How to Make a Video Screenshot

If you want to grab a still image of a video you are watching on your computer, you can make a video screenshot using these steps. This method works on any Windows system and lets you paste a video screenshot directly into a graphics editing program.

Things You'll Need

• Graphics editor
• Computer

Instructions

1. Bypass your graphics card. Right click on the desktop and select "Properties." Click on "Settings" and then "Advanced." Click "Troubleshooting" and under "Hardware Acceleration," select "None."

2. Queue up your video image. Begin playback of the video you want to capture. Play until you are at the frame you want to grab and then pause the video.

3. Press the "Print Screen" key on your keyboard. The image on your screen has now been saved to the clipboard.

4. Open a graphics editor. Use MS paint, Photoshop, Paint Shop or whatever program you use to create images. Open a blank document if the program doesn't have a "Paste as New" option.

5. Paste the screen capture into a new image. Press "CTRL - V" or choose "Edit > Paste New."

6. Crop your image. Use the Crop tool to isolate the video.

7. Save your video screenshot.

Tips & Warnings

• To avoid the need for cropping, view the video in full screen.

• On Macintosh computers, simply run the Image Capture application.

• Don't forget to set your hardware acceleration back to normal after taking your screenshot.

• Don't copy anything else to the clipboard before pasting the screenshot.