DVD or Flash drive?

<p>I have been giving clients DVDs for quite some time, and I'm considering switching to the flash drive. I know it's not as cost effective, but other than that I'd like some opinions on the pros and cons of using the flash drive. Thanks!</p>

<p>Double Layer DVD can hold considerable volume, perhaps thousands of JPG or other format images, more than aver taken during an event, like a wedding. If media is not rewriteable, it will last for a long time.<br />Use archival quality media.</p>

<p>If you must fit on a single disc, write on a Blu-Ray media, but perhaps multiple DL DVD is a better solution.</p>

<p>Flash drives could opossibly get erased when needed for something else, and customer will come back to you for second copy. Do you expect to keep their photos forever ?</p>

<p>I'm curious: WHY are you considering this?</p>

<p>The basic fact is, ALL media in use today are subject to obsolescence tomorrow. I've been working with personal computers since 1985. I have hundreds of disks in my office — 3.5" microfloppies (the disks Macs used to use), Zip and Jazz disks, as well as old-format hard drives — that I can no longer easily access. And of course I have thousands and thousands of old files that I can't easily access any more because their file formats are no longer supported. This is why I tell my clients very emphatically that, if they want to be able to view their files in twenty, thirty, forty years, the only way that will give them any real confidence is to get the pictures printed.</p>

<p>Now CDs and DVDs have had a pretty good run and they're still pretty widely supported. But you can't mount a DVD on an iPad or iPhone. You can (I think) mount a USB thumb drive full of pictures if you have an adapter. (I've never done it but I think it's possible.) But aside from the cost, I would think that CD/DVD is still the safer way to go, if only for the reason that Frank S. already mentioned: it's not that hard for the client to erase the pictures on a thumb drive by accident.</p>

<p>I now tend to deliver images over the Internet. Let the client store them however they like. But I lecture them about (a) backing up their digital files, (b) being aware that hardware and software formats will certainly change in the future and there's a good chance those changes will make it more difficult for them to access their digital files. </p>

<p>I don't push prints because I want to sell prints. I do want to sell prints. But I push prints because prints are in the client's best interest.</p>

<p>Will</p>

People loose flash drives.Me included. I've been doing Blue Ray lately although they the clients, don't get them. I use them for storage. Blue Ray is just too cool because you can see every mark on someone. They also hold around 20 to 25 gb's of info, so you can put several weddings on the disk, such as March weddings, then April, so forth.These reader/writers went from around $300 down to just 100 or less.

 

If I run out of blue rays I use double sided life time warranty double 8 DVD's.

 

Whatever system you use back them up on a hard drive. Mine are dated per year. If the bride wants some orders from 2003 I simple ask the date of the wedding and pop in that HD. No problems so far.

<p>The question relates to giving clients their digital files on flash/thumb/USB drives. Got it?</p>

<p>This is getting quite popular with some photographers getting their logos put on the drive and, naturally, using presentation boxes. More devices can be used to view the images with a USB drive than a DVD. Every laptop has a USB port and many HDTVs now have a port also.</p>

<p>I generally just ask. DVD, flash drive, download.</p>

<p>I give the clients both Archival Gold DVDs ... and a USB thumb-drive that's attached to a stainless steel heart key-fob which they are far less likely to lose. Brides LOVE this item because they have their pics and slide show in their purse at all times.</p>

<p>The DVDs are then their back-up ... which I tell them to store in a safe place. I keep everything on a Annual HD, and most weddings are also loaded onto Smug-Mug so friends and family can buy prints rather than bug the B&G for them.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>It's an excellent 'kicker'. You can get them w/ logos and customized shapes and colors... all kinds of cool stuff. Plus, as Bruce pointed out, every netbook, plus most TVs have usb slots these days... so it's a cool thing that the bride loves to show off, and it can even have your logo emblazoned upon it... <br>

However, I would also (and do) provide an archival grade DVD-R disc. The usb thumb drives are easy to loose or forget, and just as easy to format/delete. I've seen a 5yr old kid wipe one of em. With a good quality Archival grade disc, you've little to worry about - not indestructible of course, but utterly reliable (for ~300yrs at least), and 'delete/format' proof. </p>

<p>I deliver on wooden thumb drive with my logo put in a velvet type pouch. Expensive but classy.</p>

<p>The primary reason I stick to DVD is because it's not going to wind up being a "Typhoid Mary" carrying viruses to all her friends (after the first time she sticks it into a friend's infected computer). <br>

Also it won't get lost as easily. Also it's more cost effective. Also it provides me with yet two more another places to show the best image and my logo (I use printed discs and covers).<br>

I don't think we'll see flash drives replacing DVD as transmission media. We'll probably forego all physical transmission media completely--maybe pretty soon. As we already see, tablets are working hard to obsolete flash drives as transmission media even now...who is really going to fool with a dongle?<br>

But ultimately, I still prefer the print option as the best <strong>display</strong> medium. </p>

<p>All my images for my clients are available as a ZIP download from my server/site. I stopped sending out DVD's two years ago.</p>