Lolita Lo wrote:
So somebody please tell me why only a select few photographers want to shoot with me now that I am legally in charge of my career. It's driving me up the wall, it took ages to get everything sorted out. I had thought that after all the legal work was done things would be simple, yet it's like  pulling teeth to try to explain that my mothers signature isn't even legally binding on a model release or ANY business centered document.

It's not you - it's the government.  There is an absolute witch-hunt mentality regarding anything even vaguely similar to "child porn"... even a person under 18 in a swimsuit or pyjamas is borderline child porn in some misguided people's minds.   Unfortunately, those misguided people are running the country.

Until the hysteria calms down, many of us have decided that the safest route is simply not to work with anyone under 18, period.  It's not about reality, it's about managing people's perceptions.  Unfortunately, It's only going to get worse with the new 2267 regulations. 

You're probably not going to have much luck finding work on the internet until you're 18.   If you get signed by a legitimate agency, that may very well change... anything related to the internet carries a stigma in some people's eyes.

Yeah, it sucks to be you.  Thank the government for "protecting" you from being "exploited".  You have every right to be pissed off.  Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper.   Write letters to your Congressman and Senator.   Shout it from the rooftops that they've gone too far.  Coming from the mouth of a "child", your voice might be heard.

Clyph wrote:

Lolita Lo wrote:
Yeah, it sucks to be you.  Thank the government for "protecting" you from being "exploited".  You have every right to be pissed off.  Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper.   Write letters to your Congressman and Senator.   Shout it from the rooftops that they've gone too far.  Coming from the mouth of a "child", your voice might be heard.

I think I might do that

Lolita Lo wrote:
No, I know that although I can hold my own I couldn't defend myself if things were out of hand so I bring an escort with me when I shoot with most photographers and it would be stupid of me not to.


I think it's stupid not to bring an escort if you are

A. shooting with a new photographer who doesn't have a rock solid list of references

B. A generally small person who could be left vulnerable if things were to get out of hand

or

C. Young and potentially a hazard to the photographer

So does B still apply if A isn't true?  That is to say, if it's an established photographer with a rock solid list of references but the model is small is she stupid to go alone?
How about if there's an MUA present?

As far as C, that's ridiculous.  An escort does nothing to protect the photographer, as anyone a model who'd lie brings would certainly simply lie in the model's favor.

Clyph wrote:
Yeah, it sucks to be you.  Thank the government for "protecting" you from being "exploited".  You have every right to be pissed off.  Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper.   Write letters to your Congressman and Senator.   Shout it from the rooftops that they've gone too far.  Coming from the mouth of a "child", your voice might be heard.

Lolita Lo wrote:
I think I might do that

She can't vote and she's not wealthy.  The government doesn't give a shit.

SLE Photography wrote:
She can't vote and she's not wealthy.  The government doesn't give a shit.

She's a pretty white girl.   The media loves pretty white girls in distress.  Politicians love getting good press.

Clyph wrote:

She's a pretty white girl.   The media loves pretty white girls in distress.  Politicians love getting good press.

The media does not consider "I moved away from my parents and now I can't get jobs doing implied nudity" to be "distress."
In fact, going to the media with such a thing would be FAR more likely to inspire a "moral panic" response with people calling for MORE restrictions on youth modeling and "children" being allowed to live independently.

SLE Photography wrote:

The media does not consider "I moved away from my parents and now I can't get jobs doing implied nudity" to be "distress."
In fact, going to the media with such a thing would be FAR more likely to inspire a "moral panic" response with people calling for MORE restrictions on youth modeling and "children" being allowed to live independently.

Maybe yes, maybe no... depends on how you spin the story.   Leaving out anything about implied nudity is a very good idea, considering the shitstorm the Miley Cyrus pictures stirred up.

TXPhotog wrote:
3.  If you are in Tennessee, even though you are legally emancipated, you may not have the legal power to contract in your own name.  There is such a thing as "voluntary emancipation" which appears not to require a court order, but it comes in more than one form, and is limited.  From case law in Tennessee:

(much removed)

I'm so glad you're around.  I'm not nearly motivated enough to look up this stuff for the benefit of these threads.  I need someone like you to do my research for me.

BlackWatch wrote:
It's because we don't want to pay OUR lawyer to see if what YOUR lawyer wrote is acceptable in our situation...now without a lawyer I can feel comfortable that an over 18 person signing their own papers is perfectly acceptable...so I save a lot on legal fees that way...

The fact that you paid a bunch of money for the papers doesn't help me any...it just makes me wonder "in which situations don't they apply"...see where I'm going with that?

QFT.

I'd add that ranting about photographers who're trying to *protect themselves and their livelihoods* from today's minefield of underaged Lolitas who want to shoot nude, implied nude, et cetera, and aren't above forging signatures and documents isn't endearing you to any of those photographers that you're wanting to shoot with.

Caradoc wrote:

QFT.

I'd add that ranting about photographers who're trying to *protect themselves and their livelihoods* from today's minefield of underaged Lolitas who want to shoot nude, implied nude, et cetera, and aren't above forging signatures and documents isn't endearing you to any of those photographers that you're wanting to shoot with.

Before we decided we were not going to work with models under 18...

2 out of the 3 we talked with...their parent was "not interested" in coming to the shoot and could they just get a copy of the release so they could bring it to us with their parents signature already on it...

We had 2- 18 year olds mysteriously cancel about the time we told them they had to bring a drivers license or State Id with them...

I'm sure it is not this way in the professional fashion world with agencies and high dollar studios...but in my little artist corner of the world I'll stick to over 18 as the risks are less...

Jerry Nemeth wrote:
Many photographers will not shoot models under 18 and models who bring escorts!!
There are 2 strikes against you.

See in my experience that doesn't count as two strikes, seeing as most photographers have SUGGESTED that I bring an escort BECAUSE I'm a minor.

Ariel Danielle wrote:
Trust me, I've been doing this and going through all the same since I was 13. Now that I turn 18 next month, I'm getting a considerable amount of requests that probably would've never happened unless I'd put 'about to turn 18' on my portfolio.

Ariel Danielle wrote:
Edit: Not to mention, once you find an agency most of MM becomes moot, hah.

True!

Ariel Danielle wrote:

See in my experience that doesn't count as two strikes, seeing as most photographers have SUGGESTED that I bring an escort BECAUSE I'm a minor.

Agreed, except we generally want that escort to be a PARENT or LEGAL GUARDIAN.
An underage model showing up with a parent or BFF is even MORE of an issue than an of-age model doing so in many cases.

BlackWatch wrote:
but in my little artist corner of the world I'll stick to over 18 as the risks are less...

As long as you can prove they're over 18, you won't end up like this guy.

Caradoc wrote:

As long as you can prove they're over 18, you won't end up like this guy.

The mods hid that thread, and that is probably best. Discussion of a former member and his unfortunate reason for leaving don't really belong here.