Talk:IMFDB Screencapping Guide

VLC aspect ratio

Update: VLC now actually preserves native aspect ratios when taking screencaps; it's the case for version 2.2.4, not sure if it got fixed before it. For some reason however, screencaps from official trailers (and the like) weirdly have a size of 1920×1090 rather than 1920×1080. --Ultimate94ninja (talk) 16:52, 29 April 2017 (EDT)

It's fixed now, I'm not sure when they patched it. --Funkychinaman (talk) 21:47, 29 April 2017 (EDT)

Video game screenshots

PC:

-Steam: Screenshot with F12, it'll save your screen in the resolution the game is set to, then in the desktop app, click "View" in the toolbar at the top of the window, then "Screenshot viewer". Click on the compressed thumbnail of whatever it is you want to see then click "View on disk", at which point it will open the full resolution in your file viewer.

-Ubisoft Connect: Screenshot with F12, it'll save your screen in the resolution the game is set to, then navigate to This PC\Pictures\Uplay in your file explorer, then the game you want.

For PC games not accessed through Steam or Ubisoft Connect (Minecraft, Origin, and Epic Games systems all lack screenshot features, for instance), you can open the Windows Game Bar and use Win+Alt+Printscreen, then access them through the Xbox Console Companion app afterwards.

Xbox: Press the Xbox home button, then Y to take a screenshot. You can then access them through the Xbox Console Companion app on any Windows 10 PC or smartphone afterwards.

Playstation: Press the share button, then select screenshot. You can then access them through the Playstation app on any Windows PC, Mac, or smartphone afterwards.

I'll note that non-Steam PC games can have be loaded as a non-Steam game to the Steam launcher (or any choice of screenshot program) to use the Steam Overlay for screenshots. A reasonable number of games also work with just plain old printscreen+paste (but many will only show a black screen). Some games have an internal screenshot function, but these are often bizzare (I know of one game engine that saves as a .tga file of all things) and poor choices. VladVladson (talk) 19:29, 28 April 2022 (EDT)

Black bars in video game cutscenes?

Should black bars be kept if they're part of a video game's cutscenes if the majority of screencaps are of gameplay (and thus have no black bars)? I, personally, think keeping them over constantly changing resolution within an article is preferable, but is there an actual policy on it? Also worth noting a lot of games include subtitles in this blank space (so it's often not strictly "blank" on the lower part). VladVladson (talk) 19:35, 28 April 2022 (EDT)

I think if that's actually part of the frame proper it's okay. I believe it's been done here and there elsewhere. There's even bits in films where they have a 'forced' widescreen with top and bottom black bars in-frame and I think there's even a admittedly rare instance or two of us screencapping it as such because, well, again it's part of the frame proper, not just blank space of a widescreen resolution in a non-widescreen, uh, screen. Also helps usefully differentiate that it's cutscenes and not gameplay. StanTheMan (talk) 20:08, 28 April 2022 (EDT)