CD Digipack 4-sided print file design in Adobe InDesign

Introduction

In this article, you will learn how to create the print data for the 4-panel CD-Digipack according to our specifications in Adobe InDesign.

1. Download the template

You can download the 4-panel CD-Digipack template for InDesign here:

Download the 4-panel CD-Digipack InDesign template

2. Open the template in Adobe InDesign

After downloading the template file, you can open it in Adobe InDesign by double-clicking on the template file.

You will now see the opened InDesign template.

3. Design the front side

3.1. Prepare the workspace

In the Layers panel (Ebenen), please select "Print" by clicking once on the name:

We will now rotate the workspace. First, click the lock on the "delete after work" layer to make edits. Then, select the entire workspace by dragging the left mouse button across it. Click on a white box at any corner, press the Shift key simultaneously, and drag the workspace clockwise by 180°.

The workspace should now look like this:

Now we can design the front side more easily.

3.2. Design

Click on the Rectangle Tool in the toolbar.

We will now set the background color for our front and back sides.
First, use the Rectangle Tool to draw a rectangle at the desired position.

Now, choose the desired color under the Properties (Eigenschaften) -> Appearance tab (Aussehen Tab).

By default, shapes have a black stroke. However, in our design, this would result in black lines, which we don't want. Remove the stroke (Kontur) by entering the value "0".

Now, drag the background area by holding down the mouse button and dragging from the top left to the bottom right. Release the mouse button once the area is drawn.

The background color is now applied to both the front and back sides. (Front und Back).

Your layers should now look like the next image. Make sure to lock your background layer to avoid accidentally selecting it while placing text and images.

We will now add the artist's name. Select the Text Tool in the toolbar for this.

In the toolbar, change the font color by selecting your desired color under Properties (Eigenschaften) -> Appearance (Aussehen) -> Surface area (Fläche).

Drag a box (text frame) onto the front side and then type your desired text.

You are free to choose the font, color, and text as you prefer.

Now, move the text using the "Selection Tool" which you can find in the toolbar.

Repeat the step and now type the album name. However, increase the font size to make it stand out more.

Now, let's insert our band photo. Click on File in the menu, then choose Place.

In the file selection dialog, choose the image file and click Open.

The image should now be centered with the text. You may need to resize the image: Click on the white square at the top left, drag it, while holding down the mouse button, towards the bottom right until it covers half of the area, then release the mouse button.

4. Design the back and inside pages

You can now design the back and inside pages as you like, similar to the front side. When designing the inside, remember to rotate the workspace again (refer to step 3.1)

The front and back sides are now designed as an example:

4. Export the print file as PDF-X/3

Now, let's proceed with the PDF export, where we export our design as a print-ready file.

6.1. Remove the guide layer

In the layers panel, we need to unlock the guide layer or layer group, such as "delete after work" in this example, by selecting the layer/layer group, clicking on the "lock" icon, and then clicking on the small trash bin icon.

The workspace should now look something like this. The template layers have been completely removed. If we didn't do this, the print file would contain visible guide lines and markings.

6.2. PDF export

In the menu, click on File -> Export...

Now, you can choose a file name and location and click on Export at the bottom right.

Now, a window "Save Adobe PDF" will open. Set the PDF version by clicking on "Adobe PDF Preset" and choosing (PDF/X-3: 2002). To save, click on Export at the bottom right.

Done! The print file is now saved and ready for upload for data verification.