Limelight
What is Screen Markup?
Screen markup is the practice of overlaying visual marks, such as highlights, circles, or sketches, on your display to draw attention to specific parts.
Screen markup is a broad term for putting visual marks on what is shown so others understand what you mean. It covers everything from drawing on a captured screenshot to sketching live over a running app. The shared idea is that the marks sit on top of the content and direct the viewer to a specific spot.
Markup splits into two modes. Static markup annotates a frozen image and is often saved and shared as a file. Live markup happens in real time over your actual screen and is usually cleared afterward. Choosing between them depends on whether you are documenting something or presenting it in the moment.
Limelight handles the live side on macOS and records it for you. You draw freehand markup over any app with a hotkey and wipe it with ⌃⌥C, while Limelight captures the screen and exports a finished, cinematic video — auto-zooming on clicks, smoothing the cursor, and showing your keystrokes — so your markup is baked into the recording without altering or saving the underlying content.
Why Limelight
- ▸Covers both static image markup and live on-screen marking
- ▸Marks sit on top of content to direct attention
- ▸Static markup is often saved; live markup is usually cleared
- ▸Limelight provides live freehand markup over any macOS app, cleared with ⌃⌥C
Cursor spotlight free · from $2.99/mo or $34 lifetime · macOS 14+
Or get Pro — from $2.99/mo · See how it works →
free to start, then go Pro from $2.99/mo or a $34 one-time lifetime license. macOS 14+, notarized by Apple.
FAQ
- Is screen markup only for screenshots?
- No. Screenshot markup is one form. Live screen markup, like Limelight, draws over your running screen in real time during demos and calls.
- Does Limelight markup change the app underneath?
- No. It is a transparent overlay. The app beneath is untouched, and the marks clear with ⌃⌥C.