Taking a Screenshot On Your iPhone or iPad

It is fairly easy to grab a screenshot of your iPhone or iPad if you know how. You've got to press the two physical buttons on your iOS device at the same time. This puts a copy of the screen into your Camera Roll in your Photos app. From there you can share it various ways. You can also attach a copy of the screenshot to an email message.

You can also watch this video at YouTube (but with ads).

Video Transcript: Hi this is Gary with MacMost.com. On today's episode let's take a look at how you take a screenshot on your iPhone or iPad and then email that to someone.
So as an app developer I sometimes get questions from my users. Like for instance in my most recent game Word Tiles I might get a question about how the scoring works. They try to give an example but it is not complete. So I say, Just send me a screen-shot and I'll explain it to you. This happens a lot to app developers who just want to see a screenshot of what the user is seeing when they are asking a question. I'm surprised at how many people don't know how to take a screenshot.
It is pretty easy in iOS on the iPhone or iPad to take a screenshot. Basically you do it in two steps.
The first step is to take a screenshot. The second step is to do something with it like email it to somebody. So let me show you how to do both.
What you want to first do is take the shot which involves using the two physical buttons on the device. That is the Sleep/Wake button which is usually at the top of the iPad or iPhone and the Home button which is on the front at the bottom. Press these at the same time then it will take a screenshot and place it in your Photo Library.
Now if you have an iPhone 6+ they have moved the Sleep/Wake button to the side and I expect them to be doing that on some of the future devices as well. But either way find the Sleep/Wake button and the Home button and press them at the same time and you will hear a sound and sometimes see the screen flash as it just did. That puts it in the Photo Library.
So let's go take a look at the Photo Library now. There is my Photos app and in there I want to go and click or tap on Albums at the bottom. You can see I have Camera Roll. That is for photos that I have taken with my device or screenshots. Also things that apps create. So an app that creates an image will put it in the Camera Roll.
Tap on it there and you can see I have that one image there. Now I can email it to somebody many different ways. 
For instance I can tap on it to go to the screenshot and this is on the Photos app looking at the screenshot. Not at the actual app again. I can use the Share button at the bottom left and I can share via text message or mail or however I want to do it.
I can also just start a new message in Mail, hit the Compose button, and I can just tap twice in the body of the message and I'll get Insert Photo or Video as one of the choices there. Then I can choose from the Camera Roll to choose that image, hit the Use button, and now it is inserted into my email message. I can still write text before or after it.
That is how you take a screenshot on an iPad or iPhone and email it to somebody.

Comments: 16 Responses to “Taking a Screenshot On Your iPhone or iPad”

Richard Fuhr

10 years ago

For taking screen shots, note that the sleep/wake button is also on the side (instead of at the top) of the iPhone 6 and the iPad Air.

Gary Rosenzweig

It is on the side of the iPhone 6, but it is on the top of the iPad Air 1 and iPad Air 2.

My mistake. You're right about the iPad Air models. And thanks for the video. Being able to take screen shots is very useful.

Roylyn Parks

Thank you so much, Gary. I love your informative videos!

Nancy Russel

Clever and presentation was clear. Thank you. Definitely liked it.

Jimmy

This is such an awesome tip. And so simple. Thanks for helping my love affair with all my Apple devices.

Jean

Did you know that if you're on the phone and have the camera icon open and try to raise or lower your volume, it takes a picture instead? Somewhat off topic but strange enough to bring up here

Yes, the volume control acts has a shutter release button. Has for several versions of OS X. Handy if you want to operate your iPhone as a camera without having to find the shuttle button on the screen while looking elsewhere. It works with the volume control on the earbud cable too.

Barry

This is not working for me. iOS 8.3 on iPhone 6. Nothing happens when I press the 2 buttons simultaneously. Any ideas?

Did you check in your Camera Roll to make sure it really isn't working? Otherwise, you may want to have your iPhone looked at.

Definitely not showing in the Camera Roll. And I hear no noise indicating the screen is being captured - nothing. Are there any settings associated with this functionality? Could an app I've installed be interfering somehow?

It seems others are reporting inability to do this as well. Possibly a bug?

I don't think it is possible for an app to interfere with that. Not sure what could be causing this very basic function to not work.

MsM

I love this hint. I use it all the time on my ipod and ipad to save confirmations and reservations so I do not need wifi to access. Makes a good reference too.

Linda Lyn

This is a very quick results for me
I have fellow your teaching videos.
I'm a slow learner
But this it trun out to be right every time.
Thank you Gary.

Kaybird

Thank you, thank you, thank you; I welcome any other simple, quick tips you have up your sleeve.

Comments Closed.

Taking a Screenshot On Your iPhone or iPad

Comments: 16 Responses to “Taking a Screenshot On Your iPhone or iPad”

Welcome to MacMost

Free Weekly Newsletter

MacMost Online Courses

Keyboard Shortcuts PDF

Connect with MacMost

MacMost Sections

Popular Tutorials

Information