StrudelmediaLive - Create Your Own Zine or Photobook with InDesign
© Edward Ratliff (books/zines by previous students)
StrudelmediaLive - Create Your Own Zine or Photobook with InDesign
© Edward Ratliff (books/zines by previous students)
ONLINE COURSE

Create Your Own Zine or Photobook with InDesign

Dates: Tuesdays, March 24–May 19, 2026
Time: 1–3pm (ET)
Sessions: 6 (This class has 5 group sessions plus a private 1-on-1 session and meets Tuesdays every other week: March 24; Apr 7, 21; May 5, 19)
Limited enrollment: 6 students
Fee: $525
Register Now

Adobe’s InDesign is the most flexible and powerful application to layout and design a photobook or zine. This 6-session class is for students who are new to InDesign and also for those who’d like a refresher to work on a project. We’ll discuss developing a visual concept to fit your specific story, and cover step-by-step instructions on workflow, how to best plan and setup a project, how to use the most important InDesign tools, and how to prepare, import, and resize photos.

We’ll cover working with text, fonts, and typography, and you’ll learn to speak the language of printers and designers. You’ll also get recommendations for where to print your particular project. We’ll look at a variety of zines and photobooks for design inspiration and discuss different design ideas. Students will work on their projects throughout the course, so that by the end (depending on the scope of the project), you could have a layout ready to print. This class is limited to only 6 students to give individual attention to each person’s project. We’ll meet as a group for 5 sessions every other week, followed by a private 1-on-1 session to work together on your specific book or zine.

Please note: No prior knowledge of InDesign is required. Students should have a group of images ready to develop into a book or zine, or just to work with. Adobe's InDesign is available by a monthly subscription that can be stopped and started as you like.
 
This has been a great class to finally learn how to put the many images that live on my computer in a book form — Edward lays out a clear and very helpful course to accomplish your own zine or book.
—MG (Brooklyn, NY)
We just returned from a week away and found my zine waiting for me! I love it! Many thanks to you both and especially Edward for your time, expertise and patience as I began to learn InDesign. I am grateful and appreciative!
—Lisa (New York)
I must say that I really, really enjoyed — and benefited from — Edward’s InDesign class! Not only did I learn how to use InDesign, but I also received feedback to help me continue working on my book projects. Over the past year I have learned that participating with other image makers is an essential part of my photography practice. I particularly like the way Strudelmedia classes combine valuable skills with individual attention.
—Grace (New York City)


Edward Ratliff
© Anja Hitzenberger
Edward Ratliff

Edward Ratliff is a multi-disciplinary artist and educator. In the visual realm, he’s a graphic designer who works in print and digital media with clients ranging from individual artists to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. His film, video, and installation work has been exhibited internationally.

As a composer and multi-instrumentalist, he’s led bands in clubs, theaters, and festivals across New York City and in Europe and Asia, and has received numerous commissions and grants for dance and theater scores. His music has been heard in shows on Netflix, HBO, Nickelodeon, Hulu, PBS, and more — everything from a biography of Dostoyevsky to Real Sex Xtra. He “is best known for making richly cinematic music that captures New York City’s momentum and diversity” (The Wall Street Journal) and has been called “a wonderfully spunky and imperturbable trumpet player” (The New York Times).

Edward teaches movies as inspiration and using InDesign to create zines and books for StrudelmediaLive.