Have you ever wondered how you can take screenshots in Windows 10, whether full screen or just a part of it? Well, there are various applications you can use to take screenshots in Windows: from built-in applications to proprietary software that can be easily purchased online.
Taking screenshots is a breeze and you need not break a sweat. In this guide, we dive deep and showcase some of the ways that you can use to take screenshots in a convenient manner.
Method 1: Taking a screenshot using Print Screen (Prt Sc) key
The first easy method is taking a screenshot using the print screen (prt sc) key, it's an easy and suitable method as it enables you to capture an image of the whole screen leaving out nothing.
The print screen button is labeled as PrtScn, PrntScrn, or Print Scr. You can find it on the first row of the Function Keys next to the F12 or the Delete key.
To capture the image of the entire screen, hit the Windows key + Prtscn key. The screen will dim momentarily, as the image is captured and saved to the clipboard.
Taking a screenshot on tablets
On tablets taking screenshots is much easier, all you have to do is press the Window button + volume down keys to capture your desired image. However, on other PCs or devices, you will have to press the Windows key + Ctrl + PrtSc or Windows key + Fn + PrtSc keys to screenshot.
The windows key is located third on the last row of the keyboard or it is between the Fn key and Alt key on the last row.
Method 2: Taking a screenshot of only one Window
Sometimes, you may just need to capture a single window. instead of the entire screen. You can achieve this by simply clicking on the Window and pressing the Alt + Prt Scr keys. On other laptops, you will need to press Alt + Fn + Prtsc keys instead.
Method 3: Taking a screenshot of a section of the screen
Other times, you may want to just take a section of your screen/window. The new and improved Snipping tool version comes in handy in this scenario. Just press Windows + Shift + S, the screen will appear grey, then a toolbar will appear with options of the forms to use. Click and drag to select a section of the screen you want.
The captured images will be sent directly to the clipboard where you can edit it further as you want. It is an ideal method as an improved version.
Method 4: Take screenshots in Windows 10 using snipping tool
The snipping tool feature is a built-in feature in Windows that enables a user to capture part of the image that is needed. To launch it, just type ‘snipping tool’ into the taskbar search field and click on the resulting app.
You can select one of your choices from the four (rectangular, full- screen, windows snip, and freeform) as shown below.
Additionally, the snipping tool ships with a ‘delay’ option that allows you to take a screenshot after a short while.
On the snipping tool, app click ‘delay’ then from the drop-down list, click on the time interval you want your screenshot to be delayed before it is taken.
Next, edit the captured image with a different color pen, a highlighter and even you can crop it to the size of your choice. Then after editing or if you don’t want to edit it you can save it or even share it with a friend.
Method 5: Take screenshots in Windows 10 using Windows Game bar
Another method you can use to take screenshots on Windows 10 is by use of the Game bar tool. This provides a DVR capability that allows users to record footage or capture screenshots of Xbox games. These screen captures are saved in the C:\Users\User\Videos\Captures file path.
To launch the game bar, simply press Windows key + G. A group of panels will appear on the screen. To take a screenshot, simply click on the camera icon on the upper bar as shown:
On the ‘Capture’ panel click on the Camera icon to take the screenshot of the game. Alternatively, you can press Windows Key + Alt + Prt Scr button to capture the screenshot.
Open the image on paint
For more effective and better editing, you can open the screenshot saved locally on your PC with MS Paint. To achieve it you can just right-click on the image you want to edit then the pop-up menu will appear, hover your mouse cursor over the menu then click on the Open with an option to see the paint app option.
Paste the screenshot
With the paint app open, click on the clipboard style on the paste button Iocated at the top left corner. Alternatively, you can press ctrl + v on the keyboard to paste the image on the blank canvas. From here you can paint, crop, add text, and many more effects which you can add to your image.
This step suffices if the method used to take the screenshot sends your captured image directly to the clipboard.
Save the screenshot
When you are done editing your image, click on the file on the upper left corner then select save as on the drop-down menu to bring the formats to save your image.
Whatever format you choose, a window will pop up prompting you for a file name and your desired file format. Fill in the details and, click the Save button. Then your image is saved as easy as that.
Third-party tools to take a screenshot on Windows 10
There are lots of feature-rich free third-party tools available for taking a screenshot on windows. Let's check some of the best screenshot tools.
Lightshot
Lightshot is a screen capture tool that allows the user to take screenshots easily and quickly. It has distinctive features that enable its user to capture a screenshot with only a few clicks.
On the system tray, click on the light shot icon tool, or press the print screen key. Drag the mouse cursor to select an area of the image you want to capture.
When you release the mouse cursor, toolbars will appear on the right side and, at the bottom of the screenshot. These toolbars have various features which can be used to add effect to the image captured. These features include; drawing a line, an arrow, share on social networks, google, copy, and even save the image.
A link will appear at the bottom right corner of your window, which you can use it to share with your friends or maybe post it on a blog.
Greenshot
Greenshot is one of the free open-source screen capture tools that allow you to take a snap of your entire screen or a selected portion of a window. To start on Greenshot, first head over to your start menu type Greenshot then click on It, the Grenshot icon will appear on your task tray.
On your task tray left click on the Greenshot icon then on the pop-up menu, click on preference to enable launch on green shot startup.
There are many ways on which you can capture a screenshot; capture a screenshot of a selected region.
You can accomplish this by pressing the print screen key on the keyboard or just by simply right-clicking on the Greenshot icon on the task tray.
If you want to capture a screenshot of a region, you'll have to start up the region mode. Then, a crosshair pointing will appear on the screen, drag the mouse cursor to define the shape Greenshot will capture, release the mouse button to capture the image.
You can capture a screenshot of a lest region by hitting Shift + Prt Sc key on the keyboard shortcut. To capture a screenshot of a full screen just hit ctrl + print screen key combination.
Open your image by using the Greenshot image editor. It provides a lot of useful features such as drawing shapes, highlighting text, and even cropping an image.
Snagit
Snagit is one of the powerful screen capture tools that has a unique feature of the one-click tool that can be pinned on top of all windows.
On the task tray, click on the red TechSmith SnagIt icon to open the window on the capture screen.
Thereafter, select the capture type of your choice: whether it's an entire desktop or just a part of it. To take a screenshot, click the capture button, then drag the crosshairs to capture an image of the active Window. you can also record a video if you like.
Snagit tool also comes with a handy Snagit editor that makes the users work much easier. The Snagit editor has a toolbar consisting of different editing tools. After editing the image, save and share it according to your desired image format e.g JPEG, PNG.
Conclusion
This was a summary of the tips you can use to take screenshots on Windows 10. We do hope that the tutorial was insightful and that you can now take screenshots with ease.
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