If you urgently need it, the functionality of the standard Prtsc key will be quite sufficient for this. But if taking screenshots is part of your job, you can’t do without special programs.
There are many, even many, utilities for taking screenshots, so choosing the one that's right for you may not be easy. Personally, I tried about a dozen similar programs and, in the end, settled on one, which I still use to this day. True, for some time I still hesitated, choosing three of them, as it seemed to me then the best programs for capturing screenshots.
Ashampoo Snap
A very original, but somewhat “heavy” instrument. The program has a wonderfully designed interface, by the way, this is the first thing you notice after installation, and a rich set of tools for capturing and editing images.
Ashampoo Snap supports capturing application windows, highlighted menu items, various shaped areas, web pages, taking screenshots using a timer, sending images via email, social networks, and more.
Screenpresso
For some time I used the free version of Screenpresso, a fairly powerful program with a wide range of image capture and editing tools. The advantages of this application are simplicity, automation of tasks, and the ability to create pictures of different shapes.
Screenpresso supports hiding the transparency of borders and corners of program windows, sending images to social networks, via email and FTP, auto-scrolling web pages, sorting screenshots by date, the ability to export to video formats, in other words, complete stuffing.
Screenpresso even has a very good built-in graphics editor with a basic set of drawing tools - arrows, shapes, selection, and the ability to apply effects. Screenpresso also has a nice interface. Why did you delete it? I needed something even simpler and yet powerful, which is why I chose FastStone Capture.
FastStone Capture
Light and small, with a minimalist user interface, FastStone Capture nevertheless has everything you need to quickly and efficiently take screenshots. The program is a small floating panel with ten buttons for performing various tasks.
It supports capturing areas of various forms, windows and their individual elements, scrolling web pages, importing captured screenshots from third-party applications, clipboard, printing, sending via ftp, email.
The built-in editor deserves special attention - despite its small size, it has everything you need for quick image processing. It supports overlaying text, markers, arrows, shapes, applying effects, etc. And of course automation, you can’t do without it.
You can “program” FastStone Capture so that each image is processed accordingly.
In general, I chose FastStone. The program combines power, simplicity, low resource requirements, convenience and high speed, and you can’t imagine more for working with screenshots.
Hi all! Marat Nauruzbaev is with you. In this article, I will tell you and show you in a video how to take a screenshot on a computer using standard Windows tools, and also consider seven popular programs for taking screenshots.
Many people ask me how to take a screenshot on a computer, what programs are best to use for this, and how to make a screenshot without using third-party programs?
Screenshot(from English screenshot) or simply " screen” is a screenshot of your computer, simply put, a photograph of what is displayed on the monitor screen or a certain area on the screen.
A screenshot is taken for various purposes, mainly to communicate with support, send a screenshot to social networks, publish on a forum, capture a still frame in a game, in a movie, etc.
Guys, I looked at the main features of the seven most popular free programs for taking screenshots, and in this article I will show their main features and describe the pros and cons of using them.
Taking a screenshot using standard toolsWindows
First, let's look at the option of how to take a screenshot using standard Windows tools.
To do this, press the key “ PrtScr» on the keyboard (may appear as PrntScrn, PrtScn, PrtScr or PrtSc)
If on a laptop, then press two keys “ Fn» + « PrtScr»
To take a snapshot of only the active window, click " Alt» + « PrtScr", on the laptop press " Fn» + « Alt» + « PrtScr»
After pressing the " PrtScr" or " Alt» + « PrtScr"A snapshot of the monitor screen is saved to the clipboard, this is the so-called temporary memory of the computer. Now we need to save this image to a file on the computer for future use.
To do this, you can use any graphic editor. Windows 7, 8, 10 already have a built-in simple graphic editor “ Paint" To launch it, click menu " Start" and in the search bar " Find» enter: paint and click on “ Paint»
The graphic editor will launch. Paint»
Paste a screenshot from the clipboard. To do this, press the button “ Insert»
Note: To paste from a buffer, you can use cl. "Ctrl » + « V »
We see how our desktop snapshot was inserted in the editor “ Paint»
IN " Paint» you can apply simple operations on a screenshot: draw with a pencil or brush, fill with color, enter text, apply various shapes
Next, save this screenshot file on your computer. To do this, in the menu " File» select « Save as" and indicate in what format we want to save the file. In this case, I chose the JPEG format
As a result, our screenshot will be saved to a file on your computer. Now you can send it by mail, post it on social media. networks, forums, etc.
Scissors program
A more convenient way to take screenshots in Windows is to use the standard program " Scissors" It is more convenient because it allows you to photograph an arbitrary shape on a computer screen, but there are practically no image editing tools in it :)
To start the program, in the menu " Start", in the search bar enter: Scissors and click on “ Scissors» 
The program will start " Scissors» 
When you click the down arrow button " Create", you can select the area for creating the screen: rectangular shape, rectangle, window or the entire screen 
Let’s say you have selected “ Rectangle", now when you press the button " Create", press the left mouse button and without releasing it, move the mouse around the area on the screen that you want to record, then release the mouse button 
The selected area will be automatically photographed and appear in the program 
Now we can do simple operations on the screen. I will only say that the capabilities in this program are quite simple, including “ Paint"More opportunities... 
Next, click on the button with a floppy disk to save this screenshot to a file 
Give the file a name and click " Save» 
The screenshot file will be saved in the location you specify on your computer or laptop.
Programs for taking screenshots
For those who often take screenshots, it will be much more convenient to use special programs for creating and editing screenshots.
I took away 7 free programs, which in my opinion are most intended for creating screenshots and their subsequent editing.
I will not describe how to install them and how to use them, I will describe only one program that I use myself, and for the remaining programs I will describe the main functions, pros and cons of each program.
PicPick(http://ngwin.com/picpick)
Tool " all in one" for each. Full featured screen capture, intuitive image editor, pixel ruler, protractor, crosshair, slate and much more.
A powerful program for creating and editing screenshots. There is a Portable version (portable version that works without installation). Free for home use.
I use it myself, since I have not yet found any free analogues in terms of capabilities. If you find it, write it in the comments.
I’ll briefly describe the process of creating and editing in the program “ PicPick"That's exactly how I do it.
IN " PicPick"You can take a snapshot of different areas of the screen: the entire screen, the active window, a window element, a scrolling window (a very necessary function, not all programs have it), a selected area, a fixed area and a custom area. Each of these functions has assigned hotkeys that can be changed at your discretion.
Using this program I take screenshots for...
Try to guess why?
To create screenshots for these articles that you are currently reading at the moment :)
So, when I take a screenshot (picture) of a window or a certain page on the Internet, I immediately put all sorts of explanatory frames, lines, arrows and text on the picture.
Now I’ll show you how I do this in this program.
First, I take a screenshot of the window or area I need in the browser. In this case, I took a screenshot of one of my blog articles in a browser. To do this, I pressed the key combination " Shift» + « PrtScr” and pointed the mouse at a specific area on the screen. The screenshot of the area I selected was automatically inserted into the program PicPick.
Then I selected under the button “ Figures", a certain shape, in this case a rectangle
And I move the mouse with the left button pressed over the area of the screen that needs to be highlighted with a rectangle, and at the end I release the button. In this case, I highlighted the logo of my site
In this case, you can change the style, color and thickness of the frame, apply a shadow to it, etc.
I draw arrows in the same way
The arrow format can also be customized: change the style, outline, thickness, transparency and color. Look at the picture below, arrow 1 is made in the form of dots, arrow 2 is thicker and more transparent
You can also add text, a watermark, blur, rotate, change brightness, contrast, tone, resize, and much more on a screenshot.
Or upload directly to a web page, to the cloud, send to Facebook, Twitter, by mail or upload to an FTP server
You can also upload a screenshot to the cloud on Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive, Box, etc.
Besides, PicPick has a number of additional tools, such as " color selection" (will help you find the exact color code of a pixel on the screen with a built-in magnifier), " ruler" (to measure the size of objects and place them in an exact location on the screen), " color palette», « magnifying glass», « crosshair», « protractor" And " slate».
Let's look at how these tools work using the example " Color under cursor" And " Ruler».
Sometimes you need to know the exact color of a certain object on the screen. To do this, right-click on the icon PicPick in the tray and select " Color under cursor»
Then we move the mouse pointer over the object on the screen whose color value you want to remove. In this case, I hovered the mouse over the program shortcut " PicPick" We see the color values for a given pixel under a magnifying glass.
When you click the left mouse button, a window appears with the value of this color. We can select the value in HTML, RGB(), C++, Delphi format and click " Copy" to copy this value to the clipboard for later use
Tool " Ruler» You can measure the size of objects on the screen and the distance between them. To do this, right-click on the icon PicPick in the tray and select " Ruler»
A ruler will appear on the screen that you can use your mouse to move across the screen. Having placed the ruler where you need it, measure the distance in pixels
You can also rotate the ruler 90 degrees and change its length.
Program PicPick I liked it because of its capabilities. Of course, it has two minor drawbacks (where would we be without them 🙂), which I personally miss.
This is a normal straight line for arrows, I would like to be able to change the straight arrow style 
to cone-shaped 
And also, if you need to put a shadow on an object (for example, on an arrow), you have to point it all the time, that is, I would like to PicPick I remembered that the superimposed object should have a shadow, IMHO.
But these are all minor things compared to its advantages.
Pros and cons of the programPicPick:
+ capture scrolling window
+ multi-window interface
+ a lot of extras functions like ruler, color under cursor, etc.
- regular arrows
- the shadow on the arrow must be pointed at all times
Greenshot(http://getgreenshot.org/)
Greenshot is a program for creating screenshots with rich functionality for overlaying various objects and effects on the taken screenshot.
The program has good capabilities for editing screenshots, sending the screenshot to “ cloud” (Imgur (direct links), Dropbox) or into one of the Microsoft Office applications, the ability to print directly from the program, it is possible to apply effects, in addition to the effect of overlaying a frame and shadow, I especially liked the effect “ Torn edges»
The result of the effect " Torn edges»
Greenshot also knows how to capture a scrolling window (Internet Explorer only)
Pros and cons of the Greenshot program:
+ capture scrolling window (Internet Explorer only)
+ effect “Ragged edges”
- regular arrows
Monoshap(http://monosnap.com/)
Monosnap- free program for Windows and Mac OS X. Monosnap allows you to take screenshots, add notes and send screenshots to “ cloud”.
The program has fewer features than PicPick, but some may find it more convenient due to the ease of creating screenshots. The program has a function to record your desktop in video format. It is possible to send a screenshot to your own cloud Monosnap(registration required), as well as on SFTP, FTP, WebDAV, Amazon S3.
Among the shortcomings of the program that I discovered when creating a photo: screen area, where the context menu given by the menu is not included in the screenshot.
Example of a context menu...
Also, I did not find the possibility of creating a screenshot of a scrolling window, for example, of sites in the browser that need to be scrolled.
Pros and cons of the programMonoshap:
+ it is possible to record desktop video
+ cone-shaped arrows
+ there is a small shadow near the arrows
- there is no capture of the object’s context menu when capturing a screen area
Joxi(http://joxi.ru/lander/)
Joxi– a cross-platform program for creating screenshots. Knows how to post screenshots on social networks (facebook, twitter, VKontakte, Odnoklassniki). There are also plugins for browsers (Chrome, Yandex, Opera).
In the free version, you can only upload to your own “ cloud” (not direct links, disk space: 1024 MB, storage period: 90 days). In the paid version, restrictions are removed and it is possible to upload screenshots to FTP/SFTP and Dropbox.
Pros and cons of the programJoxi:
+ capture and edit on the fly (in the same window)
+ cone-shaped arrows + contour thickness adjustment
- there is no way to open a separate file
- no scrolling window capture
- no arrow shadow
Clip2net(http://clip2net.com/ru/)
Clip2net– a standard program for creating screenshots. Knows how to post screenshots on social networks (facebook, twitter, VKontakte, Odnoklassniki, google+). There is a version for iPad and Android.
For additional features of the program (direct links (c2n.me) and no advertising, recording videos and uploading files to your servers) you will have to pay an annual fee (information about tariffs on the website).
Pros and cons of the programClip2net:
- no scrolling window capture
— arrows are normal, without shadows
Lightshot(https://app.prntscr.com/ru/)
Lightshot– a simple program for creating screenshots. Knows how to post screenshots on social networks (facebook, twitter, VKontakte, pinterest).
There are plugins for browsers Chrome, Firefox, IE, Opera. There is a function to search for similar images on Google.
Pros and cons of the programLightshot:
- no scrolling window capture
— arrows are normal, without shadows
Shotnes(https://shotnes.com/)
Shotnes is a cross-platform free program for creating screenshots. Able to send screenshots to your own “ cloud” (direct links).
Shotnes can record video from your desktop in format. mp4 And. gif(you need to register on their website). Among the disadvantages of the program, it is worth noting that at the time of writing, it could only save screenshots in the . png.
Pros and cons of the Shotnes program:
+ record video from desktop
- no scrolling window capture
— saving the file only in .png format
— arrows are normal, without shadows
Conclusion
Well, I told you how to take a screenshot on a computer, we looked at all the ways to create screenshots on your computer or laptop. Standard methods for creating screenshots were described, as well as the main features of free programs for capturing and editing screenshots.
Personally, I liked the multifunctional program PicPick, which I use for these purposes. This program has many features for the free version. The program is also quite good in its capabilities. Greenshot
PicPick is a free program that combines a traditional screenshot and a simple but functional graphic editor. It is easy to use and also takes up very little space.
Using the PicPick program, you can take a screenshot of the screen, immediately correct it, add the necessary elements or eliminate flaws, save the image in the desired format, send it to a social network, by mail, add it to the cloud or open it in Word, and so on.
Installing the program on your computer is very easy. First you need to download PicPick from the official website, for this, follow the link below. Now we look for the installation file on the computer and run it.
Launch the PicPick program installed on your computer. This can be done by clicking on the program icon that appears in the tray.
After clicking on the icon, the main menu of the program appears, in which you can perform a lot of different actions. "Image Editor"– will open the main program window, “Screen Capture” – will allow you to select a method for creating a screenshot. Let's consider "Program settings".
On the Main tab, you can select a language so that PicPick starts when Windows boots and automatically checks for updates.
The “File name” tab specifies what name will be assigned to files when saving, and in what format they will be saved.
On the “Keys” tab, you can see what types of snapshots there are and what hotkeys are used for this.
For example, you are working and need to take a picture of a window or area. I'll take a photo "Arbitrary area", to do this, press the key combination Shift+Ctrl+Alt+PrintScreen. A cross-shaped cursor appears, and I select the desired area with it. The captured photo immediately opens in the PicPick program. To choose what to do with a photo after it is taken, go to the “Capture” tab, then open the list and select the desired item. It can be opened in PicPick, Word, sent by mail or on a social network, immediately saved as a file or .
Try taking screenshots in different ways.
Now from "Main menu" let's look at the programs "Image Editor".
On the "Home" tab, you can perform various actions with the image: crop, apply effects, use stamps, add shapes and text.
On the “Publish” tab, you can publish the file on a social network or open it in another program.
Don't forget to also look at the range of additional features included in the program. Perhaps something will be useful to you.
Now we have figured out that screenshot program PicPick will allow you to easily and quickly save images of the desired areas of the screen, edit them, save them in the desired format on your computer and post them on social networks or send them by email.
I was convinced from personal experience that this is indeed the case. All screenshots for the article were taken using the PicPick program.
Rate this article:I use SnapaShot myself, I like it - it’s simple, fast, but it only takes a photo. There are programs with many additional functions.
As you know, in most “classic” versions of Windows, when you press the “Print Screen” key, an image of everything that happens on the screen is copied to the clipboard. If you hold down the Alt key, only the image of the active window will be written to the clipboard. Vista i Windows 7 already includes some simple software that makes it a little easier to create and initially edit screenshots, but its capabilities are very limited.
Alternatively, there are quite a few free utilities that have a lot of useful features and functions that users need:
— Capture the entire screen or a specific (user-selected) area.
— Automatic detection of windows and its objects (buttons, windows, toolbars, tabs...).
— A snapshot of the entire active window with scrolling (scrolling).
— Tools for editing the created screenshot and many other additional features.
Review of the best free screenshot software
To view the received screenshots, EasyCapture uses tabs, and to edit them, there is a built-in image editor with which you can change the size, add text, arrows, labels, underlines, etc. The finished screenshot can be saved in various formats.
(or DuckLink Screen Capture) supports a snapshot of the entire screen, a specific area of it, a window (with or without auto-scrolling) or an object. You can choose between controlling the program using hotkeys, or using the mouse (by clicking on the icon in the system tray).
Overall, this program is quite simple and intuitive, but it lacks at least a simple image editor and some other functions (free-form image capture, or settings for delaying screenshot taking).
is a simple, easy-to-use screenshot tool with a small size. Allows you to create a “snapshot” of a separate region, active window, object and the entire screen with settings for response delay. Disadvantages - the lack of the ability to take a screenshot of a window with auto-scrolling and select a free area.
Greenshot has an easy to use built-in image editor. In it you can add text to the screenshot, add arrows and symbols (with shadows), darken the selected area of the image and save it in jpg, gif, png or bmp formats. It can also be cropped, but there is no resizing feature.
If you often create screenshots for posting on the Internet, you will like the program Zscreen. With its help, you can not only take a screenshot, but also upload it to one of the online image storage sites. Zscreen takes a snapshot of the entire screen, a single window, objects, and rectangular areas.
You can add watermarks (both text and image) to the resulting screenshot, automatically (depending on the settings) change its size, and also edit it using a built-in or external editor. Additional features include a color eyedropper, translator, and file drag and drop support. Also in the Zscreen settings you can find useful features such as delayed snapshots and periodic creation of screenshots. Disadvantages - the lack of ability to select a free area and detect a scrolling window.
Looking for a screen capture tool on Linux?
(formerly GScrot) is like a Swiss Army knife that has a complete set of tools for taking screenshots in Linux. This program works better than Gnome-screenshot and KSnapshot for KDE. Shutter lets you take a snapshot of your entire desktop, rectangular area, window, or child windows with a time delay and settings to activate or deactivate window borders and cursors.
A screenshot created in this program can be edited using built-in tools for applying text, underlining, arrows, etc. The functionality of the image editor can be expanded with plug-ins for resizing, 3D rotation, watermarking, shadows, soft edges and other special effects.
To enhance your screenshot editing capabilities, Shutter can be linked to an external image editor such as GIMP. It also supports saving finished images in various formats. Shutter does not have an automatic window scrolling feature, and uses Gnome Web Photographer to compensate for this deficiency, allowing you to capture images of web pages and html files.
Other programs for taking screenshots:
Jing— automatically detects windows and objects and allows you to create, store and share screenshots. Free selection and creation of screenshots with automatic scrolling of windows is not supported.
Shotty— takes a screenshot by clicking on the icon in the system tray, or in the active window using hotkeys. The program has a convenient image editor, but lacks other useful features.
Screenpresso— when creating a scrolling screenshot, the user is involved. First, you need to select the required screen (without the scroll bar) and press the left mouse button several times while scrolling (so that the screenshot fragments overlap one on one). After clicking the right mouse button, all fragments will be combined into one. Checking for updates in the free version is mandatory.
MWSnap is a lightweight program for taking screenshots with adjustable delay. It doesn't detect scrolling windows and lacks some basic editing features. An on-screen ruler, magnifier, and color eyedropper are present.
Gadwin PrintScreen— captures the entire screen, current windows, child windows and rectangular areas (including those with a delay function), but does not detect scrolling windows or objects. More advanced features and editing features are only available in the paid version.
SnapShot— captures the entire screen, the active window, and a rectangular area using hotkeys or the control panel with a delay time setting. Does not detect scrolling windows. The finished image is shown in the program window with the ability to send it to the clipboard, to an external editor, or upload to the server.
— takes pictures of the screen, window and screen area. Control is carried out using hot keys or from the tray. The program supports multiple monitors, but lacks editing features and other features.
ScreenHunter Free- has the function of shooting a rectangular area, the active window and the entire screen, with a delay of images and the addition of pointer arrows. All features are available only in the paid version.
FoxArc Screen Capture- can take a screenshot of an area of the screen, window, object, desktop and save the image. Easy to use, but has few features.
Horizon33— takes a screenshot of the entire screen, the active window, and a rectangular area. Saves in bmp and jpg formats. Equipped with a timer and automatic transfer of the image to Paint.
Screen Grab Pro— in just one click, creates a screenshot of the desktop, active window and a separate area. Timer operation is supported. The image can be sent to the clipboard, or opened in an external editor.
Cropper is a fast and easy to use small program (511 KB). It differs in that it creates two files at once - a screenshot and a smaller copy of it, but the program has almost no other useful functions.
Snippy- perhaps the smallest of all the programs discussed in this review. Its size is only 100 KB. Takes a screenshot of a specific area of the screen (rectangular or free) and copies it to the clipboard. Fast and easy to use, but lacks advanced features.
The article will discuss a program for taking screenshots from the Windows 7 screen and more. For a blogger, teachers need to be presented in a visual and visual format, especially in my niche. To do this, you simply cannot do without screenshots (screenshots). The article will analyze one program in full and a list of alternatives.
Faststone capture great screenshots for computer
I have been familiar with the Faststone capture program since 2012, it is ideal for Windows 7. I tried a lot of software, but this program helped me out. Here are the main features:
- Capture an arbitrary window.
- Capture the active window.
- Capture all active windows.
- Scrolling screenshot.
- Video shooting, simple without frills.
The only negative is there is no cloud storage.
The best program for taking screenshots from Windows 7 screen
Faststone capture program for screenshots from Windows 7 screen has an official website here. But I’ll say right away that it’s paid, after a month a restriction on functions is imposed, I used it and was happy with it.
I suggest you download it from me, it already has built-in activation and the Russian version, here is the link, use it. We install and move on to review and operation.
Review and operation: take a photo and edit
We open the program, a pop-up window appears and we begin the review of the work.
With this the main panel disassembled, let's move on to the settings.
Program settings
When you click the last icon on the panel, the following menu will appear. I will not consider everything, only two points.
- Main settings, more about them below.
- It’s a cool trick to combine an image into one, I use it often.
Main settings
I won’t describe it, everything is in Russian. It’s clear from the first reading, the only thing I recommend setting up first is the hot keys, because the standard combinations are too complicated.
And never enter your FTP data in the access section of the program.
Never upload your FTP login information to any program other than file managers like Filezilla because they have their own data encryption.
Photo editor
As soon as you take pictures, the initial edit form will appear. I will highlight only three points in it.
When you click on the picture, a new window will open in which there will be many useful tools for a blogger. Arrows, highlights, letters, markers, areas, etc. Everything you need to make an educational presentation in pictures.
When it comes to video shooting, we’ll talk about it in another article, because the topic is already different.
Download other screenshot programs for free on Windows 7
Three of the best programs after faststone capture, all only in Russian
Few people know that Windows 7 has a standard program for taking screenshots called scissors. To open, press start, then standard, and find the scissors.
To change the shape of the image, click “create” and select what you need. 
For small settings, click “Options”; there are few settings, the bare minimum.
Short video about scissors
Take a photo and the editor will open, with only three tools, a pen, a marker and an eraser. It's a pity there is no function for writing text on the image.
Now the best program for taking screenshots from Windows 7 screen is no longer a problem, and you know what to choose. All the pictures on my blog are made by FScapture.
