Is there anyway to make a CD unable to be copied?

[kaitlin_gallagher]

Hello All,

I am relatively new to wedding & event photography and constantly come accross questions that I don't know the

answers too. I know that I probably don't do all things the way they "should" be done when it comes to the

business, photography, editing, sales ect. of event photography and that's why I turn here...

 

Currently I photograph an event, edit the pictures, burn a CD/DVD of the images and give them to the clients. I know

this isn't very professional and in this day and age people can reproduce those CD/DVDs however many times they

like.

 

I really would like it if they weren't able to do so, and I guess this is because I charge for additional CDs, and anyone

with a 1/2 computer literate brain would say to themselves "Why pay her $50 for an extra CD when I can just burn

myself one?"

 

How can I remedy this, is there a way to burn protect a CD/DVD so copies cannot be made? Or should I find some

other sort of way to give access of event images to clients.

 

Any tips/help would be greatly appreciated.

 

New to the business & business dumb....

 

Kaitlin

[reichard]

Even if you can make a CD/DVD with copy protection, as long as the user can access the files in Explorer/Finder, it is trivial for them to copy the pix to a folder and burn their own CD.

[steven_clark]

I've never heard of an effective copy protection for CD's that didn't involve installing mostly-illegal backdoor software on the user's computer.

[james_lai]

I just replaced the DVD burner in my computer last week and the new drive has something called "SecurDisc." I haven't really looked into it, but apparently it is a hardware feature that can prevent copies being made. You'll have to Google the term for more info, I don't know anything else about it and haven't even installed the software to enable it.

[joe_a2]

One solution is to put lower resolution images on the CD for computer viewing (perhaps 600x900), and retain the full-res images and sell enlargements. Then as they make copies of the CD and hand them out, you get more potential customers.

[carl_klitzke]

I used to see a lot of "DVD Slideshows" brought into my lab and people would ask for prints from them. This way the pictures are encoded on the DVD in a still format as part of the DVD video 'package' on the disc. I have yet to see minilab equipment that can grab stills out of there, but this also keeps the customer from getting said images from disc for personal use, whatever that may be. Probably the best way around this is to sell low-res "email" quality cds and start selling prints, there are a few companies online that will let your customers order prints directly from them at your price (I think..) and deliver them right to your customer. Not quite what you were looking for, but just remember: if it can be seen, it can be imitated. IMO selling prints is the best way to go, esp with the number of one-stop services for photogs.

[obakesan]

In short no

 

however Joe's suggestion is about the best I think you can do

[patricklavoie]

i second Joe suggestion also.

[kevan_goddard]

Is the original CD just for viewing the photographs or viewing and printing??

For viewing only: low res (72 dpi); DVD slideshow; flash movie; copyright symbol; etc., etc.

 

If you want to allow printing then I'm afraid there is not a lot you can do - if the movie industry cannot stop pirating of their discs - including BluRay and HDTV (yes I know this is already dead) then what chance have you got??

 

You could also "rethink" your business model - how many "extra" CDs do you actually sell and at what price?

Why not increase the price of the first CD to take into account pirating and not have to rely on the extra income from repeat orders?

[kevan_goddard]

I wish there was an edit facility on this site :o(

 

Another though just occurred to me - perceived value. Are your wedding CDs/DVDs professionally presented -

printed disk in case with printed cover - or are they just plain old "here's a disk".

 

Example of cover (low res):<div></div>

[Ed_Ingold]

Is there anyway to make a CD unable to be copied?

 

Not for long!

 

The most "successful" solutions have been the inclusion of bad sectors or self-loading software to disable the host computer. Sony did the latter and was successfuly sued to halt the practice, and there is screening software to intercept any future attempt in this regard (not to mention a boycott of Sony software of any sort). Bad sectors can be a problem for disc-imaging copies, but usually individual files can be copied or moved without problems. There are several forensic programs which can work around bad sectors or even extract data around the flaws within that sector.

 

Your best defense is to get what you can for usage rights and walk away, or limit the image size/quality on the disc. Resolution sufficient to look nice on a TV screen, even an HD set, is barely enough to make a 4x6 inch print.

[Richard Williams]

One thing to remember is that a protected DVD slideshow or supposedly 'copy-resistant' CD is a very different and IMHO much less desirable product to what you're currently providing. It's likely that your clients aren't just viewing your photos from the CD, they're probably emailing individual images, posting them on the web, making their own prints, etc. Why not embrace these possibilities with a suitable scale of charges, balanced against conventional reprint fees, that give the clients what they want? Cheapest could be a set of visibly watermarked images purely for print selection, then a set of low resolution images for email/web use, and finally a deluxe package with full-resolution images suitable for printing (offered on top of your event charge and a standard print package). You don't need to give away your copyright, just license the images for strictly non-commercial use and distribution by the clients.

[bangengeman]

Hi, I think I'll offer a different suggestion. Why not distribute them online, for a certain time frame? I dunno,

maybe 30-45 days, then pay extra for an extension? I don't know of any sites that can do that off the bat right

now, but if you can find the right person/people (web developers are a dime a dozen -- but a lot are going to try to

play around with you so beware), it is very much possible, and won't take long if you're on the right page with

the developer. As a software developer myself, I'd suggest going this route than trying to copy-protect your CDs.

 

If you have questions on how to get started, I can help.

[kaitlin_gallagher]

Thank you all for your ideas and input. Again it is another learning experience. I really like the idea from Richard Williams.

I will have to look into changing my price base around to do this, but I do not think that is a bad thing at all.

 

Thanks again all!

Kaitlin

[Stock-Photos]

The creator of "Slide Show to Go" claims you can make an exe slide show which prevents the user from copying files but I cannot verify this:

 

http://www.nightwatchsoftware.com/sstg/sstg.htm

 

(You can download a free trial version.)

[r_johnston]

Viewing and distribution on the Web may be a good way to go.

You can put high or low res pictures on zenfolio.com, and sell prints through zenfolio.com, they are protected

from downloading, unless you set it to be allowed.. They handle the credit cards, etc, and MPIX ships them

direct to the customer.

 

On eBay, bought a file which added to a web page when you create it, blocks anyone from looking at the page code

or capturing a copy of the image. Some claim it still can be done, but I used it for several years on eBay.

Added it to _each_ page of my ebay website. Was selling my wife and my paintings, and prints of them on canvas.

Sold a lot of prints, as far as I know, no one could make a copy of them. But, if they did, so many bought

copies it did not matter.

 

If anyone does a search on eBay for it, the programmer may still be selling it.

 

Many use 3x or 4x copies at 72 pixels, that is poor protection. Anyone who knows how, can still make larger

prints with them.

 

 

You could also use: Screen Saver Builder

 

To Create your own screensavers

 

Screen Saver Builder merges your .jpg, .gif, .bmp images and .mp3, .wav and .mid sounds to a compact, single

file, Windows standard, screensaver!

 

No programming skills needed: just collect images and sounds and add them to your screen saver project with a

point-and-click, easy to use, interface.

 

Creates independent sldeshow style screensavers, with 40 image transition effects.

 

Full support for self-installing screensavers. Fully compatible with all Windows 32bit platforms

(95/98/ME/NT/2000/XP). Available in two editions: Standard, for personal use, and Professional to create

shareware screensavers complete of nag screens and registration keys support.

 

Screen Saver Builder is a SHAREWARE software, it means that you can use the trial version for 21 days (please

read license.txt for further information) then a registration fee is required.

 

For further infomation about the product or the author please see:

 

http://www.mgshareware.com

 

With this screensaver, you set the time it can be viewed, include a nag file if you wish as an advertisement for

prints or whatever, and to continue using it, they need to pay you. IF they do, you send a password which

unlocks _their_ copy. Then, just allow anyone to make as many copies of the original they desire, and pass them

around to friends and relatives, etc.... You could find people paying with Paypal, etc a year or more later for a

password.