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Originally Posted by AaronM
?PORN? That evil word grabs the attention of anybody and everybody who ever hears it outside of our little circle. Most like it but few will publicly admit it, especially in mixed crowds. Most have paid for it at one time or another which creates a supply and demand issue that they then seem to somehow overlook while they are busy passing judgment on those of us who are in this industry. If you think there is a single male in the Bush administration who has never purchased ?porn? in one form or another then you are sadly mistaken.
The days of making easy money in online porn are far gone now. The media has pushed us into the spotlight and in many ways they have even made porn more acceptable. In doing so, they have helped to flood the market more then ever and have made it a bit easier to find willing models as well.
2HousePlague gave me a few suggestions to write about. One of them was Model Recruiting. Since I recently wrote about this on www.kblogger.com I will refrain from doing so again. What I will do is suggest that you check it out.
I will also follow it up by saying that many people thought I was full of shit about recruiting total amateurs in public places. If you attended the San Diego show a few weeks back then you might recognize this girl since she was one of the hotel staff.
Many people tried to get her to work with them but only one actually has the chance?.Although I?ve been way too busy to follow up with her lately.  She has a good amateur look and is a real sweetheart too. I can?t wait to get back to Diego and work with her.
Moving on??
Producing ?porn? for a living is not as easy as most people think. All the time people tell me that I must have the best job in the world. Oh yeah? Try dealing with models, suitcase pimps, and picky clients. Spend a day shooting then another day or two editing and prepping the content. Then come back and tell me how easy I have it. Don?t even get me started on the marketing aspects of this business. I know 2 very kick ass shooters who post on GFY from time to time and both of them are the typical ?starving artist? simply because neither of them know how to market what they shoot. They have OK ideas but none that will ever appeal to the masses and they don?t even know how to implement their ideas themselves yet they don?t see the value in properly paying somebody else to help them sell it. It?s pretty sad really.
Getting models to do more freaky shit is pretty easy. I learned a long time ago that it?s not what you say but how you say it. If a girl comes in and wants to shoot regular nudes but your needs include masturbation or more, you have to overcome these obstacles.
The first thing I do is tell them what I need. The harsh truth of the matter is that I really don?t give a fuck what the model wants to do, I care about my needs and the needs of my clients. If the model is not comfortable filling those needs then I have no use for her. There is always another model standing in line who will do the work the way I want. The bottom line on this is that if you give anybody the choice of jobs, they will always take the easier job. If these girls could make as much money and not get naked then they would. Forget the bullshit and just cut to the chase. "This is what I need you to do and this is how much it pays. Are you interested?"
Some photographers view this differently than I. I prescreen every phone call I get and most of the girls are prepared to do hardcore B/G work before they even step foot into my office, even if I am not shooting hardcore at that time. These days, it?s rare for a girl to tell me no on the hardcore thing but when they do, if their description is good then I will still invite them in for an interview. By doing it this way, one of two things happens. 1: The girl who will not do hardcore feels lucky that I am willing to work with her. She takes it as a bit of a compliment and is more receptive to my other requests. 2: Most are now prepared to fuck on camera and when they end up doing softcore, they are more relaxed because it?s not pushing their limits as much as they were expecting. Plus, if I do have a hardcore shoot to do?.I now have most of my models who are willing to do it and prepared for me to request it.
I could go on for days about various parts of this business.....But these are a couple of basics for you to consider. If you have any specific questions then I will be more than happy to answer them. 
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Thank you
very, very much, Aaron.
You and I have never really spoken or gotten to know each other, though I have looked forward to the opportunity for a long time. The admiration for your work I professed when we chatted on the phone a few days ago is quite sincere, and based on a quality I see in your images that I think vital to good content, yet lacking from most of what we see.
To put it simply, your models seem
happy to be there --
Given that quality in evidence in all your work, I'm curious about -- I guess you could call it -- your
Production Philosophy. It seems you remain sharply focused on the
product, and always mindful of the "needs of your clients", as you termed it. That suggests --
aloofness & control. Would you say that's true -- versus, a more flirtatious/seductive rapport during a shoot -- ?
Certainly, the world of fine art has many examples of Great Artists known for their dogged, unequivocating pursuit of a Personal Vision. Cinema, also.
In porn, though, I wasn't sure how to account for the *spark of difference* you sometimes see in a piece of work. For me, if there is any indication of boredom or distraction in the performers, it kinda kills it. I always wondered, then, whether the exceptional performances I would sometimes (but, still, too rarely) come across were the result of merely *accidents of circumstance*, or whether there are any photographers or directors working in porn who have a *method* for producing that effect with
consistency.
I think the reason the Reality stuff enjoyed such explosive popularity was because the *method* of its making necessarily added elements of spontaneity and reactions and expressions in the performers that those watching could recognize as *real*.
My interest in this relates to concerns about the evolutionary direction our content may be taking. What is next -- ? Where do we go from here -- ? What responsibility, if any do we have to our customers beyond simply meeting their demands -- ? Our society offers so little in the way of Sex Instruction -- many people *learn* sex from us. No one else wants the job, who will do it with any openness and tolerance --perhaps, it IS all up to us, in which case, it behooves us to acknowledge our position.
These questions are "spoken" as if to Aaron, because he was kind enough to provide fodder for the discussion -- but ANY and ALL are invited/welcomed to contribute here.
Let me remind you all the simple
Rules of the Thread --
There will be another Special Guest
Discussion tonight
-- more info on that later --