Boise State University

Creating Screen Capture Images
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Last updated July 21, 2004

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 Saving web images to your computer Table of Contents
  1. Display the desired image in an Internet web browser by going to the appropriate web address. Sample address: http://news.boisestate.edu/multimedia
  2. Right-click (ctrl-click for Mac users) on the image.
  3. Choose "Save Picture As" (or similar menu option depending on browser and version). A dialogue box will appear prompting you to name the image and save it to your computer.

Some web sites disable right-clicking in an effort to prevent the saving of images. When this happens you can use Print Screen (explained below) to create an image that captures the contents of the computer screen.

 Creating a screen capture with Print Screen Table of Contents
  1. Ensure the desired content is displayed on the computer screen.
  2. Press the "Print Screen" key to copy a screen capture of the entire screen into computer memory. OR, press Alt + "Print Screen" to copy a screen capture of the active window into computer memory.

    Mac users: Press Command + Control + Shift + 3. Alternately, you can press Command + Control + Shift + 4 and use the crosshairs to select the desired area of the screen.
     
  3. To paste the image into a program such as MS Photo Editor or MS Paint, click Edit menu → Paste.
  4. If no modifications are necessary, click File menu  → Save As and choose the desired file type.

    JPEG is generally best for photographs and images that contain color gradients.

    GIF is generally best for line art, blocks of color, and high contrast images.
 Modifying screen captures in MS Photo Editor Table of Contents
  1. Launch MS Photo Editor (Start → Programs → Microsoft Office Tools → Microsoft Photo Editor).
  2. Paste the screen capture into MS Photo Editor (Edit menu → Paste As New Image).
  3. Click the Select button in the toolbar.
  4. Define the area to be cropped by dragging the cropping handles located at the corners and sides of the image.
  5. To crop the image, click Image menu → Crop.

    Note that Photo editor has many editing and enhancement features located within the Image, Effects, and Tools menus.
     
  6. To save the image, click File menu → Save As and choose the desired file type.

    JPEG is generally best for photographs and images that contain color gradients.

    GIF is generally best for line art, blocks of color, and high contrast images.
 Modifying screen captures in MS Paint Table of Contents
  1. Launch MS Paint (Start → All Programs → Accessories → Paint).
  2. Paste the screen capture into MS Paint (Edit menu → Paste, or Ctrl-V, or Right-click → Paste).
  3. Drag (click-hold-drag) the image toward the upper left to remove (crop) unwanted image areas.
  4. Click outside of the image, in the lower-right white area of the Paint canvas.
  5. Continue cropping the image by dragging the handles, located at the lower-right corner and along the bottom and right sides of the Paint canvas.
  6. To save the image, click File menu  → Save As and choose the desired file type.

    JPEG is generally best for photographs and images that contain color gradients.

    GIF is generally best for line art, blocks of color, and high contrast images.
 Modifying screen captures in MS Word Table of Contents
  1. Launch MS Word (Start → Programs → Microsoft Word).
  2. Paste the screen capture into MS Word (Edit menu → Paste, or Ctrl-V, or Right-click → Paste).
  3. Click on the image to display the Picture Toolbar.
  4. To crop the image, click the cropping tool in the Picture Toolbar, position the cropping tool over a cropping handle, and drag (click-hold-drag) the cropping handle to the desired location. To temporarily override the snap-to-grid feature, press ALT as you drag.
  5. To add AutoShapes such as Callouts or Block Arrows to the image, first display the Drawing Toolbar (View menu → Toolbars → Drawing).
  6. With the image still selected, click AutoShapes → Callouts → Rectangular Callout, and click on the document to create the Callout.
  7. Use the various Callout Controls as needed to create the desired Callout.

    For more formatting options, double-click on a non-text area of the Callout to access the Format AutoShapes window.
  8. When done modifying the image, take a screen capture of the image, paste it into MS Photo Editor or MS Paint, and modify and save the image as outline in the sections above.

Blackboard Assistance at Boise State

email:  blackboard@boisestate.edu  
 phone:  (208) 426-2583 (8-5 Mon-Fri) 
office:  Education 420