Best screen capturing app
Nov 12, 2020 How to take a screenshot on your Mac To take a screenshot, press and hold these three keys together: Shift, Command, and 3. If you see a thumbnail in the corner of your screen, click it to edit the screenshot. Or wait for the screenshot to save to your desktop. How to take a screenshot on your Mac. There are two ways to capture your entire screen, a portion of the screen, or a window or menu: Using keyboard shortcuts or the Screenshot app.
For many new Apple users, particularly those who are migrating from Windows and are used to that Prt Scrn (Print Screen) button, the answer to the question of how to screenshot on Mac isn't immediately obvious.
Although it only takes pressing a couple of keys to take a screenshot on Mac, the fact remains that Mac screen capture is something that hasn't historically felt all that intuitive. For example, in addition to different key commands for screenshotting windows vs. smaller selections, recording video of your screen for a long time was only possible through QuickTime Player.
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Although macOS Mojave has changed much of this, how to screenshot on Mac remains a heavy-hitting search query, as not everyone uses the latest version of macOS. Below you'll find more information on taking a screenshot on Mac (and capturing video), as well as some useful tools to make your Apple screenshot life easier.
Exploring Mac Screenshot Basics
As there's no dedicated button for print screen on Apple products, there are a few different commands associated with screen capture on Mac that vary slightly depending on your setup.
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It makes sense to divide the world of how to take a screenshot on a Mac into pre and post-Mojave, since it was with this iteration of macOS that Apple really revolutionized their Mac screenshot command system.
1. Pre-Mojave Mac screenshot commands
If for whatever reason you don't want to upgrade to Mojave then you'll need to familiarize yourself with a couple of key Mac screenshot shortcut options:
- ⌘ + Shift + 3
- ⌘ + Shift + 4
The first of these commands is probably the easiest to get to grips with and the quickest one to take advantage of when taking a screenshot on Mac, as it captures the entire screen at once. If you're using multiple screens, it takes a screenshot in Mac OS for every screen you're using simultaneously.
The second of the commands represents a slightly more nuanced way to take a snapshot on Mac. Rather than capturing your entire screen, it prompts you to select the area you want to capture. Download adware for mac. If you follow it up with a press of Space, it allows you to choose the window you want to screencap instead.
Overall, while these commands do let you print screen on Mac, they feel sort of like an afterthought rather than a fully fledged feature of macOS. With so many people looking into how to screenshot on Mac, it's not surprising that Apple recently decided to make it a little more clear how to screenshot in Mac OS Mojave.
2. Post-Mojave Mac screenshot command menu
In addition to the above commands, which still work for Mojave users, there's now an option for them that's very much in keeping with the existing format of how to print screen on Mac — ⌘ + Shift + [Number].
If you're a Mojave, Catalina, or Big Sur user, you can use ⌘ + Shift + 5to bring up a screen capture menu that will allow you to:
- Capture Entire Screen
- Capture Selected Window(s)
- Capture Selected Portion
- Record Entire Screen
- Record Selected Portion
At the right-hand side of this menu there's also Options that lets you (among other things) select where your MacBook screenshot and video output is saved.
In other words, anyone looking for an easy answer to the question 'how do you screenshot on a Mac?' could do a lot worse than considering an upgrade to Mojave in order to streamline the process.
3. Third-party Mac OS screenshot apps
You might notice that, even with the inclusion of ⌘ + Shift + 5 Mac screen capturing menu, the options for taking a Mac screenshot remain pretty basic. If you're looking for a snipping tool for Mac that can do a little more, you may need to turn to a third-party developer.
CleanShot X is unbeatable here. The app toolkit is tailored for 50+ different changes, which makes it an ultimate screen capturing tool for Mac. You can use CleanShot X to capture screen — whether it's a window, full screen, area, or even scrolling content, as well as record video.While capturing anything on your desktop, you can choose to hide all desktop clutter and disable desktop notifications in one click. Once you have your clean screenshot, open it from the overlay window that pops up, and start editing. You can add annotations, blur specific parts, or draw — CleanShot X will help you customize virtually anything.
A few not-so-obvious yet cool features to mention are self-timer, screenshot pinning, and internal cloud. Want to capture something with a delay? CleanShot X has a self-timer that will help you pick the right moment. If you want your screenshot to be visible on the screen, pin it to desktop. Finally, save your screen captures to the internal CleanShot Cloud and get shareable links in a flash.
If you're looking for something with a little more emphasis on screen recording, Capto could be the ideal solution for you. In addition to recording video, or just taking a snapshot on Mac, you can also annotate and edit captures via an intuitive iMovie-esque interface.
Capto does wonders for software walkthroughs. And given its strong visual component, it's also perfect for those with auditory shyness who would rather add captions than a voiceover. Capto's built-in organizer is pretty helpful for keeping track of your screenshots too.
Mac OS screenshot organization
If you take a lot of screenshots then you're probably way too used to your Downloads folder or Desktop being clogged up with images that have filenames like 'Screen Shot 2019-XX-XX at 21.36.15'.
Unfortunately, this inelegant and cluttered outcome is the default Mac screenshot shortcut. Not particularly helpful for keeping all of your images in check, especially when macOS is prone to heavily abbreviating filenames.
While it's possible to use Finder in conjunction with Preview to view all of your caps, that still isn't a particularly satisfying visual experience. One of the best solutions is Inboard, which functions like a private Pinterest for your desktop and allows you to tag and filter all of your screenshots for later use.
Inboard takes care of the design savvy out there too with a feature that connects your Dribbble account to import all your likes for digestion at a later date.
But even once you've solved the question of how to do a screenshot on a Mac, sharing those screenshots with, say, colleagues or friends isn't necessarily the easiest thing to do.
Rather than emailing files back and forth, or having to upload everything to a public Google Drive, you might consider a solution like Dropshare. As the name suggests, it makes sharing screenshots (and other files) as simple as dropping them into the relevant area.
Dropshare connects with a range of major third-party cloud apps, but you can also lean on proprietary Dropshare Cloud if you prefer, which is helpful if you want to keep your Mac screen capture sharing separate from your other sharing activity.
The future of how to take a screenshot on a Mac
As you can see from above, learning how to screenshot on Mac isn't particularly difficult, and screen capture on Mac is now easier than ever thanks to the addition of a dedicated MacBook screenshot and video capture menu in macOS Mojave.
It's clear from this new feature that Apple understands the issue of how to print screen on Mac is one that has been, to put it lightly, unintuitive in the past, so you can likely expect to see further tweaks to the process in the future.
In the meantime, there are some excellent options in the snipping tool for Mac market that facilitate the process and offer a range of diverse features you won't find among those built-in options for taking a screenshot on Mac.
Best of all, you can try all the apps mentioned here: CleanShot, Capto, Inboard, and Dropshare absolutely free with a 7-day trial of Setapp, a Mac platform with over 200 essential apps for any task at hand. Now you're all set for your screenshotting game.
Meantime, prepare for all the awesome things you can do with Setapp.
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Do you like to know how to take a screenshot on Mac? Then you are in the right place.
In case you are coming from the windows PC, you may be wondering about taking a screenshot minus the print screen key on the keyboard.
The good news is that there are several screenshot methods that are in novel versions of macOS and they include capturing a particular window, all of which produce images that can be used to flaunt high scores or clarify an issue with the supporting tech.
How to Take a Screenshot on Mac:
The use of keyboard commands:
Keyboard commands are very quick and easy as a way of taking screenshots on Mac, whether you want to capture the whole screen or just part of the screen.
Capturing the whole screen:
When you want to take a screenshot on your Mac, the first step is pressing the command + shift + 3 keys all at once. This will save a copy of the screen on the clipboard. You can also press this combination minus the command key so as to save this image on the desktop.
In case you are running the development preview of the upcoming Mojave update for Apple's macOS, the screenshot preview will be available in the screen corner to give you quick access to tools of editing. It is your choice to take advantage of the novel stacks feature of the screenshot to group the screenshots together.
Capturing selected areas:
Start by pressing the shift + command + 4 keys altogether. With the assistance of the mouse pointer turned to the crosshair, utilize it to select the area you want to cover. You can then fine-tune the selection by simply pressing the spacebar, which will allow you to take a capture of the full screen or to choose the open menu.
The place you select will get copied to your clipboard. Conversely, for your screenshot to get saved on the desktop as the PNG file, do not press the command key. If you possess and MacBook Pro that has a touch bar; you will get the options on its touch bar including the entire screen, the window, and the selected portion. You may also use it to save the screenshot on another folder like the documents, desktop, and the clipboard. Another exclusive feature is taking the screenshot of your touch bar display, which you can do by pressing 6 + Shift + command to take the shot.
Using grab to take screenshots:
Do not feel like memorizing shortcuts of the keyboard? Grab is a software program that comes pre-installed in the machine and allows you to create screenshots from the menu bar directly. This package also allows you to take time-delayed screenshots when you need to prepare the stage before you capture the image on the display.
Options of grab:
Start this software by going to the utility folder to open it, which is found in the folder of applications. After launching it, you will realize the program icon in the dock. If you wish, you can pin the icon for later quick access. Grab does not just feature the window while open and runs completely from the menu bar. You can either utilize the menu system of capture to take the screenshots you desire or use detailed keyboard shortcuts next to the relevant command.
Timed screenshots:
With this package, it is possible to take a screenshot of particular selections on the screen, a particular window, or the whole screen, the same options that were outlined earlier. The only new thing here is the option of the timed screen that gives you a delay of ten seconds before the capture of the screen. This is to means that if you require positioning the mouse or opening the menu in the right position then you have enough time for the same.
Preferences of Grab:
Start by opening Grab as before when you have not yet done. Choose the timed screenshot from its menu or just press shift + command + z. Remember that the cursor of the mouse does not show up by default in the screenshot. If you desire to ensure that it is captured inside the frame, choose preferences from the grub menu and choose the mouse icon from the pop-up window.
The cursor will show up when there is delayed capturing of screenshots, which is well because you will require the mouse to get the screenshots and other options. The shortcuts of the keyboard are better options for capturing screenshots, but if you do not have the desire of memorizing things, grab is the best alternative.
Use the preview to take the screenshot:
A preview is a default tool that allows you to open all things from PDF files to photos on the Mac and it has other hidden aspects. It is possible to edit images with preview, for example, by simply clicking the icon of the toolbox. This aspect also captures screenshots.
To take screenshots, open preview, select file found in the menu bar, and then from the menu, choose from the entire screen, from selection, or from the window, as per your preferences.
Capture Screenshot Macbook
It is preferred to take the shortcut of the keyboard to this method since the former is quick, but preview offers one advantage; it is possible to choose the destination of the screenshots. Other options on the list save the screenshots on the desktop with the verbose filename. The preview will open the screenshot and allows you to make several edits, and you will then save the file at the destination of choice. Preview is a solid choice in this matter to you.
Take and save Mac screenshots:
What will happen after taking the screenshot? Making an assumption that you did not just send it to your clipboard, the Mac will time stamp the screenshot automatically with the exact time and day when it was taken, which then saves a PNG on the desktop. This is crucial for immediate reference, but in case you are taking several screenshots at once, then the desktop will get clattered with items sporting odd names.
The solution is that you have to move to trash the screenshots whenever you are done with them. However, if you are working with various screenshots, this may be very tiring. The good news is that you can make modifications through third-party MacOS software and terminal commands.
Conclusion:
Take, for example, tiny for mac app. This software will rename the screen automatically based on the first application window. In case you are using chrome or safari, it will include the title and URL of the active tab. This can help with planning when you are juggling several images at once.
Alternately, in case you are running your preview build called Mojave, there are quick and new editing tools you can use to take advantage of the saved screenshots automatically on the desktop. They get grouped to declutter things. When they seem as thumbnails in the screen corner shortly after taking them, you click on the images to edit them via the Markup app.
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