How to Do an Initial Cap in InDesign

Adding an initial cap -- also known as a "drop cap" with one character -- is a common design technique to indicate the start of a new section in a document or book. An initial cap increases the size of the first letter in a paragraph by allowing it to span across multiple lines, or drop vertically. Creating an initial cap in Adobe InDesign is easily accomplished from within the Paragraph panel. Once you have established the drop cap, you can create a character style by choosing from different fonts and colors to further improve the design of the paragraph.

Instructions

1. Open your InDesign document. Select the “Type” tool. Position the cursor inside the paragraph to which you want to apply the drop cap.

2. Click on the “Window” menu, hover over “Type” and select “Paragraph” to open the Paragraph panel.

3. Click on the fly-out menu and select “Drop Caps and Nested Styles.”

4. Enter the number of lines that you want to vertically drop the initial letter in the “Lines” box.

5. Enter “1” in the “Characters” box.

6. Click on the “Character Style” drop-down menu and select “New Character Style.” In the “New Character Style” dialog box, specify the desired look for the initial cap. Click “OK” to create the new style.

7. Select the new style from the “Character Style” drop-down menu. Click “OK” to apply the drop cap.

References

• Adobe InDesign CS5 & CS5.5: Use Drop Caps
• Layers Magazine: Getting the Drop on Initial Caps