Anchoring pictures and boxes to text in Layout by Zaweba

Anchored objects are frames tied to a point in the text. Instead of sitting on the page at a fixed position, they travel with the words they belong to. Add a paragraph above, and the anchored picture moves down with its text. Layout by Zaweba offers three kinds: inline, above line and custom position.

Inline, above line and custom

An inline object sits in the line of text like a large character. A small icon at the start of a paragraph, a symbol in a set of instructions, or a logo mark in a sentence are typical uses. It moves exactly as a letter would.

An above line object sits on its own line above the line containing its anchor. A picture that belongs between two paragraphs, such as a diagram in a manual or a photo in a long article, is a good fit. It takes up its own space in the flow, and the text continues below it.

A custom position object is anchored to text but placed somewhere else, for example in the margin beside the paragraph it belongs to. A marginal note, a small picture beside a step, or a pull quote aligned with its paragraph can all be done this way. When the paragraph moves, the object moves with it, staying in the same relation.

Why anchoring matters

Long documents change. An editor adds a paragraph, a section moves, a chapter grows. Pictures placed at fixed positions stay where they were while the text moves away from them, and someone has to go through and move them all by hand. Anchored objects follow the text, so the picture and its paragraph stay together through every edit.

That's especially valuable in manuals, textbooks and technical documents, where a diagram must sit beside the step it illustrates.

Getting good results

Choose the kind by how the object relates to the text. If it's part of the sentence, inline. If it belongs between paragraphs, above line. If it sits beside the text, custom.

Inline objects are also the right choice for small pictures in tables of instructions or in captions, where a symbol needs to stay beside a particular word. Treat them like text: they take the line's position, so changing the paragraph's alignment or spacing moves them with it.

Use object styles for anchored objects you repeat, so every margin note or step picture has the same anchoring and spacing.

Combine anchored objects with text wrap where needed, so text flows around a custom positioned picture rather than under it.

Anchoring slips

Anchoring to the wrong paragraph is common: the picture follows a paragraph near the one it belongs to, and drifts away from the right text after edits. Anchor it to the paragraph it illustrates.

Very tall inline objects push lines apart. For anything bigger than a line or two of text, above line or custom usually looks better.

Anchoring everything isn't always right. Pictures that belong to the page design rather than to a particular paragraph, such as a full page photo, are better placed freely.

Anchored objects work with threading, primary text frames and text wrap in Layout by Zaweba, so text heavy documents with pictures stay in order however much they change.