My experience with the adobe suite

One of the many elements of my first year of University that was completely new to myself in September was the Adobe Suite. Of course I knew about Photoshop and some of their programmes but I'd never actually used any of them. So when, on our first week, we had a CAD session using adobe, I was completely lost. New applications such as InDesign, illustrator and many more seemed so confusing to me. I know I wasn't the only one who was at a loss, but most weren't.

We started with InDesign, learning the basics, building master pages, adding a background and title. From there we learnt Illustrator and Photoshop, learning how to build images on there using imported photos. All 3 applications were so frustrating and without the help of my peers, I wouldn't have been able to do most of the exercises.

I was so relieved when we finished the Adobe lessens and went on to learning about other CAD software (looking back now, Adobe is so much easier than what was to come, but hind sight is a wonderful thing.) However, once we stopped covering the Adobe suite every week, I quickly found that my understanding and ability to use the apps was going. I didn't need to use the Adobe suite for a few months, and in this time, I completely forgot how to use the suite at all. This then meant that when it came to the time where it was necessary to use Illustrator or InDesign, I had no idea what I was doing once again.

Fortunately, as part of my university course, I had access to LinkedIn Learning where lessons are available to teach the Adobe suite to complete beginners. Although this meant I had to relearn a lot of the skills I had previously learnt earlier in the year, I actually found it more useful. Going back over my skills and solidifying what I could remember and adding more complex features to my work now that I fully understand how to use them.

My biggest issue with the Adobe suite was that it was too expensive to buy, meaning I could only ever use the apps on a computer at University. Therefore, I didn't have much time to play around and experiment to learn for myself what could be done with the software. However, when lockdown happened, Adobe became free temporarily through University and so I had time to play around and use the software. Because of this, I feel much more confident now and can use the software for all the basics and even some more complex features without needing assistance.

Looking back now, I can see just how much my CAD skills have improved in a year and I'm grateful that I've had the chance to build these skills, especially since my CAD work looks much more professional now. Hopefully, using the Adobe suite will become almost like second nature to me by the time I finish my degree at University and it will be a key skill for me to have and take into a future career. But for now, I can certainly say that my skills have vastly improved and I feel much more confident about using the software now!