CNET Editors' review
Camtasia for Mac makes it easy to create professional screencasts (capturing all actions on screen) for demonstration videos, instructional videos, and other screen-recording projects.
The interface is fairly easy to understand right away with your media, transitions, animations, and effects on the left side, the work area (what they call the Canvas) on the right, and a video timeline on the bottom. You can quickly create a screencast at launch by first selecting sound and Webcam preferences, then hitting the red record button. The Webcam feature lets you personally "present" your screencast in a picture-in-picture window and you have various effects to add to your presentation.
When your initial recording is finished, Camtasia offers several options for editing and enhancing your screencasts. You can choose from a number of transitions, audio and video effects, and animations by simply dragging them into the appropriate part of the timeline. You also can pick from many filters to colorize portions of your video or add Glow or Drop Shadow effects. If you want to point out specific parts of your screencast for a demo or training video, for example, you can zoom in on the action or add arrows, text, or pointers to call out certain parts of the screen.
In the latest version Techsmith added a couple more professional looking effects to add to your screencasts. A new Clip Speed feature can be accessed from the Video FX tab, and lets you speed through slow processes in a demonstration or slow down a faster process you want your audience to see. Just like other effects, you can drag and drop Clip Speed into your timeline, then just adjust it using controls within the timeline. Another new feature called Remove a Color (Chroma key) is not unlike when news show meteorologists use a green screen behind them to present the weather. This feature will let you present in the foreground and let you put in presentation slides and other backgrounds behind you to keep your screencasts exciting.
When you're finished, you can export your video to YouTube, Screencast.com, or convert the video to play on just about any device.
Camtasia is one of the best screencast applications for Mac. If you need to make a training video, a demonstration of your software, or some other project, you will appreciate Camtasia's numerous handy features and intuitive interface.
Publisher's Description
From TechSmith:
Camtasia for Mac screen recording software is streamlined, intuitive, and makes you look like a pro. Easily record onscreen activity, Keynote slides, camera video, microphone or system audio; all with sparkling clarity. Record in front of a live audience or at your desk. Edit to perfection. Turn it into a stunning, HD-quality video at the perfect size to share on popular video sites, Apple devices, your website, blog, or anywhere you like. Make them wonder how you did it.
What's new in this version:
- Remove A Color also known as the green screen effect
- Clip Speed Adjustment
- TechSmith Smart Player: Produce to almost any device
- Interactive Hotspots
- Inverted Blur & Highlight Annotations
- Spotlight Video FX: Call attention by casting a light source across your media
- Mask Video FX: Reveal only specific points of interest on your screen
- YouTube Table of Contents
- Spotlight Video FX: Call attention by casting a light source across your media
- Inverted Blur & Highlight Annotations
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All versions:
2.3 starsout of 6 votes
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Current version:
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Results 1-6 of 6
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"Quality of a Beta version product - but it's not free"
Version: Camtasia 1.2
Pros
Affordable, offers screen capture and production in one package
Cons
Buggy, crashes often. I ended up naming my project "saveOften" so I wouldn't forget. Lost audio from recordings for a consulting project which means a loss of data. Lack of more advanced and elegant features found on PC version.
Summary
Feels like an afterthought or intern's project. PC version is much more baked.
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"Works fine and easy to use"
Version: Camtasia 1.2
Pros
Good interface and easy to export.
Cons
I bought a second copy by mistake and can't get a refund. I have emailed them via their webpage and via my account and no money has ever been returned nor have I gotten a useful reply.
Summary
Nice software poor customer support and no refunds ever seem to come if you want to return the code. People should know.
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"Screen capture that thinks it's video production"
Version: Camtasia 1.2
Pros
Can dress up a Mac-based demo very nicely, adding touches that are associated with high(er) end, Flash-like productions
Cons
It's not compatible with the PC version, has fewer animation options than Powerpoint or Keynote (which limits creativity quite a bit), and requires system level changes to adjust the output -- something that should be a Preferences setting
Summary
While, overall, Camtasia:mac is a user-friendly alternative to knowledge-intensive programs like Flash or FinalCut, it has maddening limitations. The effects, for instance, only work in one direction -- you can slide an object in from the left of the frame, but it has to exit from the left, as well... unless you learn how to outsmart the application with techniques that are nowhere to be found in the documentation or tutorials. A credit crawl is a virtual impossibility because there's no right-to-left or bottom-to-top motion effect. If a presentation is created for one aspect ratio (the height-to-width dimensions) and then needs to be adapted for another, there's no way to universally change all of the images. Each one has to be manually adjusted. Yet, the ability to layer visual elements, add enhancements like drop shadows and reflections, and time them to appear and/or move in synch with narration, music, and effects (which can also be layered, filtered, and adjusted in volume) is valuable given the modest price of the application. It is only because comparisons are inevitable and because people expect to be able to do what they've seen done around them that Camtasia:mac suffers from a lack of creative flexibility.
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"Never Worked on my iMac"
Version: Camtasia 1.1
Pros
I got to spend over a hundred for nothing in return. A complete donation that?s not even a tax write-off Sweet.........
Cons
Tech support has every which way and that, reason why it might not work and of course all because of other program compatibility conflicts...
Summary
You wanna spend over a hundred dollars and start figuring out that some software you already have and like are a compatibility issue? When I buy other stuff without a problem? Its up to you....
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"Great for easily adding your face to a screencast."
Version: Camtasia 1.1
Pros
The main advantage over something like iShowU is that you can easily get the iSight camera feed added to the screencast and it has some basic editing functions that means you don't need to go to iMovie or FCE to edit.
Cons
It is more expensive than other screen capturing programs (e.g. QuickTime can now do it for you) but it adds a professional element that the others don't.
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"does not run on Mac w PPC"
Version: Camtasia 1.0.1
Pros
does not run on Mac w PPC
Cons
does not run on Mac w PPC
Summary
does not run on Mac w PPC
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