Adobe InDesign CS2

Working with Leading

Leading refers to the vertical white space that separates lines of text. Like letter and word spacing, the right amount of leading makes text easier to read. Leading is measured in points; you can specify the leading value yourself or let InDesign determine it automatically.

Adjusting the Space between Lines of Text
Positioning Text within its Leading
Setting the Default Leading Percentage

Adjusting the Space between Lines of Text

InDesign automatically inserts leading as you enter text into your document; however, there may be times when you want to control the value of the leading. Reasonable leading values vary with the requirements of each document and each font used.

NOTE: You can apply more than one leading value within the same paragraph. However, if different leading values occur within a single line of text, InDesign uses the largest leading value for the entire line.

Leading settings have two parts:

Leading Value
Measures the entire vertical space allotted for a line of text.

Baseline Shift
Defines the vertical position of the text, relative to the baseline, within the space allotted by the leading value.

Selecting a Leading Value

Select the text to which you want to apply a leading value
If the Character palette is not already displayed, from the Type menu, select Character...
The Character palette appears.
NOTE: The palette is displayed if a checkmark appears next to its name.
From the Leading pull-down list, select the desired value
HINTS:
To restore the default leading value, select Auto.
To set a custom leading value, type the desired value rather than selecting a preset one and press [Enter].

Positioning Text within its Leading

The baseline is an imaginary line on which the text is aligned. You can use the Character palette to adjust how the text is aligned on the baseline, creating more or less space between particular lines with the same leading value. Positive baseline shifts, shifting the text up in relation to the baseline, are achieved by entering a positive value in the Baseline Shift text box. Negative baseline shifts, shifting the text down in relation to the baseline, are achieved by entering a negative value in the Baseline Shift text box. The following table shows examples of a positive and negative baseline shift.

Positive Baseline Shift	Negative Baseline Shift

Adjusting the Baseline Alignment

Select the text to which you want to adjust the baseline alignment
If the Character palette is not already displayed, from the Type menu, select Character...
The Character palette appears.
NOTE: The palette is displayed if a checkmark appears next to its name.
In the Baseline Shift text box, type the desired positive or negative value
OR
Click the nudge buttons to adjust the value
NOTE: Positive values move the selected text up from the baseline; negative values move the selected text down from the baseline.

Setting the Default Leading Percentage

When you select Auto for a paragraph's leading value, InDesign applies a default value equal to 120% of the text size. Using a value greater than the text size ensures that the lines of text do not overlap. You can change the default leading value used for one or all paragraphs.

Select the text to which you want to apply a leading value
If the Paragraph palette is not already displayed, from the Type menu, select Paragraph...
The Paragraph palette appears.
NOTE: The palette is displayed if a checkmark appears next to its name.
Click MENU» select Justification...
The Justification dialog box appears.
In the Auto Leading text box, type the percentage you wish to apply to the paragraph
Click OK
The leading is adjusted on your selected text.