Taking a screenshot on your iPad Air M3 is one of those skills you'll reach for constantly, whether you're saving a recipe, capturing a drawing, or sharing a funny meme. The iPad gives you several ways to grab whatever's on screen, and once you learn them all, you'll never fumble for a button again.
Press the Top Button and Volume Up
This is the standard method for any iPad with a Home button-free design. Press the Top button (on the top right edge) and the Volume Up button at the same time, then release both quickly. Your screen will flash white and you'll hear a camera shutter sound (if the device isn't muted). A small preview thumbnail pops up in the bottom-left corner.
Tap that thumbnail to crop, annotate, or draw on the screenshot before it saves. If you leave it alone, the screenshot is automatically saved to the Photos app under the Screenshots album.
Enable AssistiveTouch for a Software Shortcut
If your physical buttons feel stiff or you just prefer a tap‑based method, AssistiveTouch is your friend. Open Settings > Accessibility > Touch > AssistiveTouch and toggle it on. A small floating button appears anywhere on your screen.
Tap the floating button, then go to Device > More > Screenshot. The screenshot captures exactly what's on screen, minus the AssistiveTouch menu. You can also customize that menu so a single tap, double tap, or long press on the floating button triggers a screenshot directly.
Set Up Back Tap
This hidden shortcut works beautifully on the iPad Air M3. Go to Settings > Accessibility > Touch > Back Tap. Choose either Double Tap or Triple Tap, then pick Screenshot from the actions list.
Now you can take a screenshot just by tapping the back of your iPad two or three times. It works through most cases and feels almost magical once you get used to it.
Ask Siri to Do It
When your hands are full or you just want to say the words, try "Hey Siri, take a screenshot." Siri captures whatever is currently on screen and saves it to the Photos app automatically. This works whether you're working on a document, browsing the web, or editing a photo.
Capture an Entire Webpage as a PDF
Need to save a whole article or tutorial that extends beyond the screen? Take a regular screenshot using any method above, then tap the preview thumbnail in the bottom-left corner. At the top of the editing screen you'll see two tabs: Screen and Full Page.
Tap Full Page to capture everything in one scrollable PDF. You can then share it via Messages or Mail, or save it to the Files app for later reference. This works in Safari, Notes, and many other apps that support scrolling content.
Edit and Share Right Away
After you take a screenshot, the thumbnail stays in the corner for a few seconds. Tap it to open the markup tools: you can crop, draw, add text, zoom in, or highlight key parts. When you're done, hit the share icon to send the screenshot to a friend, an email, or another app.
Every screenshot ends up in the Photos app under Albums > Screenshots. From there you can organize, delete, or export them whenever you want.
Customize Your Screenshot Experience
If the shutter sound bothers you, flip the silent mode on. On the iPad Air M3, you can mute the device by pressing and holding the volume down button or by swiping down from the top-right corner and tapping the bell icon. Silent screenshots are completely soundless.
For full‑page screenshots, you can change where PDFs save by choosing a different folder in the share sheet. Some people prefer sending PDFs straight to iCloud Drive or a specific project folder in Files. It's a small tweak that keeps your Screenshots album from getting cluttered.