How to record a video with your Mac camera
To record a video with your Mac camera, open QuickTime Player, choose File › New Movie Recording and click the red record button; click it again to stop and save the file. Photo Booth can record short clips too. MacCam records with one key press, can pause and resume, and saves the video straight into Apple Photos.
With QuickTime Player
- Open QuickTime Player from Applications or Spotlight.
- Choose File › New Movie Recording (⌥⌘N).
- Click the arrow next to the record button to choose the camera and microphone.
- Click the red button to start, click again to stop, then File › Save.
With Photo Booth
- Open Photo Booth and choose “Record a movie clip” at the bottom left.
- Click the red button to start and again to stop.
- The clip stays in Photo Booth; drag it out to keep it elsewhere.
Easier with MacCam
Record with MacCam
- Open MacCam and switch to Video (or press ⌘3).
- Press Space to start. Use the pause button to pause and resume in the same clip.
- Press Space again to stop. The video is saved into Apple Photos, album “Camera”.
Questions
How long can I record?
As long as there is space on your Mac. A minute of 1080p video takes roughly 100–200 MB.
Can I pause a recording?
QuickTime Player and Photo Booth cannot pause a camera recording. MacCam can.
Can I use my iPhone to record on the Mac?
Yes. With Continuity Camera your iPhone shows up as a camera in QuickTime Player, Photo Booth and MacCam.