scandal599
Deregistered
Permit me to say this here as it is something I have to get off my chest.
As I was reading through TNP's article again, it got me thinking. As per a previous topic http://www.clubsnap.com/forums/showthread.php?t=440352, I gave credit to the TS for bringing this issue up, what I slammed was the points he made on morals and some arguments he mentioned that somehow did not seem to gel. In the light of this article that appeared yesterday, there are somethings which I need to just get it off my mind.
The way I look at it, there are two sides to the same coin. One side is the shoot organiser and the other is the shooter who engages the model himself. Contrary to what others may say, age is still a key factor here. I know I will get slammed on this, but go ahead, it does not matter.
To put a case in point. A few years back, there was a big issue with a Japanese model by the name Saaya Iriee. For those who do not know or forget who this person is, do a Google, you will know why. She was only 11 but she actually managed to forge closer ties in Sino-Japanese relations. She was a huge hit in the net, but at the same time, her parents and agent were also blasted for the same reason she was a hit. No matter which jurisdiction we are talking about, age is always a game of catch me if you can. If any legal issue is to be called here, let me state that from what I know, anybody under the age of 16 in SG is a minor. Anybody at the age of 18 can be tried in the court of law as an adult. I am not a lawyer for the record, this is what I know by far.
As organisers, while they are not exactly duty bound to protect their models, there is a certain obligation for the organisers to do so. Organisers such as Melody-love (though I have not attended any of her shoots) , I believe she keeps a portfolio of the models she has worked with before. Same goes with Ivan S or any other shoot organiser, I believe, unless they are dubious. For that matter, it is beyond a shadow of a doubt that many, if not all of the shoot organisers here do an age check before even marketing the shoot. How they market it is another question which I will not go into as it will open a can of worms. It is clearly then that the onus in this case is on the organiser to verify the issues at hand lest the organiser themselves get implicated for all the wrong reason.
The other is where the shooter engages the model. In this case, any shooter in the right frame of mind will meet up with the model first and talk to the model about what he is shooting and how he will be conducting the shoot. At the same time, any shooter will talk about concepts and gain feedback from the model as to what is permitted and what is not, especially in the context of the theme. Be it a normal fashion shoot, theme shoot, bikini, lingerie, nude or whatever the case is any shooter will do this to gain an understanding between himself and the model. But in this case here, anything can happen and most of the time, it is the model's word against the shooter' word, especially since if the model were female and the shooter male.
Photographers who scour the Internet to look and prey on young girls like these for the lure of easy money most of the time are people seeking to satisfy some hedonistic fantasies, especially since they are young and impressionable. As such, the model must be smart enough to walk away from the shoot. If what they are afraid of is being branded as unprofessional, then they are seriously misguided. Will any girl want to be caught in a uncompromising position? If they have a valid reason for walking away from a shoot, then I do not see it as unprofessional. There is however a fine line being a prima donna and a diva as compared to one who is professional.
For any model wannabe or aspiring models looking for shoots here and are reading this: it takes two hands to clap. Be smart enough to walk away from a shoot if you feel something is wrong especially with the request the shooter has made. To be branded as unprofessional by someone who does not have any professional ethics as a photographer is something you should not be losing sleep over. If you accept any form of indecent proposals in spite of knowing that it falls out of line with what you are comfortable, then I question your professionalism.
As I was reading through TNP's article again, it got me thinking. As per a previous topic http://www.clubsnap.com/forums/showthread.php?t=440352, I gave credit to the TS for bringing this issue up, what I slammed was the points he made on morals and some arguments he mentioned that somehow did not seem to gel. In the light of this article that appeared yesterday, there are somethings which I need to just get it off my mind.
The way I look at it, there are two sides to the same coin. One side is the shoot organiser and the other is the shooter who engages the model himself. Contrary to what others may say, age is still a key factor here. I know I will get slammed on this, but go ahead, it does not matter.
To put a case in point. A few years back, there was a big issue with a Japanese model by the name Saaya Iriee. For those who do not know or forget who this person is, do a Google, you will know why. She was only 11 but she actually managed to forge closer ties in Sino-Japanese relations. She was a huge hit in the net, but at the same time, her parents and agent were also blasted for the same reason she was a hit. No matter which jurisdiction we are talking about, age is always a game of catch me if you can. If any legal issue is to be called here, let me state that from what I know, anybody under the age of 16 in SG is a minor. Anybody at the age of 18 can be tried in the court of law as an adult. I am not a lawyer for the record, this is what I know by far.
As organisers, while they are not exactly duty bound to protect their models, there is a certain obligation for the organisers to do so. Organisers such as Melody-love (though I have not attended any of her shoots) , I believe she keeps a portfolio of the models she has worked with before. Same goes with Ivan S or any other shoot organiser, I believe, unless they are dubious. For that matter, it is beyond a shadow of a doubt that many, if not all of the shoot organisers here do an age check before even marketing the shoot. How they market it is another question which I will not go into as it will open a can of worms. It is clearly then that the onus in this case is on the organiser to verify the issues at hand lest the organiser themselves get implicated for all the wrong reason.
The other is where the shooter engages the model. In this case, any shooter in the right frame of mind will meet up with the model first and talk to the model about what he is shooting and how he will be conducting the shoot. At the same time, any shooter will talk about concepts and gain feedback from the model as to what is permitted and what is not, especially in the context of the theme. Be it a normal fashion shoot, theme shoot, bikini, lingerie, nude or whatever the case is any shooter will do this to gain an understanding between himself and the model. But in this case here, anything can happen and most of the time, it is the model's word against the shooter' word, especially since if the model were female and the shooter male.
Photographers who scour the Internet to look and prey on young girls like these for the lure of easy money most of the time are people seeking to satisfy some hedonistic fantasies, especially since they are young and impressionable. As such, the model must be smart enough to walk away from the shoot. If what they are afraid of is being branded as unprofessional, then they are seriously misguided. Will any girl want to be caught in a uncompromising position? If they have a valid reason for walking away from a shoot, then I do not see it as unprofessional. There is however a fine line being a prima donna and a diva as compared to one who is professional.
For any model wannabe or aspiring models looking for shoots here and are reading this: it takes two hands to clap. Be smart enough to walk away from a shoot if you feel something is wrong especially with the request the shooter has made. To be branded as unprofessional by someone who does not have any professional ethics as a photographer is something you should not be losing sleep over. If you accept any form of indecent proposals in spite of knowing that it falls out of line with what you are comfortable, then I question your professionalism.
