I see lots of images posted by new users in the Blender forum which are either pictures of the monitor taken with a phone or which include the surrounding desktop of the operating system that Blender is running under, so below is the correct way to take a screenshot using Blender:
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$\begingroup$ This is great, thanks John. Updating the links on my canned responses to this one. Also updating over at canned responses post blender.meta.stackexchange.com/questions/622/… Discussion tag is adequate, also added faq and comments too. $\endgroup$Duarte Farrajota Ramos– Duarte Farrajota Ramos Mod2025-07-23 18:45:33 +00:00Commented Jul 23 at 18:45
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3 Answers
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Blender has had its own built-in screenshot generator since version 2.83. To access it use the Window > Save Screenshot menu in Blender:
This will bring up Blender's standard File View dialog and you can type a file name and select the location to save an image of Blender's complete window.
From Blender version 3.0 onwards there is an additional menu entry called Save Screenshot (Editor).
This allows you to select a Blender Area to save without having to save the whole screen. Selecting this option changes the mouse cursor to a small cross with a square as shown in the next image and hovering over an Area and clicking the mouse will save just that Area:
with the following result (in this case, the Outliner Area):
If you are taking multiple screenshots, don't forget to change the filename before saving to prevent overwriting previously saved images because it always defaults to "Screen.png"!
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1$\begingroup$ Thank you very much for your contribution! I hope that those who would otherwise take a photo with their smartphone will find it! $\endgroup$2025-07-23 16:59:49 +00:00Commented Jul 23 at 16:59
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$\begingroup$ So do I! :^) It's a pity that newcomers aren't sent to a FAQ page about BSE to read before they post their first question. Not sure whether that would be possible? $\endgroup$John Eason– John Eason2025-07-23 17:02:59 +00:00Commented Jul 23 at 17:02
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$\begingroup$ Though Blender's screenshot tool is better than nothing or photographing a screen, I wouldn't call it "the correct way to take a screenshot in Blender". It lacks quite a lot of efficiency and features which even Windows' screenshot tool (Win Shift S) have now. $\endgroup$2025-07-23 18:14:09 +00:00Commented Jul 23 at 18:14
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Personally, I prefer using another software like ShareX (Windows) or Spectacle (Linux). They have way more features than Blender's screenshot tool, so not only you can do better screenshots, but also you can do them faster and get them into BSE immediately.
To name (quite) a few features: you can select one or multiple areas, add shapes, highlights, text or drawings to better draw attention to what you need or add readability, quickly insert other images/screenareas in the capture area, quickly record a gif, blur/pixelate some areas, and whatnot.
And it automatically saves a file / upload online depending on your keyboard shortcut, and copies the image (or its url) in your copy buffer so that you can paste it right away in BSE or anywhere else.
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1$\begingroup$ At least it should save new Blender users having to go and download external software or learn the latest Windows shortcuts. $\endgroup$John Eason– John Eason2025-07-23 18:33:25 +00:00Commented Jul 23 at 18:33
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$\begingroup$ Windows ships with a snipping tool (terrible name, probably explains why so few ppl know it 🙃). I think it was already there back in vista or seven, but the current modern one with area capture via Win Shift S has been there since Windows 10 I believe. take-a-screenshot.org which we often share on BSE, lists ways to do screenshots on all common systems (including MacOS and linux and mobile systems) without any additional softwares. $\endgroup$2025-07-23 20:30:19 +00:00Commented Jul 23 at 20:30
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1$\begingroup$ Yes I know (and yes, it was there in Windows 7), but it was Duarte Farrajota Ramos who suggested I make this posting, so I did! :^) $\endgroup$John Eason– John Eason2025-07-23 21:08:14 +00:00Commented Jul 23 at 21:08
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Just to add a solution for OS X (or macOS, if you prefer), to complement the Windows and Linux solutions suggested in Lauloque's answer.
Macs have a built in screenshot tool:
- Fullscreen screenshot: Cmd+Shift+3
- This isn't particularly useful, for the reasons mentioned in the meta question (the desktop of the OS may be included, etc.).
- Window screenshot: Cmd+Shift+4 followed by Space
- The cross hairs cursor turns into a camera icon, and whatever window the cursor (camera icon) is placed over, gets highlighted. Then click on the highlighted window to screenshot just that window.
- Region screenshot: Cmd+Shift+4
- The user is presented with crosshairs with which a region can be dragged out, and upon releasing the mouse button, a screenshot of that region is taken.
Personally, I find these easier to use, but that may just be down to habit.
