Take a screenshot

A screenshot is a picture of what is on your screen. It is the best way to show Claude a problem: an error message, a screen that looks different from this guide, a design you like. You will take hundreds.

Three shortcuts

• Whole screen: hold Shift and Command, then press 3. You hear a camera click. Done.
• Part of the screen: hold Shift and Command, then press 4. The pointer becomes a small cross. Drag a rectangle around what you want, then let go. To cancel, press Escape.
• The screenshot toolbar: hold Shift and Command, then press 5. A strip of buttons appears at the bottom of the screen. From left to right: capture the whole screen, one window, or a part; record a video of the screen; and Options. Click a choice, then click Capture.

A trick inside the 4 shortcut: after the cross appears, press Space. The pointer becomes a camera. Click any window to capture that window alone, with a clean edge.

Where the picture goes

A small preview slides into the bottom-right corner for a few seconds. If you ignore it, the screenshot is saved to your Desktop as a file named "Screenshot" followed by the date and time (older Macs: "Screen Shot"). Click the preview to crop it or draw on it before it saves.

To change where screenshots go, press Shift + Command + 5, click Options, and pick a folder under Save to.

Get it to Claude

In Part 2 you will have Claude open. To show it a screenshot, drag the file from the Desktop into the message box and let go. You can also drag the small preview straight into the box while it is still showing. Claude can then read your screen.

Practice

1. Press Shift + Command + 4 and drag a rectangle around this step's title.
2. Wait for the preview to disappear, then look at the Desktop. If windows cover it, click an empty part of the screen.
3. Double-click the new file. It opens in Preview.
4. Quit Preview, then drag the file into your Binder folder.