Cutting out subjects and removing backgrounds is always simpler with a little help from Adobe Photoshop.
However, what if you wanted to create masking effects directly in InDesign?
In this tutorial, we'll cover both ways.
The concept is to have the subject in the main artwork emerge from the circle shape. For this, we'll be using the Pen Tool to create a masking effect to the subject's head – or the area that you want to mask.
Before getting started, click the link below to download the assets to follow along step by step.
Open the Banner Ad.Indd file and make your way to page 1 in the document.
Creating Mask Effect
Click on the placeholder image frame, which in this case is a circle. Make your way up to File and choose Place.
Reposition the image and resize the content size to your liking by holding Option + Command (Mac) or Alt + Ctrl (Windows) and the < / > keys to decrease/increase, respectively. (Tip: To get a better idea of how the cutout will appear, click and hold the content grabber to get a preview of the mask).
Copy the entire frame and go to File > Paste in Place so that the copied version is directly on top of the original.
With the copied version selected, go to Object > Convert Shape > Rectangle.
Pull the top handle up so you can see the entire image and the subject's head.
Select the Pen Tool from the Tools panel.
Begin to make a path around the the subject's head. In this example, let's begin at the chin and work our way around from left to right. Make as many – or as few – points around the subject's head and click the starting point to close the path.
Here's a look at the how the path will appear over the image:
Select the content in the image frame and go to Edit > Cut.
Delete the rectangle frame that was holding the image.
Click the path, then right-click and choose Paste Into. This pastes the content into the path that was created.
Here is how the masking effect will appear once the content has been pasted into the path.
While this is a great way of making quick cutout effects directly in the InDesign app, let's look at how to use Photoshop with make the mask, save the PSD and bring it back into InDesign.
Layer Mask
Open the main image in Photoshop
In the Contextual Task Bar, click Select Subject. This will make a selection of the subject in the image.
In the Layers panel, click the Layer mask icon. This is the square icon with a circle inside.
Right-click the layer or press Command + J (Mac) or Ctrl + J (Windows) to duplicate the layer.
Click the layer mask icon on the bottom layer, right-click and choose Delete Layer Mask.
Rename the top layer Cutout and the bottom layer Background.
Save the file as a PSD and go back to InDesign.
Once you are back in InDesign, place the PSD inside the image frame on the second page of the document, then follow these steps:
Click the entire frame, go to Edit > Copy and then Edit > Paste in Place.
Right-click the copied version and choose Object Layer Options.
In the Object Layer Options window, hide the Background layer, which will turn off the background layer to the copied version only.
Click OK.
Adjust the image frame to crop the are of the head of the subject to complete the masking effect.
To finish things off, let's add an Inner Shadow to the circle shape. This will strengthen the cutout look and feel.
Inner Shadow Effect
Click on the main image frame and access the Effects option in the Properties panel. You can also open the Effect panel separately by going to Window > Effects.
Click the Fx icon and from the preset selections, choose Inner Shadow.
Set the Distance to 8 px and the Size to 15 px.
Click Ok.
Here is the final result with the Inner Shadow effect applied:
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