How can I automate screen capture and recording with Python on Windows?

The Windows Snipping Tool doesn’t offer command‐line options or an API for controlling screen recordings (or for specifying capture areas, start/stop recording) from a script. The tool was originally designed for taking still screenshots via a GUI rather than performing video capture tasks.

If you need to automate screen recording of a specified area while running an application, you might consider one of these alternatives:

1. FFmpeg:
   FFmpeg is a powerful command‐line tool that can capture parts of your screen and record video. For example, using Windows’ gdigrab input, you can specify the capture area, frame rate, offset, and duration. Here’s a basic Python example using subprocess:

   PYTHONCopied
   import subprocess
   import time
   
   # Define recording parameters
   video_size = "1280x720"       # width x height
   offset_x, offset_y = 100, 100   # top-left corner of capture area
   framerate = "30"
   duration = 10                 # seconds
   output_file = "output.mp4"
   
   # Build ffmpeg command
   command = [
       "ffmpeg",
       "-y",  # overwrite output file if exists
       "-f", "gdigrab",
       "-framerate", framerate,
       "-offset_x", str(offset_x),
       "-offset_y", str(offset_y),
       "-video_size", video_size,
       "-i", "desktop",
       "-t", str(duration),
       output_file
   ]
   
   # Start the recording (and optionally start your application here)
   process = subprocess.Popen(command)
   process.wait()
   print("Recording complete.")

   Here, you can adjust the offset_x, offset_y, and video_size to capture the desired region, and you can control the recording duration with the -t parameter.

2. Third-party screen recording tools with APIs:
   There are several third-party screen recording utilities (e.g., OBS Studio) that offer scripting or command-line control. OBS Studio can be automated via its WebSocket API, but setting that up requires additional configuration.

3. Xbox Game Bar (Windows 10/11):
   While the Xbox Game Bar supports screen recording, it currently does not provide a straightforward programmatic interface or command-line options for automation.

Given your requirements for a high frame rate and precise control over the recording area, FFmpeg is often the best choice. It is widely used, flexible, and can be controlled entirely from a Python script via subprocess.

If you need to start an application before recording, you can simply spawn that application from your Python script using tools like subprocess or os.startfile before invoking the ffmpeg command. Just ensure that the application has enough time to start up, or handle that logic appropriately in your script.