[superbad]

"Budgeted Time: 48hrs (approximately one weekend)"

That's a long weekend!

[lebbeus]

yeah, that would be long, but I was trying to be prepared for unforseen problems with the design like handrails that are drawn in plan but when modeled don't even come close to meeting code (actually happened with this project) or benches that need a railing so people don't fall off the back, but the railing isn't drawn or designed so I have to come up with something(another problem with this project)…the big problem with doing viz projects is that you can't always guarantee that you will get good information or even the correct information, though it does help with arch viz to be trained as an architect so you're able to catch potential problems. I should probably charge them for that or something…maybe next time.

I'm definitely going to be sending restricted PDFs from now on--does anyone know if later versions of Acrobat (6-8) can circumvent the security features of an older version (I'm still on 5--haven't upgraded acrobat here yet)??

Anyone know of additional DRM type methods that can be embedded into an image that will either restrict printing and copying or print out a warning instead of the image when printed without permission?? I remember reading about something like that, but maybe it was a dream…

[Frances]

I figured I didn't need to explicitly say they couldn't print the images until the client signed-off and the print res versions were completed.

What we do is tell them the proofs will be delivered in PDF format. We make the rendering, use Photoshop to save it to PDF and then password protect the file that they can't print it. They can open it and view it. They can't save it or print it. Now I guess if they get smart they can just "Print Screen" it and then print from a different program, but there's only so much you can do to prevent someone who's determined. Anyways, good luck with everything.

Chris

I guess I'm pretty lucky. So far I haven't worked for any crooks yet. I certainly wouldn't treat a client like a crook. And if the client turned out to be a crook, then lesson learned, and I don't work for that person again. I get a substantial portion of my fee up front. And I charge a substantial fee. If the client wants to paper their walls with my preliminaries, they are welcome to. If they want to paper someone else's walls with them, they have my blessing.

[glebe digital]

I would imagine password-protecting WIP renders would annoy most clients, to me it suggests a lack of trust and I'm sure it would put off a lot of people returning with more projects............for me, first-time clients pay 50% up-front and the balance on completion, regular clients get this 50% pre-payment waived and this seems to work just fine.

[b-kandor]

So many different experiences....

I work for a small set of companies and in each case I work with neither a contract or money up front or a quote or even an estimate(ok, sometimes someone will ask for an 'idea' of how much it would cost, theoretically speaking). Everything here is done by trust and good faith. I invoice after the work is done according to how much effort (time) it took which is good for me because I don't have to account for the inevitable extras or revisions and they don't pay extra if I finish early. In some cases I've worked with the same people (as they've moved from company to company over the course of nearly 20 years). It's a good system for me. I would never watermark or protect my stuff - I guess I just don't feel the need.

[lebbeus]

I see it as a misrepresentation on their part as to what they actually wanted, not that they're crooks, though my old boss is a bit of a creep, but that's another story--I've been contracted to only do the modeling right now; the final renders may be done by one of the local heavy hitters and I didn't contract to give them printable renders, only proofs to show modeling progress. I feel that showing prints of these lo-res images to potential donors is like one of their (the architecture firm's) clients trying to build a project using pdfs of floor plans that were sent for discussion. They've already used the incidental images for their ultimate purpose and they're taking credit.

Shouldn't we, as artists have the right to determine how our images are used, even if they're wip or incidental to the contracted purpose? I realize that some of you don't really care how these wips are used; that's ok. The funny thing is that if I had known they were wanting to print them, I would have cooked higher-res versions (and not charged extra), printing the 640x480 ones makes me look bad and could potentially hurt future business (though no one actually knows it's me, so I guess it's a moot point) (and of course the ones in my wip topic aren't watermarked or anything else, so I'm just continuing to mess up )

I think I'm just going to walk away from this project (after I get paid for the modeling of course).

I take full responsibility for letting this happen and not stipulating at the begining how I wanted my images to be used until I was paid and the release was signed. I just feel stupid for not expecting this.

[Tim Ellis]

There's a simple way round the pdf locking method though. Ok you can't directly print or copy any included images, but print screen>paste to PS>resize>print is not protected.

Thank you for the great tips in this thread.

Tim.

[w i l l]

Am I right in thinking that if I make a Flash showreel and link the client to it, they can't copy the images?

[michaelplogue]

Am I right in thinking that if I make a Flash showreel and link the client to it, they can't copy the images?

There are still several programs that will allow you to extract raw image/movie files from Flash file. Although this will make it harder for them, if they're smart enough, they can work around this as well.

[MarkM]

Am I right in thinking that if I make a Flash showreel and link the client to it, they can't copy the images?

Theres always alt + print screen, then they paste it into ms paint or photowhatever.