Welcome to our Hyperguides – all of which you are free to download
Adobe InDesign: a very comprehensive Adobe InDesign CC/CS key-command Guide
We created this keyboard command “cheat sheet” for use in Adobe InDesign CC/CS.
Click the appropriate button below, download the pdf and “construct” the triangular prism to take full advantage of its design. It has been designed to be viewed one panel at a time, so as not to overwhelm you too much.
This guide is available separately for the Mac & Windows versions of Adobe InDesign CC/CS.
Adobe Illustrator: a very comprehensive Adobe Illustrator CC/CS key command Guide
We created this keyboard command “cheat sheet” for use in Adobe Illustrator.
Click the appropriate button below, download the pdf and “construct” the triangular prism to take full advantage of its structure. It has been designed to be viewed one panel at a time, so as not to overwhelm you too much.
This guide is available separately for the Mac & Windows versions of Adobe Illustrator CC/CS.
Adobe Illustrator Tools: a very comprehensive Adobe Illustrator CC/CS Tools (and Keys) Guide
We created this Tool “cheat sheet” for use in Adobe Illustrator CC/CS.
It shows all of the tools available but mostly hidden under the other tools.
Note: All shortcuts work on Macs and Windows as the only keyboard modifier key used is the Shift key.
Adobe Photoshop: a very comprehensive Adobe Photoshop CC/CS key command Guide
We created this keyboard command “cheat sheet” for use in Adobe Photoshop.
Click the appropriate button below, download the pdf and “construct” the triangular prism to take full advantage of its structure. It has been designed to be viewed one panel at a time, so as not to overwhelm you too much.
This guide is available separately for the Mac & Windows versions of Adobe Photoshop CC/CS.
Figma: A very comprehensive Figma key-command Guide for UI UX Designers
We created this keyboard command “cheat sheet” for use with Figma.
Click the appropriate button below, download the pdf and “construct” the triangular prism to take full advantage of its design. It has been designed to be viewed one panel at a time, so as not to overwhelm you too much.
This guide is available for the Mac or Windows versions – click on the appropriate button for your operating system.
CC tips #23: Quick links to latest Adobe CC 2023 new features
Use the buttons below to see Adobe’s summary of the latest features introduced in the most recent releases of these key applications.
If you’d like to learn more about these New Features and how they can work in the “Real World”, contact Colin on 0410669098 to arrange a session.
AI: Adobe Artificial Intelligence features
Adobe recently announced that it was going to be releasing a new set of AI-powered tools, adding them progressively to their existing applications.
Under the Adobe Firefly banner, these tools include: Auto-recolouring and text prompted image generation.
Three applications have so far been adjusted in the form of Beta (pre-release) additions.
These are: Photoshop Beta (Generative Fill), Illustrator (Generative Recolor) and Adobe( Express Generative Text).
ID tips #2: Consider installing WordsFlow, a very powerful InDesign extension by Em Software
If you work with suppliers of text who have a tendency to send you revised versions of their documents throughout the design and layout then the WordsFlow extension for InDesign is for you.
Basically, it lets you establish a virtual link between a Microsoft Word document and the text on an InDesign page.
As some of you may know, there is a button in the InDesign Preferences dialogue screen that infers a similar ability, but that solution results in resets for all style changes made to the text within InDesign.
With WordsFlow, all such changes are still retained when the document link is updated.
Click on this link or on the screenshot on the left to visit their site.
As of the 9th of August, the price per installation is A$506.65.
If you would like to see WordsFlow in action before purchase, there is a 30 trial period or just contact Colin to arrange a session in which he can show you exactly how it works, it’s strengths and its weaknesses.
Quick tip #62: More keys = bigger steps
In all of the main Adobe Print/illustration applications (InDesign, Illustrator and Photoshop), the adding of a key modifier increases the size of the step.
A good example is in kerning (or tracking) of type.
The smallest increment is achieved by using option on Macs (alt on Windows) and the left or right cursor arrows. In Illustrator and InDesign the increment size can be changed in the Preferences dialog, but the default increment in InDesign is 20/1000 of an em.
If, however, you add the Command Key on Macs (ctrl on Windows), this step size increases by a factor of five. So the increment increases to a significantly larger 100/1000 of an em!
This is a great reason why the default increment needs to be changed to something more practical such as 5 or my preffered value of 1.
OTHER EXAMPLES
Other example include:
Type size, and leading adjustments.
3D Quick tip #1: Free 3D Applications
As some of my clients will know, my original Design focus was in the area of Product Design. This led to an ongoing interest in 3D modelling an animation.
However, as the cost of many of the higher-end 3D Applications can be a bit frightening (>$10,000), it’s easy to think that powerful 3D Design is only for those in that business already.
Enter three very powerful free Applications:
Adobe Dimension
Part of the Creative Cloud set of Applications, Dimension lets you apply Illustrator/Photoshop art directly on to 3D Models (some built-in but also works with some standard file types)
Blender
An active community of enthusiastic Designers and Developers has helped create an incredibly powerful Application capable of creating incredible 3D models and worlds.
Spline 3D
This final Application is much simpler than the other two but has one trick up its sleeve that the others don’t – the creation of simple, web-hosted interactive 3D graphics.
If you are interested in learning more or arranging training in any of these Applications contact Colin on 0410669098.
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