Screenshot with Paint

How to Take and Create a Screenshot with Paint in Windows 7


   Information
This will show you how to take a full screen screenshot or a single window screenshot, then create and save the screenshot in Windows 7 Paint.
   Tip
If you wanted to take a screenshot of a opened menu item, then you would want to use step 1 and crop the screenshot in Paint since the menu item would close when trying to take the screenshot with step 2.




Here's How:
1. To Take a Screenshot of the Entire Display Screen
NOTE: If you have multiple monitors, then they will also be included in the full screen screenshot. This option will also include context menus in the screenshot.
A) Press the PrtScn key for a desktop.
NOTE: For laptops or notebooks, you may need to press either the Ctrl+PrtScn or Fn+PrtScn keys instead of only the PrtScn key.

B) Go to step 3.
2. To Take a Screenshot of only the "Active" Window
NOTE: This will just be a screenshot of the window that you have the focus set on. The window that has focus will have a darker border than the other opened windows.
A) Click on the title bar of the window that you want to take a screenshot of to place focus on it.

B) Press the Alt+PrtScn keys for a desktop.
NOTE: For laptops or notebooks, you may need to press the Alt+Fn+PrtScn keys instead of only the Alt+PrtScn key.
3. Open Paint.

4. In Paint, press Ctrl+V to paste the screenshot into Paint.
A) Go to step 6.
OR

5. In Paint, click on the rectangle above Select on the toolbar, then right click on the white space in the lower main pane of Paint and click on Paste. (See screenshot below)
Paste1.jpg
6. Make any crops or adjustments you would like to the screenshot. (See screenshots below)
NOTE: For detailed information on how to use Paint, click on the
10480d1242077800-paint-open-help.png
icon at the upper right corner in Paint. The left screenshot is of a single window, and the right screenshot is of the full screen
.
Paste2.jpg

Paste3.jpg
7. When ready to save the screenshot, click on the file drop down arrow to the left of the Home and View tab. Next, hover the mouse pointer on Save as to open it, then click on the file extension (ex: JPEG) that you want to save the screenshot as. (See screenshot below)
Save1.jpg
8. Navigate to where you want to save the screenshot. Type in a name for the screenshot to be saved as, and click on the Save button. (See screenshot below)
Save2.jpg
9. When done taking screenshots, close Paint.
That's it,
Shawn






 
Last edited:
Nice tut,

Will this work in any graphics program?

Tried it in Paint.net and it worked.
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
76~2.0
OS
Windows 7 Ult x64 - SP1/ Windows 8 Pro x64
CPU
Intel Core i5-3570K 4.6GHz
Motherboard
Gigabyte GA-Z77X UD3H, f18
Memory
8GB (2X4GB) DDR3 1600 Corsair Vengeance CL8 1.5v
Graphics Card(s)
Sapphire HD 7770 Vapor-X OC 1GB DDR5
Sound Card
Onboard VIA VT2021
Monitor(s) Displays
22" LCD Dell
Screen Resolution
1680x1050
Hard Drives
Samsung 840Pro 128GB SSD,
Seagate Barracuda 500GB SATA2 7200rpm 32MB cache, Seagate Barracuda 1TB SATA2 7200rpm 32MB cache,
PSU
Corsair HX650W
Case
Cooler Master Storm Scout
Cooling
Corsair H80 2x12cm Noctua NF P12 , 2x14cm case fans
Keyboard
Logitech Wave
Mouse
CM Sentinel
Internet Speed
Dismal
Antivirus
Avast
Browser
Opera Next
Other Info
Haswell laptop: HP Envy 17t-j, i7-4700MQ, GeForce 740M 2GB DDR3, 17.3" Full HD 1920x1080, 16GB RAM, Samsung 840 Pro 128GB, 1TB Hitachi 7200 HDD,
Desktop: eSATA ports,
External eSATA Seagate 500GB SATA2 7200rpm,
External WD USB 500GB
Nice tut,

Will this work in any graphics program?

Tried it in Paint.net and it worked.

It will work with any paint package that's capable of pasting the clipboard as a new image :)
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Compaq Desktop
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64
CPU
AMD Sempron Dual Core
Memory
3GB
Graphics Card(s)
NVIDIA GeForce 6150SE nForce 430
Screen Resolution
1024x768
Hard Drives
150GB Sata
I still use this old school trick to capture transient screen images like tool-tips. The snipping tool will take system focus and some dialog boxes will disappear. PrintScreen/Paste is a very good thing to know (remember).
 
Possibly add the Snipping Tool?
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
76~2.0
OS
Windows 7 Ult x64 - SP1/ Windows 8 Pro x64
CPU
Intel Core i5-3570K 4.6GHz
Motherboard
Gigabyte GA-Z77X UD3H, f18
Memory
8GB (2X4GB) DDR3 1600 Corsair Vengeance CL8 1.5v
Graphics Card(s)
Sapphire HD 7770 Vapor-X OC 1GB DDR5
Sound Card
Onboard VIA VT2021
Monitor(s) Displays
22" LCD Dell
Screen Resolution
1680x1050
Hard Drives
Samsung 840Pro 128GB SSD,
Seagate Barracuda 500GB SATA2 7200rpm 32MB cache, Seagate Barracuda 1TB SATA2 7200rpm 32MB cache,
PSU
Corsair HX650W
Case
Cooler Master Storm Scout
Cooling
Corsair H80 2x12cm Noctua NF P12 , 2x14cm case fans
Keyboard
Logitech Wave
Mouse
CM Sentinel
Internet Speed
Dismal
Antivirus
Avast
Browser
Opera Next
Other Info
Haswell laptop: HP Envy 17t-j, i7-4700MQ, GeForce 740M 2GB DDR3, 17.3" Full HD 1920x1080, 16GB RAM, Samsung 840 Pro 128GB, 1TB Hitachi 7200 HDD,
Desktop: eSATA ports,
External eSATA Seagate 500GB SATA2 7200rpm,
External WD USB 500GB
Hi Dave,

I thought about it, but with the Snipping Tool, you cannot take screenshots of open menu items as Antman posted above though. I wanted to make it usable in all cases. :(
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Self built custom
OS
64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
CPU
Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
Motherboard
ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
Memory
64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
Sound Card
Integrated
Monitor(s) Displays
2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
Screen Resolution
2560x1440
Hard Drives
1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
TerraMaster F8 SSD Plus NAS
PSU
Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
Case
Thermaltake Core P3
Cooling
Corsair Hydro H115i
Keyboard
Logitech wireless K800
Mouse
Logitech MX Master 4
Internet Speed
2 Gb/s Download and 100 Mb/s Upload
Antivirus
Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
Browser
Google Chrome
Other Info
Logitech Z625 speaker system,
Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
Galaxy S23 Plus phone
Oh wow, you do learn something new everyday! :D
Didn't know about the Alt + Prt Sc trick! Thanks a lot Brink!
 

My Computer

OS
Windows 7 Professional x64
CPU
Intel Core 2 Duo T9600 / 2.80GHz
Memory
4GB DDR2
Screen Resolution
1366 x 768 @ 60Hz
You're welcome Krazywrath, and welcome to Seven Forums. :)
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Self built custom
OS
64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
CPU
Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
Motherboard
ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
Memory
64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
Sound Card
Integrated
Monitor(s) Displays
2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
Screen Resolution
2560x1440
Hard Drives
1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
TerraMaster F8 SSD Plus NAS
PSU
Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
Case
Thermaltake Core P3
Cooling
Corsair Hydro H115i
Keyboard
Logitech wireless K800
Mouse
Logitech MX Master 4
Internet Speed
2 Gb/s Download and 100 Mb/s Upload
Antivirus
Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
Browser
Google Chrome
Other Info
Logitech Z625 speaker system,
Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
Galaxy S23 Plus phone
Hi Brink, is it ok to write a tut using a separate utility for snap shooting images?
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Lenovo ThinkPad T60
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate 64Bit
CPU
GenuineIntel Intel(R) Core(TM) DuoCore T2400 @ 1.83GHz
Motherboard
Intel(R) 82801G (ICH7 Family)
Memory
2.00 GB
Graphics Card(s)
Mobile Intel(R) 945 Express Chipset
Sound Card
SoundMAX Integrated Digital HD Audio
Monitor(s) Displays
ThinkPad Display
Screen Resolution
1400x1050
Hard Drives
100Gb SATA
Keyboard
Standard Keyboard
Mouse
HID-compliant Mouse
Internet Speed
Cable Broadband - 54Mbps
Other Info
Intel(R) PRO/1000 PL Network Connection
11a/b/g Wireless LAN Mini PCI Express Adapter
Hello AEM,

Sure, as long as it's not a program that must be purchased to use it. You might also double check in the Tutorial index to make sure that we do not already have one for it as well. :)
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Self built custom
OS
64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
CPU
Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
Motherboard
ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
Memory
64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
Sound Card
Integrated
Monitor(s) Displays
2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
Screen Resolution
2560x1440
Hard Drives
1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
TerraMaster F8 SSD Plus NAS
PSU
Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
Case
Thermaltake Core P3
Cooling
Corsair Hydro H115i
Keyboard
Logitech wireless K800
Mouse
Logitech MX Master 4
Internet Speed
2 Gb/s Download and 100 Mb/s Upload
Antivirus
Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
Browser
Google Chrome
Other Info
Logitech Z625 speaker system,
Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
Galaxy S23 Plus phone
Well i searched and only find one single post mentioning this utility's name.

It's ok should u decided to join it to another tut. That's fine with me.
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Lenovo ThinkPad T60
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate 64Bit
CPU
GenuineIntel Intel(R) Core(TM) DuoCore T2400 @ 1.83GHz
Motherboard
Intel(R) 82801G (ICH7 Family)
Memory
2.00 GB
Graphics Card(s)
Mobile Intel(R) 945 Express Chipset
Sound Card
SoundMAX Integrated Digital HD Audio
Monitor(s) Displays
ThinkPad Display
Screen Resolution
1400x1050
Hard Drives
100Gb SATA
Keyboard
Standard Keyboard
Mouse
HID-compliant Mouse
Internet Speed
Cable Broadband - 54Mbps
Other Info
Intel(R) PRO/1000 PL Network Connection
11a/b/g Wireless LAN Mini PCI Express Adapter
I'm looking forward to reading it. :)
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Self built custom
OS
64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
CPU
Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
Motherboard
ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
Memory
64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
Sound Card
Integrated
Monitor(s) Displays
2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
Screen Resolution
2560x1440
Hard Drives
1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
TerraMaster F8 SSD Plus NAS
PSU
Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
Case
Thermaltake Core P3
Cooling
Corsair Hydro H115i
Keyboard
Logitech wireless K800
Mouse
Logitech MX Master 4
Internet Speed
2 Gb/s Download and 100 Mb/s Upload
Antivirus
Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
Browser
Google Chrome
Other Info
Logitech Z625 speaker system,
Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
Galaxy S23 Plus phone

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
HP, Dell, Gateway, Toshiba - 4 laptops and 2 desktops
OS
Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8
CPU
from 1.6GHz Duo to i7
Monitor(s) Displays
2x HP w2207
Hard Drives
5x HDD, 7x SSD, 12x Externals
Keyboard
with trackball - no mices
Mouse
Trackball mice
Internet Speed
DSL 6000
I do all my screen shots via paint:D. I don't know how to do them with out using paint.:o
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Self-built on 31/1/11
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate 64 bit
CPU
Intel i5 2400 @ 3.80 GHz
Motherboard
Ashrock P67 Extreme 4
Memory
Mushkin Silverline 996768 4GB
Graphics Card(s)
MSI GTX 460 760MB Cyclone Overclocked
Sound Card
Integrated
Monitor(s) Displays
Asus VH202T 20" Widescreen
Screen Resolution
1600x900
Hard Drives
SSD: OCZ Vertex 2 60GB
HDD: Hitachi Deskstar 7K1000.C 500GB
PSU
Silverstone Strider 500W
Case
Zalman Z9 Plus
Cooling
Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus
Keyboard
Logitech Wireless Keyboard MK520
Mouse
Logitech M310
Internet Speed
3 Mbps
Other Info
UEFI: Ashrock P67/
Network Card :TP-Link WN350GD/
WEI: 7.4/
ODD: Lite-On IHAS324
I just came across this tutorial and tried it - HP Pavillion s5213w Win7 64bit - and nothing happened. I've tried Shift+PrtScr, Ctrl+PrtScr, Alt+PrtScr with the same (no) results.
(Is it too late to get into this discussion?)
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
HP Presidio s5213w
OS
Windows7 64bit
I just came across this tutorial and tried it - HP Pavillion s5213w Win7 64bit - and nothing happened. I've tried Shift+PrtScr, Ctrl+PrtScr, Alt+PrtScr with the same (no) results.
(Is it too late to get into this discussion?)

Doesn't it work if you just use the PrtScr button?
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Self Built
OS
Win 10 Pro x64
CPU
Intel I5-2500K @3.3GHz
Motherboard
Asrock P67 Extreme4
Memory
16GB G.Skill Ripjaws X (4x4GB)
Graphics Card(s)
EVGA GeForce 750 Ti SC 2GB
Sound Card
ASUS Xonar DG 5.1 Channels 24-bit 96KHz PCI Interface Sound
Monitor(s) Displays
auria eq2367
Screen Resolution
1920 x 1080
Hard Drives
250GB Samsung 850 EVO SSD
1TB WD Blue
1TB Hitachi
PSU
SeaSonic X 650W 80 Plus Gold
Case
Corsair Obsidian 750D
Cooling
Corsair H60, Three 140mm case fans
Keyboard
Logitech Wireless Keyboard K520
Mouse
Logitech Wireless Mouse M310
Internet Speed
Wave Broadband ~ 100 dn 5 up
Antivirus
Windows Defender, Malwarebytes Premium
Browser
Edge, IE11, Chrome
Other Info
Laptop specs: HP g7-1365dx /
CPU: AMD A6-3420M APU with Radeon(tm) HD Graphics /
RAM: Crucial 8Gb (2x4Gb) /
SSD: Crucial M4-CT128M4SSD2 ATA Device/ FW 000F /
GFX: AMD Radeon HD 6520G /
OS: Windows 10 Pro x64
I just came across this tutorial and tried it - HP Pavillion s5213w Win7 64bit - and nothing happened. I've tried Shift+PrtScr, Ctrl+PrtScr, Alt+PrtScr with the same (no) results.
(Is it too late to get into this discussion?)

Doesn't it work if you just use the PrtScr button?
Depends on the system. E.g. on mine it is Fn+Prt Scr
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
HP, Dell, Gateway, Toshiba - 4 laptops and 2 desktops
OS
Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8
CPU
from 1.6GHz Duo to i7
Monitor(s) Displays
2x HP w2207
Hard Drives
5x HDD, 7x SSD, 12x Externals
Keyboard
with trackball - no mices
Mouse
Trackball mice
Internet Speed
DSL 6000
Thanks derekimo and whs for the quick responce. PrtScr now works fine for me when I don't screw up in Paint.
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
HP Presidio s5213w
OS
Windows7 64bit
Hello Gofra, and welcome to Seven Forums.

Are you only pressing the Print-Screen (PrtScn) key?

Sometimes a full screen game will have it's own method of taking a screenshot that will need to be used instead.
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Self built custom
OS
64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
CPU
Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
Motherboard
ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
Memory
64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
Sound Card
Integrated
Monitor(s) Displays
2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
Screen Resolution
2560x1440
Hard Drives
1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
TerraMaster F8 SSD Plus NAS
PSU
Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
Case
Thermaltake Core P3
Cooling
Corsair Hydro H115i
Keyboard
Logitech wireless K800
Mouse
Logitech MX Master 4
Internet Speed
2 Gb/s Download and 100 Mb/s Upload
Antivirus
Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
Browser
Google Chrome
Other Info
Logitech Z625 speaker system,
Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
Galaxy S23 Plus phone
Back
Top