# RTCapture - Capture render targets and screenshots as PNG or JPEG

**URL:** <https://forum.defold.com/t/rtcapture-capture-render-targets-and-screenshots-as-png-or-jpeg/83439>\
**Category:** The Defoldmine\
**Created:** [November 3, 2026, 2:10pm UTC](https://forum.defold.com/t/rtcapture-capture-render-targets-and-screenshots-as-png-or-jpeg/83439 "2026-11-03T14:10:49Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Pawel](https://forum-defold.b-cdn.net/user_avatar/forum.defold.com/pawel/32/24623_2.png) [@Pawel](https://forum.defold.com/u/Pawel)\
**Post date:** [November 3, 2026, 2:10pm UTC](https://forum.defold.com/t/rtcapture-capture-render-targets-and-screenshots-as-png-or-jpeg/83439/1 "2026-11-03T14:10:49Z")

</div>

Again, @morgerion has released another useful native extension for Defold:

 ![rt_capture](https://forum-defold-uploads.b-cdn.net/original/3X/2/e/2ee107773d7e15fa3efcb12c705cf5dc6e975ff6.jpeg)

**RTCapture** - allows you to capture screenshots and individual render targets and save them as PNG or JPEG images.

Unlike traditional screenshot solutions, RTCapture can capture **any** render target, not just the final game screen. This makes it particularly useful for generating save game thumbnails, level previews, sharing screenshots, and other features where you need to capture specific parts of your game.

**Key features:**

- **Render target capture** - capture individual render targets or the entire game screen.

- **PNG and JPEG support** - save images directly to files or keep them in memory.

- **Cropping and downscaling** - capture specific regions and resize images to reduce file sizes.

- **Asynchronous and synchronous capture** - choose the approach that best fits your workflow.

- **Performance optimizations** - split pixel capture and image encoding across two frames to reduce noticeable frame hitches.

- **JPEG decoding** - load JPEG images back into Defold textures.

- **Cross-platform graphics API** - built using DMSDK without direct OpenGL, DirectX, or Vulkan dependencies.

The extension requires **Defold 1.14.0 or newer** and includes documentation, usage examples, performance benchmarks, and a test project.

Morgerion also reports that capturing a smaller 512×288 render target instead of the full screen was approximately **10 times faster** , so consider reducing the size, if it’s not crucial.

**GitHub:**

> **[GitHub - Morgerion/defold-rtcapture: Defold native extension that captures any render...](https://github.com/Morgerion/defold-rtcapture)**
>
> Defold native extension that captures any render target or the screen to PNG or JPEG, in memory or straight to a file. Async and sync capture, region crop, box downscaling to a target width, split read/encode over two frames, fast JPEG decoding back to a texture. Pure DMSDK, no GL/DX/Vulkan code. Defold 1.14+.

Huge thanks for developing and sharing another useful extension with the Defold community! ❤

Also listed in our Asset Portal:

> **[RTCapture | Defold](https://defold.com/assets/defold-rt-capture/)**
>
> Defold native extension for capturing any render target or the screen as PNG, JPEG, or raw pixels, in memory or directly to a file. It supports cropping, downscaling, ...