April 29, 2008 / InDesign / Spring 2008

In Step with InDesign – Easy as π

Written by Don Leonard

You can divide circles and insert images for an interesting way to add more photos to a spread.

1. Draw a perfect circle. Hold down the Shift key while drawing to make it proportional, or use the width and height (W and H fields) in the Control Bar to make it perfectly round. Consider using whole numbers for the width and height so it will be easier to do the math later.

2. Draw a perfect square one-half of the width and height of the circle.

3. Select both elements.

4. In the Control palette, make sure the upper-left Reference Point is selected.

5. Using the Windows > Align palette or the Align icons on the Control Bar, click the Align Left Edges button, then the Align Top Edges buttons.

6. With both elements still selected, go to Object > Pathfinder > Intersect. You should end up with a perfect piece of pie.

Now recreate the pie, with each piece being a separate area.

1. Select the “pie” element with the Selection tool.

2. Make sure the middle-right Reference Point is selected in the Control palette.

3. Go to Edit > Copy to copy the element. Paste the copied element on top of the original using Edit > Paste in Place.

4. From the pop-out menu on the Control palette, select Flip Horizontal.

5. Using the Selection tool, select both elements and copy them. Use Paste in Place to paste the copied elements on top of the existing ones.

6. Make sure the bottom-middle Reference Point is selected in the Control palette.

7. From the pop-out menu on the Control palette, select Flip Verticle.

If you have a stroke around each element, you may notice that the lines touching in the center of your pie are larger than the lines around the edges. That’s because by default, your Align Stroke value in the Stroke palette is set to Align Stroke to Center. Change this setting to Align Stroke to Outside, then all touching lines will appear to be the same size.

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Don Leonard

Don Leonard supported the first yearbooks created using desktop publishing software in the early 1990s. He trains yearbook sales representatives and customers online, desktop publishing and photo-editing programs. Don also is involved in video and audio production, creating video tutorials for Walsworth's programs and Enhancements.