Camtasia software instructions

1. SDSU Camtasia Studio
Maria Kalyvaki
Instructional Design Services
South Dakota State University

2. Preparing to record
• Write a script
• Practice
• Think about what you want your
screen to look like during the
recording
• Sometimes it is good to clear off
your desktop in order to not distract
tutorial viewers
You can change the mouse
properties to be slower, faster,
more visible for your screencast
by going to Mouse Properties.

3. Recording: PC
You have the option of recording
yourself while you create the
tutorial
You can customize your screen for
recording
You can record using built in
microphone or USB microphone. You
can also record what is happening on
your computer.
Once you press record, it
will give you time to set
up your computer. You
can stop the recording
anytime by pressing F10.
To pause recording, press
F9.

4. Recording: PC Tool Options Reducing frame
rate will create a
smaller video file
and not hurt your
video.
Can record in
.camrec (Camtasia
file) or .avi. Use .avi
if you are planning
on editing in Final
Cut Pro, After
Effects, Etc.

5. Recording: PC Tool Options
Can
view/change
hotkeys for
different
functions

6. Recording: Mac
Looks slightly different than a PC, but same functions. To
stop recording on a Mac, Click on Camtasia application
and “Stop Recording.”

7. Camtasia: Recording Audio
General Tips:
• Use a USB microphone – this will make a huge
difference in the quality and usability of your
screencasts
• Try and record with no background noise (You can
use the Narration Lab of the IDS office)
• If you are worried about making your recording
worse during audio editing, be sure to save an extra
copy before audio editing to the desktop to compare

8. Selecting Screen To Record
If you are creating
a custom size, it
helps to link your
dimensions
Can check “Lock to application” to
have Camtasia just capture your
application. Be careful that you are
recording everything you want to
record.
Customizable Options:
You will most
likely record
in full screen
most of the
time

9. Selecting Audio
Camtasia will automatically recognize your microphone,
but you will need to select the audio input/output. For
best quality audio, be sure to calibrate your microphone
before beginning recording.
Check this box if
you want Camtasia
to record the
system audio
(audio from your
computer)
If you want to fine tune the audio, to to
Tools, Inputs, Audio Settings
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHcOjaPB
alI

10. After Recording: PC
This screen gives you a preview option
of your recorded footage when you are
done recording. This is not the same as
the editor screen. This screen simply
allows you to preview, save, produce, or
delete your footage.
Here you can decide whether you want to edit, publish, or
delete your recording.

11. After Recording: Mac
Be sure to save your project before you begin editing
to not lose any of your work.

12. Camtasia: Starting Editing
You will be prompted with this
screen when you start Camtasia
Here are your screen
output options. Try and
stick with the dimensions
you recorded in, typically
854x480.
Be sure to that “Keep aspect ratio” is
checked.
*After you have selected your
size, be sure to save your project
in order to not lose any changes.
The editing project will save as
.camproj file. Be sure to save
often when editing in Camtasia.

13. Camtasia: Editing
PC

14. Camtasia: Editing
Mac
The Main difference between Camtasia on a Mac versus a PC is that you drag and drop the effects into
the timeline for a Mac, whereas in the PC version you click the buttons while your clip is selected.
Watching a YouTube video of Camtasia in action would easily provide a clear example of the differences.

15. The timeline and the canvas are always linked.
Adding effects is done through the timeline, similarly to many video editing programs.
You can zoom in and out, add effects (such as arrows, text, and more). You can delete
unwanted footage and focus on more important parts of your tutorials.
The Canvas is where you can view your video and change visual properties of your video
(such as screen dimensions, rotating the screen, and more).
Remember as you are editing you can always undo things that you have done by pressing
Control Z (PC) or Command Z (Mac).

16. Camtasia: Editing Tools
Zoom in and out
of the timeline
Undo and
Redo Button
Cutting
Splitting
Copy
Paste
This is the Playhead.
Move this arrow up
and down the
timeline in order to
see a scene or edit at
a certain spot.

17. Camtasia: Editing
Your timeline can have many
tracks. You can lock or unlock
tracks during editing. You
would lock a track if you did
not want certain effects to be
changed while editing other
effects.
You can delete sections of your video. Be sure
to lock the tracks that you do not want to be
cut.
PC: Green/red arrow are you in and out points
to drag over the scene to be delete.
Mac: Shift Key, drag the arrow over the scene to
be deleted.
*Note about deleting:
it is good to delete unwanted
footage before you add your
SmartFocus (this will be reviewed
later)

18. Camtasia: Editing
The split tool allows you to split up clips and
move them up a track or to other parts of the
video. This also allows you to be able to
separate video and audio.
For example, if you want the image from a
clip, but not the audio, you will need to split
the image, move it to another track, and then
separate the video and audio. Once the audio
and video are separated, you can delete one.
Splitting
PC: push S on keyboard
Mac: Edit, Split all at
Playhead
Right click or Command
click (Mac) to “separate
video and audio”

19. Camtasia: Editing
More Editing Options:
Editing visual properties of
Canvas
Can add markers with
notes
PC: Control M
Mac: Alt Option M

20. Camtasia: Editing Audio
PC Mac
Notice the basic
options for Audio
editing. Be sure
you are in the right
clip in your
timeline when
editing the audio
or dragging the
effects into the
right clip (Mac).
It is generally recommended to raise or
lower volume to be about ¾ of the way
on up on the timeline

21. Camtasia: Editing Audio
You have the option of
“enabling noise removal”
and “noise reduction” for
distracting background noise.
You can also level the volume of
your clips through this
automatic edit. This can be
used if you are loud in one part
of your tutorial video and quiet
in other parts. Be careful with
this this setting, and be sure to
try out all of the variations.

22. Camtasia: Editing Audio
Some versions of Camtasia come with a library with
built in royalty free music. This music can be inserted
into your video as background music.
You can also add in background music from
iTunes, etc. by going to File, Import Media.
Once you have the song in Camtasia, you can
drag the audio to the desired track in your
timeline (see image above).

23. Camtasia: Importing Media
PC Mac
File types you can import:
Images: bmp, png, gif, and jpeg
Audio: mp3, wav, wma
Video (need quicktime plugin): camrec, avi, mp4, mpg, mpegs, wmv, mov, and swf.
Go here to install Quicktime plugin
Then can move/drag images, audio, and
video onto new track in Camtasia Studio

24. Camtasia: Callouts/Annotations
PC Mac
Callouts (PC) and Annotations (Mac) can be used to highlight or point to an item in your video, add text
to your video, and add different symbols to point to different actions/things in your tutorial.

25. Camtasia: Callouts/Annotations
Some more examples of
what you can do with
Callouts/Annotations.
How a Callout/Annotation looks
on a track in your timeline.
Remember you can adjust the
Callout/Annotation to your
video by cropping to the
appropriate time you want it to
appear in your tutorial.

26. Camtasia: Animations
PC
Timeline/Tracks
You can animate Callouts/Annotations or different
scenes of your video. Simply add the animation to the
desired track (video or callout). Once you add the
animation, you can adjust the position and rotation.

27. Camtasia: Zooming In and Out, Panning (PC)
• Set Playhead at desired
location for zoom/pan
• Click on “Zoom-n-Pan” on
the menu.
• Move window around
screen to desired zoom/pan
effects.
• You will need to do this for
each spot in your video
where you want to change
the zoom/pan.
Timeline with markers of
zoom/panning effects

28. Camtasia: Zooming In and Out, Panning
(Mac)
• In order to zoom and pan on
Camtasia for Mac, you need to go
to animations.
• If you would like to use an option
other than the ones presented to
the left, choose “Blank” and drag
to timeline.
• Control click on the animation,
and select “Show Properties”
• Once you select “show
properties”, you can adjust the
scale or position of your screen
for zooming or panning

29. Camtasia: SmartFocus
• SmartFocus keeps track of your mouse,
windows, and other activities while you are
recording your screencast tutorial.
• When you apply SmartFocus to your video,
it automatically will zoom and pan your
video.
• Though SmartFocus is recommended as a
starting point for editing, please review all
SmartFocus additions to make sure they fit
into your video.
PC:
Double click on this
widget to see the
SmartFocus
animations. Can
edit animations
after applied.
Mac:
Drag SmartFocus icon in Animations into all of the
desired scenes in timeline. Click on individual
animation additions to edit SmartFocus.

30. Camtasia: Cursor Effects
Mac
PC
You can add effects to your cursor to
highlight, spotlight, or magnify.

31. Camtasia: Transitions
If you want transitions
between scenes or between
imported outside media,
Camtasia Studio comes with
built in transitions.
Simply drag and drop desired
transition into the timeline
where there is a split
between scenes.
Timeline View

32. Camtasia: Finishing-Exporting (PC)
Camtasia file format (.camrec/.camproj)
is not very sharable/user friendly.
Therefore it is important to export your
video when you are done editing.
MP4 is a very common video format, and
you can easily export this to YouTube later.
Remember that HD is not as user friendly
as regular MP4 files.

33. Camtasia: Finishing-Exporting (Mac)
Be sure you know where on your
computer you are saving your
exported files.

34. Please contact:
Maria Kalyvaki
Learning Media Designer
Email: Maria.Kalyvaki@sdstate.edu
with any questions or concerns about this tutorial.
Thank You!!!