How to Annotate a Screenshot So People Understand It

Start with what the viewer must notice

Decide the one thing the reader should see first. Everything you add should lead them to it. If you cannot say it in a sentence, crop the screenshot tighter or take two.

Pick the right mark

• Arrow: point at one specific thing.
• Box or ellipse: show the edges of a button, a field or an error without hiding it.
• Highlighter: draw attention to a line of text.
• Numbered markers: show the order of steps (1, 2, 3).
• Text: add a short label such as “Click here” or “Wrong spacing”.
• Blur or solid cover: remove private details. Use solid cover for anything that must not leak.

Keep the style consistent

• One color for problems, and use another only for a different meaning.
• One line thickness, thick enough to see at the size people will view the image.
• Do not cover the thing you are pointing at. Put arrows beside it, and boxes around it.
• Do not rely on color alone. Add a label or a number so people who cannot tell the colors apart still get the point.

Write less

A label of two to five words works better than a paragraph. Start with a verb for instructions (“Open Settings”) and with the problem for bug reports (“Button sits too low”). Put longer explanations in the message that carries the image.

Example: a bug report in one image

1. Capture only the part of the screen that shows the problem.
2. Draw a box around the element that is wrong.
3. Add an arrow from a short label such as “Button sits too low”.
4. If there are several issues, number them 1, 2, 3 and list them in your message.

Annotating with QuickSnap

Press Print Screen, drag over the area, and the tools appear beside the selection. Press A for an arrow, R for a rectangle, T for text, N for a numbered marker and U, B or X for blur, pixelate or solid cover. Scroll the mouse wheel to change thickness, and use Ctrl + Z to undo. You cannot move or delete a single annotation after you draw it yet; you undo back to it.