Camtasia Studio Learning Center

The ScreenDraw feature in Camtasia Recorder allows you to draw on your screen while recording a video. A variety of tools for underlining, highlighting and illustrating important points in your video are available.

Camtasia Studio Video Tutorial

Enabling the Annotation Toolbar

The ScreenDraw tool is found on the Annotation toolbar. To open the Annotation toolbar, select View > Annotation Toolbar.

The Annotation toolbar displays

Using ScreenDraw

1. While recording, activate ScreenDraw using the ScreenDraw button in Recorder’s Annotation toolbar, or by using a customized hotkey (we will discuss this option in the last section of this tutorial).

2. The mouse cursor changes to the ScreenDraw icon and the screen will ‘freeze’ stopping all onscreen movement.

3. You can now draw on the screen. By default, the selected tool will be a pen with red ink.

4. Change the selected ScreenDraw options after you have started recording by right-clicking on the capture area. The ScreenDraw menu displays:

5. Select one of the drawing tool options listed by clicking on a tool and then resume drawing.
6. When you are done using ScreenDraw, you can either click on the ScreenDraw icon in the Annotation toolbar or use the hotkey to end ScreenDraw.There is a more efficient way to change the ScreenDraw options; use the ScreenDraw hotkeys. Below are listed all of ScreenDraw’s hotkeys and their functions:

Changing the tool and the color is as simple as pressing the corresponding key. For example, if you want to select the Line tool and the color green, simply press <L> (for Line) and then <G> (for Green).

NOTE: You might try printing the table above and keeping it next to your computer during recordings for easy reference.

It is important to know that all annotations are permanently “burned” into your recording and can’t be removed later. However, if you make a mistake during the recording, you can press the hotkey <U> to undo the last ScreenDraw action.

Recorder ScreenDraw Settings

You can change how the ScreenDraw tool appears on the recording as you write.

1. In Camtasia Recorder, select Effects > Options.

2. The Effects Option dialog opens, choose the ScreenDraw tab. Within the ScreenDraw tab, you can define the default ScreenDraw tool and its settings.

3. Make your designed changes and then click OK to exit the Effects Options dialog box.

Creating a Custom Hotkey to launch ScreenDraw

We recommend creating a custom hotkey to start ScreenDraw. This will allow you to switch to ScreenDraw during a recording without having to access the recorder or even moving the mouse cursor.

1. In Camtasia Recorder, select Tools > Options.

2. Next, select the Hotkeys tab. You’ll see an option for the ScreenDraw hotkey that can be set to whatever hotkey combination you desire.

You can now start ScreenDraw during a recording by simply using the defined hotkey combination.