A quick way to take pretty window screenshots on macOS
This post is part of my Today I learned series in which I share all my learnings regarding web development.
My friend Christian and I have been in "slide production mode" the last days. Today he shared some macOS functionality that totally blew my mind.
Personally I like to take screenshots of applications I use to include these in presentations or articles. I simply like it to be pretty and to have a proper shadow.
So, what I did so far to e.g. take a screenshot of my terminal application was:
- open Sketch with an empty white document
- hide all the other applications
- place terminal over white Sketch document
- take a screenshot with CMD+Shift+4
It turns out this functionality is built already in and I don't have to have a white background and minimize all the videos. After enabling the screenshot mode with CMD+Shift+4 you can simply hit space and then you can pick a window to get a screenshot on transparent background with a proper shadow.
I don't want to say that this is world changing, but this improves my workflow drastically. 🎉
Edited:
@xiel pointed out that you can also take pictures without the drop shadow.
Press alt while clicking and you get only the window, without the shadow (if flat is wanted or u want to add your own)