Extract & Save High Resolution Icons from Mac OS X Apps

Using the same trick to create a new image file based on clipboard contents, you can extract high resolution icons from any Mac OS X application. Preview is smart enough to extract just the icon and not try to copy the app file itself (like Windows would).

• Select any app in Mac OS X Finder and hit Command+C to copy to clipboard
• Launch Preview and hit Command+N to create “New from Clipboard” (alternatively, use the File menu)
• Save the app icon as an image of your choice

This trick is great because it extracts each size variation of the icon automatically, giving you the full resolution range ranging from the tiny thumbnails up to 512×512 pixels, assuming the developer created an icon at that resolution.

Graphic designers and artists should be particularly fond of this one, as it allows you to easily inspect icons at their full resolution to see how they’re crafted.