How to Take Perfect Square Screenshot on Mac

Learn how to capture a screenshot of a specific area on your Mac screen with a fixed aspect ratio of 1:1.

Taking screenshots on a Mac is easy, but sometimes you may want to capture a screenshot of a specific area on your screen with a fixed aspect ratio. For example, you may want to take a perfect square screenshot for your Instagram post or profile picture. In this article, you will learn how to do that using the built-in screenshot tool on Mac, as well as some alternative methods and tools.

Using the Built-in Screenshot Tool on Mac

The built-in screenshot tool on Mac allows you to take screenshots of the whole screen, a window, a menu, or a selected portion of the screen. You can access it by pressing Command + Shift + 5 on your keyboard. This will bring up a toolbar at the bottom of your screen with various options and controls.

To take a screenshot of a specific area on your screen with a fixed aspect ratio of 1:1, follow these steps:

1. Click on the Capture Selected Portion button on the toolbar. This will show a crosshair cursor on your screen.
2. Drag the cursor to select an area on your screen. You can adjust the size and position of the selection by dragging the edges or corners of the selection.
3. To lock the aspect ratio of the selection to 1:1, press and hold the Option key on your keyboard while dragging the cursor. This will make the selection grow or shrink in both directions from the center.
4. To move the selection around without changing its size or aspect ratio, press and hold the Space key on your keyboard while dragging the cursor.
5. Once you are happy with your selection, click on the Capture button on the toolbar or press Return on your keyboard. This will save the screenshot to your chosen location, which you can change from the Options menu on the toolbar.

Alternatively, you can use the keyboard shortcut Command + Shift + 4 to activate the screenshot tool without the toolbar. Then, press and hold the Option key while dragging the cursor to select an area with a fixed aspect ratio of 1:1. To save the screenshot, release the mouse button or trackpad.

Using Preview to Crop a Screenshot

Another way to take a screenshot of a specific area on your screen with a fixed aspect ratio of 1:1 is to use the Preview app on your Mac. Preview is a versatile tool that can open and edit various types of files, including images. You can use it to crop a screenshot to a perfect square after taking it.

To use Preview to crop a screenshot, follow these steps:

1. Take a screenshot of the whole screen, a window, or a portion of the screen using the built-in screenshot tool on Mac. You can use the keyboard shortcuts Command + Shift + 3, Command + Shift + 4, or Command + Shift + 5 respectively.
2. Open the screenshot file with Preview. You can do this by double-clicking on the file in Finder or by right-clicking on the file and choosing Open With > Preview.
3. Click on the Show Markup Toolbar button on the top right corner of the Preview window. This will show a toolbar with various editing tools.
4. Click on the Rectangular Selection tool on the toolbar. This will show a crosshair cursor on the image.
5. Drag the cursor to select an area on the image. You can adjust the size and position of the selection by dragging the edges or corners of the selection.
6. To lock the aspect ratio of the selection to 1:1, press and hold the Shift key on your keyboard while dragging the cursor. This will make the selection a perfect square.
7. To crop the image to the selected area, click on the Crop button on the toolbar or press Command + K on your keyboard. This will remove the unwanted parts of the image.
8. To save the cropped image, click on the File menu and choose Save or Save As. You can also use the keyboard shortcuts Command + S or Shift + Command + S respectively.

Conclusion

Taking a screenshot of a specific area on your screen with a fixed aspect ratio of 1:1 is possible on Mac using the built-in screenshot tool, the Preview app, or some third-party tools. You can use these methods to take perfect square screenshots for your personal or professional needs.