Your computer is not a good place to save photos.
Computers crash. Files get corrupted. You can accidentally delete your files. Laptops get stolen, dropped, or lost. If the only copy of the photo is on your computer, and something happens to the computer, it is lost forever.

What’s 'burning' a CD and can my computer do it?
Burning a CD refers to the laser that actually heats up a layer in the CD and etches information into the disk. Most computers today can make or “burn” CD's, and many can burn DVD's as well. If the front of your disc drive says "CD-RW", "burner" or "writer" then you know it can burn discs.

Make sure you're using the right disc. If it only has an "R" on the end it is 'write once' and can be used for archiving your photos. If it says RW or RAM at the end it is re-writable. Those formats are OK for back-up but shouldn't be used to archive your photos.

On Windows: Insert a disc into your PC and click on the Details of the CD drive, then click on the Properties window with a follow up click on Hardware.
On a Mac: Go to the Apple menu in the upper left-hand corner of your screen and select "About this Mac". Click on "More Info" to get the window that will describe the hardware your computer has.

Look for words such as "CD-R","CD-RW" or "burner". Keep in mind there are many different types of CD and DVD burners and it can get confusing. But as we mentioned above, CD-R or DVD-R/DVD+R are all we need to use. Click on FAQ on the navigation bar on this site or check your owner’s manual.

How can I put my photos on a CD?
On Windows, go to your My Pictures folder and select the folders/photos you
want to burn to disc. Under "Picture Tasks" in the left-hand sidebar, click "Copy to CD." A message balloon will appear when Windows is ready to write the files. Click the message balloon and a window will open showing the files ready to be written to the CD. Click Write these files to CD in the CD Writing Tasks area.
Follow the prompts from the CD Writing Wizard.
On a Mac, a CD can be burned directly from iPhoto. Select the photos you
want to burn to the disc, and click the burn button. You will be prompted to
insert a blank CD.
That’s it, you’ve just “burned” your photos to a CD.

Photo saving strategies.
Pick a date every month that is your day to archive pictures.
Send copies of discs to friends and relatives. It’s a great way to keep in touch, share memories and keep a backup of your photos just in case something happens.
Create slideshows if you have the capability, so that everyone can have fun looking at your shots.

How many photos will a CD hold.
The short answer is a lot. The long answer is it depends on your camera, the image size and the quality of your jpeg. The chart below will give you an idea of how many photos from a 5 megapixel camera will fit on a CD or DVD.