Taking a screenshot on your Mac

Taking a screenshot on your Mac

Problem:

You may have a problem and be asked to provide a screen shot showing the problem. You can provide one using the steps below.

Resolution:

Method 1: Take a screen shot of the whole screen:

Press shift+command+3 on the keyboard as per illustration below.


Method 2: To take a screenshot only showing a portion of the screen:

  1. Press shift+command+4 as shown below.
  2. Then click and drag the drag the crosshair to draw the area you wish to take a picture of.
  3. Release the mouse trackpad to take the screenshot.

Method 3: Capture a window or menu:

  1. Make sure you have the menu or window open that you wish to screenshot.
  2. Press shift+command+4 and then press the spacebar.
  3. When the pointer changes to a camera icon click the window or menu to capture it.

Where to find taken screenshots:
• Screen shot files are normally saved to your desktop as a file named “screen shot…” and have the date and time appended to them. Please drag any of these into an email when communicating with support to illustrate the problem.
• If you do not see your screen shots on the desktop press shift+command+5 on the keyboard to open the Screenshot app, click “options” and in the menu see which folder shows a tick next to it to identify the folder the screen shot file has been saved in. You have the option of saving screen shots in another location by clicking “Other Location” in the menu.

    • Related Articles

    • Mac OS - Taking a screenshot on a Mac

      Problem A customer needs to send a screenshot possibly in connection with troubleshooting an issue they have. Resolution Taking a screenshot can be a helpful way of explaining an issue to Technical Support. The procedure below allows you to take a ...
    • Check your Mac OS version

      Problem: In order to support troubleshooting the Mac OS version number needs to be obtained and provided to Technical Support. Resolution: Note Due to changes in Mac OS UI a new set of instructions are provided to obtain version info. The old ...
    • Check MacBook CPU task status on Mac OS

      Information Below steps for checking task status on Mac OS Application • Use these steps for when a MacBook is particularly slow • Use these steps if the MacBook is becoming excessively warm or fan noise is high. Preparation • Plug in your MacBook if ...
    • Apple – Control Mac OS update behaviour

      Information Under default settings Mac OS will push major updates and interim security updates. In some circumstances it may be necessary to change these settings to maintain compatibility with specialist software. Resolution Follow the directions ...
    • Reset Mac to defaults

      Problem If your Mac is not performing correctly it can be restored to factory settings. The operation will remove applications and any data created. You will need to back up any files you have created to an external drive or cloud backup medium ...