A brochure is a sheet of paper that includes photos, graphics, and information. There are many types of brochures: the Z-folded one, which has four or six sides, the two-sided one, which has four, and a three-sided one, which has six. In this tutorial we will create a tri-fold foldable brochure and make it ready to print. Follow this guide to learn how to create a tri-fold brochure using Adobe Illustrator CS5.
Steps
Step 1. Prepare the file making it ready for printing
- Create a letter-sized document (215.9mm x 279.4mm) and change the document's color mode to CMYK. You can do this by going to File Document Color Mode CMYK Color.
- Add color swatches such as red, pink, green, yellow, and dark yellow. Note that you can also choose your own custom colors. Written below are some color combinations used in the tutorial. Red: C = 0, M = 67, Y = 50, K = 0; Pink: C = 0, M = 31, Y = 37, K = 0; Green: C = 59, M = 0, Y = 33, K = 0; Yellow: C = 0, M = 0, Y = 51, K = 0; Dark yellow: C = 0, M = 7, Y = 66, K = 0.
Step 2. Now you need to create a crop marker using a rectangular shape:
this is a guide used by printers to know where to cut your booklet once it is printed. Create the shape size 215.9mm x 279.4mm and color the stroke using the Registration Panel. It also sets the stroke weight to 0.1 pt.
Step 3. Then divide your width of 215.9mm by 3
Mark the division using guides and then overlap with dashed lines. To create the dashed line, use the Line Segment Tool to create a line, then click on Dashed Line in your Strokes panel.
Step 4. Add crop marks to your document
To add them, select your clipping guide or a rectangular shape and then go to Effect and click on Clipping Strokes.
Step 5. Group everything together
Select all (or Ctrl + A), use the right mouse button and click Group.
Step 6. Make a copy of the group and rename it "FRONT" and "INTERNAL"
To make a copy, drag the group onto your Create New Layer icon.
Step 7. Create the document content
Now that you're done setting up your booklet, it's time to add some editorial content. Start creating backgrounds using the rectangular shape and selecting your colors from your Color Panel. Make sure the rectangular shape is extended and not exactly snug against your clipping guide.
Step 8. Create content for the front, back and inside of the booklet (or the "FRONT" group)
Create content by combining photos, graphics and text. For the layout you can follow the illustration or create your own.
Step 9. And finally, it's time to add content to the inner right, left and center panels of the brochure (or your "INSIDE" group)
Once this is done, you are done.
