How to take screenshots on a laptop A guideline for beginners

By Maggie On Apr 19, 2023

Table of Contents

How to take screenshots on a laptop?

Most workdays and classes will require you to capture your work in progress by taking screenshots on your laptop. You may take screenshots of almost anything on the screen and save them as JPG and PNG files on a Mac or Windows laptop.

With PCs, however, the procedure differs from program to program. Taking a screenshot on a laptop running either Windows or macOS requires knowledge of the operating system’s unique methods or commands. So don’t worry; we’ve got your back! The full procedure for capturing a screenshot on a Mac or PC running Windows 11, Windows 10, or Windows 7 is detailed below. The procedures are straightforward to master.

Tips for capturing screenshots on any laptop.

Requirements.

Your laptop computer, and in some circumstances, some simple photo editing software. Depending on your method and operating system, the whole thing should take only two minutes.

Snapping screenshots on Windows laptops.

All laptops have slightly different methods for capturing a screenshot. Still, Windows-based laptops like those from Dell, Lenovo, and others, and MacOS-based laptops from Apple will have the most noticeable variances. Let’s start with laptops running Microsoft Windows.

First, you may do it the conventional way.

Press Print Screen.

The quickest and easiest way to capture the entire screen at once is to use the Print Screen Key, which is a built-in Windows shortcut. Because laptop keyboards aren’t standardised, this key could be on any of the other keys. Its usual location, like on a standard keyboard, is the upper right; but, as seen by the Lenovo example, it can also be found near the bottom.

Any key labeled “Prt,” “PrtSc,” “Prnt Scr,” or something similar should do the trick. When you find it, tap it briefly. If it seems like nothing has changed, don’t worry. Although it doesn’t appear very clearly in Windows, you have successfully captured a screenshot of your screen.

Copy and paste the screenshot.

Once you have captured your screen, copy and paste it into an image editor to make any necessary changes and save the result. Photoshop will do the trick, but the much simpler and free Microsoft Paint will do just fine because most people don’t have access to such high-end software.

This program has always been a part of Windows, so all you have to do to use it is launch it, press Ctrl+V, or select the clipboard icon in the upper left corner and select Paste. When you hit Print Screen, anything on the screen will be copied and pasted into the current document.

The image can be resized, cropped, and saved from this screen. Take a screenshot of your computer screen right now.

Snipping Tool captures and edits screenshots.

The system’s Snipping Tool allows you to capture screenshots. You can record your screen and do some little editing afterwards. Here are the procedures for using your laptop’s Snipping Tool to take screenshots:

In Windows, type snip and pick Snipping Tool from the results list.

To take a new screenshot, go to Snipping Tool and click New.

The screenshot can be initiated by dragging the crosshair to the desired starting point.

Please remember that you can avoid clicking by pressing the ESC key first.

The screenshot can be saved by clicking the Save Snip button.

The image can be saved as a PNG or JPEG file.

How do screenshots Windows 10/11 laptops/PCs?
There are several options for capturing a screenshot for laptops and Desktops running Windows 10 or 11. Taking a screenshot on a Windows 7 laptop is the same as doing it on any other laptop. Look at this!

Use the software on a computer running Windows 7, 10, or 11.

The “Snipping Tool” is a built-in feature of Windows 10 and Windows 7 that allows you to easily take screenshots. Rather than copying and putting the screenshot into another application, the app saves it directly as an image file.

Search for “Snipping Tool” in Start menu to access it.
When you launch the program, you’ll see tabs labeled “New,” “Mode,” “Delay,” “Cancel,” and “Settings.”
By clicking the New button, laptop users can select their preferred screenshot format (freeform, without any preset dimension or shape).
In contrast, the “Mode” drop-down menu allows you to select the shape of your screenshot, from full screen to rectangular to free-form.
You can pause the process by clicking “Cancel,” You can delay the screenshot by setting a timer using the “Delay” option.

Use this key to print the Windows screen.

In addition to the program, the ‘PrtScn’ key on a Windows laptop can take a screenshot of the active window. This feature allows you to screenshot your Windows 10 or Windows 7 laptop.

Typically, you’ll find the PrtScn key in the upper right-hand area of your keyboard.
If you press the key, the computer will copy the screen’s contents to the clipboard, where you may then paste it into an image editor like Paint or word processor like Microsoft Word.
The Fn (Function) key may be required to activate some laptops’ buttons. To take a screenshot using the shortcut on such a machine, use Fn+PrtScn.

Press Alt+PrtScn to take a screenshot of the current window.

Only the currently selected window will be copied to clipboard to be pasted into another application.
To capture a screenshot on a Windows 7 or Windows 10 laptop, press the PrtScn button while holding down the Alt key.

Take a screenshot with Windows key+Shift+S.

To screenshot a chosen region, hit Windows + Shift + S.
The screen will go dark, the Snip and Sketch tool will launch, and the mouse pointer will become a drag cursor.
Choose the specific area you wish to record.
The screenshot can be pasted into any image-editing software from the clipboard.

Windows 11 laptop/PC users can also access many additional editing possibilities.

Use Windows+PrtScn to save the screenshot on your PC.

On a Windows laptop, you can use the Windows key plus the PrtScn shortcut command to save the screenshot as an image file, bypassing the clipboard entirely.
When you press the keys, a screenshot of the full screen will be taken and saved in a subfolder of the “Pictures” folder labeled “Screenshots.”

Press Windows+G.
This choice caters to Windows laptop users who want to capture screenshots while playing a video game.
Hold down the Windows key and the G key while you play to bring up a game overlay.
To capture a screenshot, click the camera button or use the shortcut Windows + Alt + PrtScn.
Captures is a subfolder of Videos where the screenshot will be stored.
When playing a game on Steam, pressing F11 will capture a screenshot that may be viewed later in the ‘Steam’ folder.
How to take screenshot on a laptop or PC running macOS?
Taking a screenshot on macOS is possible in various ways, each with advantages.

1. Command+Shift+3.

It’s the simplest method for capturing a screenshot on a macOS computer. A screenshot of the full screen will be taken by pressing these three keys simultaneously.

Shift+Command+4.

Taking a screenshot of a defined region of the screen is possible with this slightly complex command. To take a screenshot, click and drag the crosshair cursor to the desired area of the screen.

If you hold down the space bar, the crosshair will transform into a camera symbol. To take a screenshot, move the cursor over the icon until the target window is highlighted, then click on it or hit the enter key.
With this command, you can lock the size and shape of the selected region and move it to any location on the screen by pressing and holding the space bar (after dragging to highlight an area but before releasing the mouse button or trackpad). This comes in handy if the first location choice is off by a small margin.
Finally, after dragging to highlight an area, but before releasing the mouse button, holding the ‘Shift’ key will lock each side of the selected region while keeping the top edge free.

Press Shift>+5/Shift>

With this option enabled, you have complete control over the captured image.
After you’ve sent the command, a box will appear on the screen, including various controls.
To capture a screenshot of the current selection, either press “enter” or select “Capture selected piece” from the drop-down menu.
The panel also features “Capture Entire Screen” and “Capture Selected Window” buttons, as well as two video-recording buttons that allow you to record your entire screen or a selection of it, and an “Option” button that lets you choose the drive you want to save screenshots to, set a timer and other similar options.
You can close the screenshot window by pressing the Escape key or click ‘X’ button on the left.

Press Shift + 6

Only the MacBook Pro with Touch Bar offers this feature, which allows you to capture the Touch Bar in a screenshot.

The desktop is where your screenshots from Macs will be saved (by default). If you’d rather use a different drive or folder, feel free to do so. Simply hit Command Shift 5 to bring up the Settings menu, and then select a location to store screenshots from now on.

Conclusion

Laptop snapshot instructions: “Print Screen” or “PrtScn” is on your keyboard. It’s normally in the top right. Choose a screenshot. The screen or a window. Hit “Print Screen” (PrtScn). This captures the entire screen. To capture a specific window, click on it to activate it and hit “Alt + Print Screen” or “Alt + PrtScn.”

Put the screenshot into Microsoft Paint or Word using “Ctrl+V” or right-clicking and selecting “Paste.” “File,” and “Save As” save the screenshot. Name and save the file. Weirdnewsera that you might not find any other platform which gives you all content about health sports business technology and entertainment.

FAQ

Is there a simple way to record my laptop screen?

Indeed, indeed. We’ve already discussed recording your Mac’s screen with the QuickTime player included with MacOS. The Xbox Game Bar in Windows 10 and 11 can capture gameplay or any other on-screen action until the feature mentioned earlier is incorporated into Windows and made available via the Snipping Tool.

What’s a good free image editor for screenshots?

ZDNet digs Pixlr. It’s a no-cost online utility that lets you crop, resize, and annotate screenshots. A liquifying tool and other sophisticated effects are included. If you need something more sophisticated now and then, we provide instructions for downloading Photoshop through Adobe’s trial program for free.

Why does my screenshot appear strange?

There are several potential causes for off-putting screenshot results. The quick motion or switching between frames at the precise instant you filmed can cause animated objects like actively playing video to appear distorted or hazy. Similarly, several program and OS elements have transparencies or overlays that cause problems when capturing a screenshot. To get the greatest quality from your screenshots, you should ensure the screen is as motionless as possible before taking them.

How to take screenshots on Windows 10?

For Windows, hit Windows+Shift+S. As you make your selection, the desktop will go dark. The default shape for the window will be a rectangle. Rectangular mode, Window mode, Full-screen mode, and Free-form mode are available in the toolbar to modify the shape of your snip.