Text and Image Frames

Creating and Formatting Text Frames

Text frames are essential for adding and formatting text within your layout. In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to create and format text frames, fill them with content, and apply placeholder text for a cleaner workflow.

Create a Text Frame

Select the Type Tool (T) from the Tools Panel.

Click and drag to draw a text frame where you want your text to appear.

To fill the frame with placeholder text, go to Type > Fill with Placeholder Text. This will generate random text that helps visualize the layout with content.

Resize the Text Frame

Use the Selection Tool (V) to select the text frame.

Click and drag the handles on the text frame to resize it.

Adjust the frame to fit the content properly.

Adjust Text Formatting

Once your text is in the frame, you can adjust the text’s font, size, color, and alignment.

With the text frame selected, go to the Properties Panel to adjust settings such as font, size, line spacing, alignment, and color.

Use the Control Panel at the top for quick adjustments such as font and size changes.

Creating and Formatting Image Frames

Image frames are essential for placing and adjusting images within your layout. This tutorial teaches you how to insert, resize, and fit images into frames, as well as how to wrap text around them for a more polished design.

Place an Image

Use File > Place (Cmd/Ctrl + D):

This is the most common method.

Go to File > Place, select your image file, and click Open.

Then click on the document to place it, or click and drag to define the frame size as you place it.

Drag and Drop (Available on Some Computers):

If supported, simply drag an image file from your desktop or file browser and drop it into your InDesign layout.

A new image frame will be created automatically at the drop location.

Create an Image Frame First, Then Insert an Image:

Use the Rectangle Frame Tool (F) from the Tools Panel to draw a placeholder frame.

With the frame selected, go to File > Place, select your image, and click Open. The image will fill the frame.

Resize the Image

Select the image frame using the Selection Tool (V).

Click and drag the corner handles to resize the frame while keeping the aspect ratio intact.

If needed, hold down Shift while resizing to maintain proportions.

Fit the Image to the Frame

Right-click on the image and choose Fitting > Fill Frame Proportionally to make the image fill the frame while preserving its aspect ratio.

Alternatively, use Fit Content to Frame to stretch the image to fit the frame, but note that this can distort the image.

Apply Text Wrap Around the Image

Text wrap is useful for controlling how text flows around images or graphics.

Select the image or object you want to wrap text around.

Open the Text Wrap panel by going to Window > Text Wrap.

Choose a text wrap style:

Wrap Around Bounding Box: Text wraps around the bounding box of the object.

Wrap Around Object Shape: Text wraps around the shape of the object itself.

Adjust the Offset to control the amount of space between the text and the image.

Last updated by Abigail Green - April 2025