A screenshot lets you capture exactly what you’re seeing on your screen, whether it’s important documents, fun photos, PC settings, or a video game achievement. And if you’re using a Windows 11 computer, here’s how you can take screenshots:
Take a full screenshot
The easiest way to take a screenshot of your entire desktop is with the imppnt (print screen) key at the top of your keyboard. After pressing that key, the screenshot will be saved to your clipboard, although you will not receive any indication that the screenshot was successful. To view the screenshot full screen, use Ctrl-V to paste it into an application like Paint or Microsoft Word, or even into the body of an email.
Take a screenshot of the entire screen and save it to your computer
Similar to the first option, pressing Ctrl+print screen will take a screenshot of your entire desktop , but will also save the screenshot to a folder on your computer. If you press the keys correctly, your entire screen will flash, indicating that the screenshot has been taken and saved. You can find all your screenshots in Images -> Screenshots.
Take a screenshot of only part of the screen
Not everyone wants a screenshot of their entire screen, so Windows 11 gives you the option to take only a partial screenshot . If you tap Win + Shift + S, your screen will flicker and a small snipping tool menu will appear at the top of the screen, allowing you to do the following:
– A rectangular cutout: draw a box around what you want to capture.
– A freeform cutout: draw any shape around what you want to capture.
– A window cutout: choose a window to capture.
– A full screen clipping: captures the entire screen (same as imppnt).
– Once the screenshot is taken, it will be saved to your clipboard. You can then paste it somewhere else to view it. However, if you click on the crop tool preview that appears at the bottom of the screen, you will find options to edit the screenshot (crop, rotate, etc) and save it to your desktop, or wherever you like.
Use the Snipping tool that comes installed by default on your PC
The Snipping tool is built into Windows 11 by default, and it’s the same tool used in the previous section, except with a few minor differences. To use it, type Snipping in the search function and open the app to take a screenshot. In the Snipping Tool, if you click New, you will open the Tool menu (as in the previous section).
