Nvidia Ansel is arguably the best in-game screenshot tool, but how do you use it, and how does it work? Here, we walk you through all of the information you need to know about Nvidia Ansel and how to best use it to capture your gaming experiences.
What is Nvidia Ansel, and will it work on my system?
Nvidia Ansel is a proprietary Nvidia software feature that allows its users to take better screenshots, whether that’s by massively amplifying the resolution, taking in-game 360-degree panoramas, or getting free camera controls in games that otherwise wouldn’t have them.
Because it’s a proprietary Nvidia feature, it will not work on AMD or Intel graphics cards. As long as you have a modern Nvidia graphics card with updated Nvidia drivers, you shouldn’t have an issue using this feature in supported games.
Not sure if you have an Nvidia card or not? Click here to check which graphics card you’re using on Windows 10.
Also read:How to Take Screenshots in Windows 10
Will Nvidia Ansel work in my games?
Nvidia supports taking in-game screenshots for just about any game you play, whether or not it specifically supports Ansel. If your game of choice does support Ansel, applying Nvidia’s Game Filters and standard screenshot features should always be available. What your game might not support is features like free camera movement, but in the case of Tekken 7 and The Witcher 3, no features are absent.
To check whether your game of choice supports Ansel, head to Nvidia’s Supported Games page, then click “Optimal Game Settings” on the top right to reveal a drop-down. Select “Ansel” in this drop-down.
How to use Nvidia Ansel in supported games
Fortunately, using Nvidia Ansel is pretty simple. First, use Alt + Z to open your GeForce Experience (If you haven’t installed it, download it here) overlay while in-game.
Then, click “Photo mode” on the left. Alternatively, you can toggle Ansel on and off at any time by just hitting Alt + F2 while in the game.
Once you’ve activated your Nvidia Ansel sidebar, you’ll be presented with a variety of options. For your convenience, we have listed them and what they do in plain text below.
Capture Options
- Screenshot – Your basic screenshot. It will work in even non-Ansel supported games.
- Super Resolution Photo – Allows you to take your screenshot and capture at a super high resolution, several times higher than your native resolution. Great for capturing images you intend to use for desktop wallpapers or real-life prints and posters.
- 360 Photo Sphere – Allows you to take a 360-degree panoramic photo.
Camera Options
In addition to the camera options shown in the overlay, you can take control of the free camera in supported titles using either your gamepad or mouse and keyboard in the main window, with a combination of movement keys/sticks and mouse/right-stick movements.
- Field of View – The field of view of the screenshot, adjusted by a slider and measured in degrees.
- Roll – Allows you to dynamically tilt the image, adjusted by a slider and measured in degrees.
Filters
Most of the Filters are fairly self-explanatory in nature, but a few of them are worth noting. Filters like Depth of Field or Remove HUD (beta) may not work properly in all Ansel-supported games, especially those that don’t offer features like free camera control. In our own testing with Doom: Eternal, for instance, Depth of Field doesn’t work because it requires the game engine to allow access to depth data that Eternal does not provide.
Parting Words
We hope that article gave you a good starting point on getting into Nvidia Ansel. Chances are high that you’ve had this feature sitting under your nose for quite some time now and just haven’t used it yet, so we hope that bringing it to your attention proves useful. Do you know you can also use Nvidia Share to stream your gaming?
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