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InDesign Basics: Wrap Text around Shapes and Images

tutorials , , , InDesign Basics: Wrap Text around Shapes and Images

In this Bitesize tutorial, you will learn how to apply a Text Wrap to Shapes and Frames in your InDesign document.

  • Become familiar with the Text Wrap Panel

  • Apply different types of Text Wrap to a shape or frame


Step 1: Create a Frame or Shape and run Text behind them


The easiest way to set up your document for text-wrapping is to position your text frame(s) behind the image frame or shape you want to apply the text wrap effect to. This means you can easily select your frame/shape.

In this example, I have created two columns of text using the Type Tool (T), threading the text between them by clicking once on the bottom right corner of the left-hand column, then once again in the right-hand column.

Then I selected the Rectangle Frame Tool (F) and dragged to create an image frame, before going to File > Place > Open to place an image in the frame. I selected the Ellipse Frame Tool and, holding down Shift, dragged to create a perfect circular frame before placing a second image in this new frame.

text wrap indesign


Step 2: Open the Text Wrap Panel


Select the image frame or shape and go to Window > Text Wrap to open the Text Wrap Panel.

Across the top of the panel there are five icons, each of which indicate a different way of applying the text wrap. The icon to the far left, selected by default, has No Text Wrap applied to your frame/shape. Click on the second icon along from the left to apply a wrap around the Bounding Box of the frame/shape.

You can adjust the Offset values to increase or decrease the distance between the text and the edge of your frame/shape.

You can also adjust the direction of the wrap from the Wrap Options drop-down menu.

text wrap indesign text wrap paneltext wrap indesign bounding box

 

text wrap indesign text wrap panel

text wrap indesign bounding box

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Experiment with different ways of applying a wrap using the icons in the Text Wrap Panel. You can wrap text around an Object’s Shape to give a more closely fitted appearance to the wrap. This can work particularly well with outlined text (Type > Create Outlines), which gives a dramatic typographic effect.

text wrap object's shape indesign

text wrap object's shape indesign

text wrap object's shape indesign


Read for more, check out our whole range of quick InDesign tutorials for beginners.