Inside CreativePro: Content, Community, and AI Creativity with Mike and Theresa
Release Date: 08/26/2025
Canva Makes Affinity Free?!
The CreativePro Podcast
During Adobe MAX, Canva dropped a bombshell announcement: the entire Affinity suite—Affinity Photo, Designer, and Publisher—would be free forever. In this episode, David Blatner, Theresa Jackson, and Mike Rankin share their reactions to the news and unpack what it means for creative professionals. They discuss how Canva’s move shakes up the design software landscape and whether Affinity can ever rival Adobe’s Creative Cloud. The team also explores why this announcement might be good news for everyone, from professional designers to the next generation of creatives. Episode Highlights ...
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InDesign 2026: What's New
The CreativePro Podcast
InDesign 2026 is here—and so are David and Anne-Marie! In this episode of The CreativePro Podcast, David Blatner and Anne-Marie Concepción bring back InDesign Secrets and dig into the newest release of Adobe InDesign (v21). They explore what’s fresh, and what’s just plain weird. From the new Flex Layout feature to live text editing in the browser, they unpack the good, the bad, and the future potential of InDesign’s next chapter. Along the way, they share favorite finds, event updates, and a few classic “InDesign Secrets” throwbacks—complete with the return of the Obscure...
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AI’s Impact on Creativity with Amy Balliett and Mark Heaps
The CreativePro Podcast
In this episode, Amy Balliett and Mark Heaps sit down for an honest conversation about artificial intelligence and what it means for creative professionals. They share how AI is showing up in their work today, the opportunities it creates, and the worries it raises about originality, ethics, and the future of design. Along the way, you’ll hear candid reflections on how creatives can keep their unique voice while adapting to rapid change, why embracing experimentation matters, and how to balance efficiency with authenticity. Amy and Mark bring both optimism and caution to the discussion,...
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Inside CreativePro: Content, Community, and AI Creativity with Mike and Theresa
The CreativePro Podcast
In this episode, Theresa Jackson and Mike Rankin go behind the scenes at CreativePro. They share how their similar career beginnings in prepress connected them at their first meeting many years ago, and how they now share overlapping roles at CreativePro. You’ll hear from Mike about the CreativePro Magazine evolution from InDesign-only coverage to a broader creative focus, and other changes that make content faster and easier to digest. This is followed with a conversation about community connection and their ideas for sustaining the energy of CreativePro Week year-round. Mike shares his...
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Introducing the CreativePro Podcast
The CreativePro Podcast
InDesignSecrets is now the CreativePro podcast! Join David Blatner and Theresa Jackson and review the past 20 years of podcasting, as well as what to expect next! Links and Info: ! Trivia: Did you know our podcast intro music was created by Anne-Marie Concepcion's daughter, Nicole?! Have an idea for a future podcast? Leave us a note below!
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Ep. 332: Live from CreativePro Week
The CreativePro Podcast
Topics: Big news about podcast name Our favorite obscure features Fun obscure feature "spelling bee" game Obscure Feature: Positional Form Friendly Alien: Barbell: Positional Form:
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Ep. 331: Bad Advice
The CreativePro Podcast
Just for fun: Bad Advice (and Good Lessons) Interview with Marcus Radich from PageProof Obscure feature: Show Transparency Grid Links: Bad Advice Interview with PageProof: News: Adobe engineers did an Ask Us Anything 24-hour marathon . Creative Cloud Members get 3 months of LinkedIn "Premium Career" membership (which includes LinkedIn Learning). See Obscure Feature: Show Transparency Grid
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Ep. 330: Evergreen Tips
The CreativePro Podcast
Topics: Great lessons from the archives (that you may have missed) First look at InDesign 20.3 Obscure Feature: Delete All Guides on Spread Sponsor: is a simple-to-use but powerful online proofing platform that makes giving feedback on creative work effortless Links: Old InDesign Magazine articles that are definitely evergreen: From issue 1: issue 2: issue 7: issue 8: What's new in 20.3 News: Members can now download the of articles (use the code CPSECRETS to get $100 off that or any creativepro event) Obscure Feature: Delete All Guides on Spread
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Ep. 329: Top Efficiency Tips
The CreativePro Podcast
* DOIE: Dept. of InDesign Efficiency * Obscure Feature: Clear Rotation * News Links: Dept. of InDesign Efficiency Apply Leading to Entire Paragraphs: The weird "Place Gun Frame" trick: Join us in our live studio audience for Podcast 332 at ! Clear Rotation: Did you know you can ? Even more cool:
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Ep. 328: Cloud Docs
The CreativePro Podcast
Topics: The INDDC format: good and bad Interview with Venngage CEO Eugene Woo Obscure Feature: Reset Preferences on Quit Links: Cloud Docs: The endgame… collaborative editing, AI powered design at your fingertips
info_outlineIn this episode, Theresa Jackson and Mike Rankin go behind the scenes at CreativePro. They share how their similar career beginnings in prepress connected them at their first meeting many years ago, and how they now share overlapping roles at CreativePro. You’ll hear from Mike about the CreativePro Magazine evolution from InDesign-only coverage to a broader creative focus, and other changes that make content faster and easier to digest. This is followed with a conversation about community connection and their ideas for sustaining the energy of CreativePro Week year-round. Mike shares his newly formed Office Hours, and Theresa teases similar new community initiatives on the horizon.
Along the way, they preview upcoming events and dive into a candid discussion about AI in design—what excites them, what makes them uneasy, and why creativity and foundational skills still matters most. The show wraps with Mike’s top InDesign career tip—one you won’t want to miss.
Links & Resources
CreativePro Membership – Unlock the magazine, downloads, and exclusive resources: https://creativepro.com/membership/
CreativePro Magazine Article MATE: Your AI Helper in InDesign and Illustrator https://creativepro.com/mate-your-ai-helper-in-indesign-and-illustrator/
Office Hours – Join the conversation: https://creativepro.com/office-hours/
Design + Accessibility Summit – September 16–19, 2025: https://creativepro.com/event/design-accessibility-summit-2025/#overview
Design + AI FREE Webinar – September 30, 2025: https://creativepro.com/event/free-webinar-unlocking-the-potential-of-ai-in-video/
Design + AI Summit – November 13–14, 2025:https://creativepro.com/event/design-ai-summit-2025/
The InDesign Conference – December 9–12, 2025: https://creativepro.com/event/indesign-conference-2025/
Rob de Winter’s Flux Kontext Photoshop Plugin – https://www.robdewinter.com/flux-kontext-plugin-for-photoshop