Topic Objectives
• The Welcome Screen
• Application bar
• The Tools panel
• An Overview of the Tools panel
• Using context menus
• The Control panel
• Displaying InDesign’s panels
• Panel menus
• Resizing panels
• Moving panels

• Dock and undock panels
• Using Workspaces
• Zooming in and out
• Scrolling the view
• Turning pages in a document
• Managing Document windows
• About Adobe Bridge
• Mini Bridge
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 15 Creating Documents

• Topic Objectives
• Creating a new document
• Modifying document setup
• Modifying the margins and columns
• Making unequal column widths
• Using ruler guides
• Examining the document window
• Defining document presets
• Creating custom page sizes
• Preview mode
• Presentation mode

• Opening documents
• Using templates
• Saving documents
• Saving to previous InDesign versions (CS6)
• Recovering documents after system failures
• Undoing and reverting
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 16 Adding Text and Graphics

• Topic Objectives
• Typing or pasting text
• Placing text
• Adding placeholder text
• Making the frame fit the text
• Placing graphics
• Placing multiple graphics
• Fitting a graphic to its frame
• Resizing graphics
• Moving a frame and its content

• The content grabber (CS5 and later)
• Placing InDesign documents
• Grouping objects
• Selecting objects
• Copying an image into a new frame
• Stacking objects
• The reference point locator
• Use smart guides to align objects
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 17 Master Pages

• Topic Objectives
• About master pages
• Editing master pages
• Creating a master page
• Using automatic page numbering
• Applying master pages to document pages

• Customising master objects
• Preventing a master item from being overridden
• Restoring master objects
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 18 Using Layers

• Topic Objectives
• The Layers panel
• Creating layers
• Putting objects on to layers
• Rearranging layers
• Hiding or showing a layer

• Locking layers
• Deleting a layer
• Expanding and collapsing layers
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 19 Working with Text

• Topic Objectives
• Text frames
• Creating text frames
• Moving and resizing text frames
• Connecting text frames
• Threading
• Unthreading
• Word and character count
• Methods for flowing text
• Setting text frame options

• Displaying hidden characters
• Text selection techniques
• Using Glyphs
• Using special characters
• Using white space characters
• Inserting break characters
• Linked text files
• Text import filters
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 20 Formatting Text

• Topic Objectives
• Fonts and Typefaces
• Recently used fonts (CS6)
• Using the Control panel to format text
• Using the Character panel
• Choosing a font and style
• Setting type size
• Changing text using keyboard shortcuts
• Leading
• Kerning and tracking
• Setting kerning and tracking values
• Using Optical Kerning
• Scaling Type
• Baseline shift

• Skewing text
• Capitalisation
• Making characters superscript or subscript
• Underline and strikethrough
• Paragraph formatting
• Text alignment
• Setting space above or below
• Indenting text
• Drop caps
• Hyphenation
• OpenType fonts
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 21 Text Wrap

• Topic Objectives
• Wrap To options
• Making a frame ignore text wrap
• Changing the shape of a text wrap

• Changing preferences for text wrap
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 22 Colours and Gradients

• Topic Objectives
• Process colours
• Spot colours
• RGB colours
• Named and unnamed colours
• Applying fill and stroke colour to objects
• The Swatches panel
• Using the Swatches panel to create colours

• Pantone and other colour libraries
• Using colours from other InDesign documents
• Gradients
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 23 Paragraph and Character Styles

• Topic Objectives
• Using styles
• The Paragraph and Character Styles panels
• Creating styles “by example”
• Working with style groups
• Applying paragraph and character styles

• Clearing style overrides
• Editing styles
• Importing styles from another document
• Deleting paragraph and character styles
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 24 Transparency Effects

• Topic Objectives
• Applying transparency effects
• Overview of transparency effects
• Editing a transparency effect
• Copying transparency effects

• Clearing effects from an object
• Screen display of transparent objects
• Transparency flattening
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 25 Repurpose Content, Preflighting, Packaging & Printing

• Topic Objectives
• Content Collector and Placer tools (CS6)
• Preflighting a document
• Defining preflight profiles
• View and resolve preflight errors
• Resolve errors

• Select a different profile
• Packaging files
• The Print Dialogue Box
• Printing booklets (impose a document for booklet printing)
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 26 Outputting to PDF

• Topic Objectives
• Producing PDF files for approval
• Producing press quality PDF files
• Exporting to PDF format
• InDesign’s PDF Presets
• Using PDF presets
• PDF General options

• PDF Compression options
• PDF Marks and bleeds options
• PDF Colour management options
• PDF Advanced Options
• PDF Security options
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Section 5 – Acrobat Overview

*Topic 27 Editing PDF Files

• Topic Objectives
• Copying and pasting text, tables, and images
• Converting selected content to other formats
• Copying and saving images
• Editing PDF documents
• Editing text
• Inserting new text
• Cropping pages and changing page size
• Rotating pages

• Extracting pages
• Moving or copying pages
• Deleting or replacing pages
• Combining Adobe PDF documents
• Inserting a clipboard selection into a PDF (Windows only)
• Saving and Exporting PDFs to other formats
• Reducing file size
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 28 Adding Comments to a PDF

• Topic Objectives
• About adding comments
• Sticky Notes
• Text edit comments
• Stamping a document

• Drawing Markup tools
• Text box and Callout comments
• Attaching a file
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 29 Optimising, Preflighting and Preparing for Print

• Topic Objectives
• Save using PDF Optimizer
• Auditing the space usage of a PDF file
• Optimizing a PDF file
• Preflighting PDF documents

• Analysing preflight results
• Previewing output on screen
• Converting colours
• Topic Summary
• Topic Review

Topic 30 Colour Management

• Reproducing Colour
• Colour Management Basics

• Setting up Colour Management in Photoshop
• Monitor Calibration

Index

Back to top

Packages

Packages Available

We offer various packages, designed for users who want to upgrade their skills across a range of Adobe applications.

This course is not currently available as part of a package. Please click the specials link above to see if specials are currently available for this course.

Visit our packages page for more information

Specials

This course is not offered as part of any Special.

2012 Training Specials for Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Canberra Centres

eLearning DVD

When you attend any of the following scheduled courses, you will receive a FREE eLearning DVD:

• Acrobat for Business and Advanced
• PhotoShop Level 1, and Level 2
• Illustrator Level 1, and Level 2
• InDesign Level 1, and Level 2
• Dreamweaver Level 1, and Level 2
• Flash Level 1, and Level 2

Specials are subject to our terms and conditions

Gift Vouchers

When you give an Alpha Computer Consultants Gift voucher, you let people choose their own reward from the entire list of courses and consulting we provide. It is much more effective than other incentive schemes as they can choose which courses they want to benefit from.