i have a sansui vrdvd4005 dvd recorder, and im trying to make a copy of a wedding video. the photographer who shot the video and provided the vhs tape tells me that the tape is absolutely not protected, however when i try to copy the vhs tape to a dvd, either by using the dubbing feature of the dvd recorder, or even if i try connecting a vcr to the dvd recorder, i get 1 of 2 error messages:

either "cannot record C254" or "cannot record protected image".

i covered the tab on the vhs tape which had been removed to prevent accidental erasure, but still get this message.

even more puzzling, i was able to make a vhs copy of the original tape, and figured if i couldn't copy the original vhs tape onto a dvd, i'd copy my copy of the vhs tape, and i still get the same message, again whether using the dubbing feature of the dvd recorder or by using the second vcr.

this makes no sense to me at all. even if the photographer is lying to me and the vhs tape is protected, why wouldn't the copy of the vhs tape i made (which plays fine) be able to be copied onto a dvd?

any light anyone can shed on this would be greatly appreciated. thanks