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Would you let your child model for print ads?

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steph72276

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I''ve been approached by a friend of a friend that owns a casting agency (very reputable) that works mainly with kids to see if I would be interested in having my son do print work. I''m not sure how I feel about it. I think I would be okay with just print, but I don''t think I would want to take it further into commercials/acting. If it was a truly legit thing, and it was only every now and then, would you be okay with your child doing print work? Oh, and my son just turned 5 if that makes any difference. Thanks!
 

robbie3982

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I''d be ok with it, even with commercials/acting as long as I could be there to supervise and DS wanted to do it. The second he didn''t want to anymore we''d be done.
 

elrohwen

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I think I would be ok with it. I would try it once and make sure the kid really enjoyed it before doing it again and I don''t think I would go beyond the occasional print ad; no tv.
 

vespergirl

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My uncle is a photographer, and his son started doing print ads (for Toys R Us catalogues and such) from around the ages of 2-6, back in the 90s. My cousin is biracial, beautiful cafe au lait skin with wavy black hair and green eyes, and his stunning looks got him a lot of work. The 5 years of modeling that he did ended up paying for quite a chunk of his college fund. Once he was in school and didn''t feel like modeling any more, my aunt and uncle let him quit. So, it ended up to be very beneficial for their family, and they were never the stage parent types.

I think that it could be great for your son, sock away a little money for college. Since you seem really down to earth, Steph, I''m sure that you could keep it fun for him and let him make a little money for his future. Let us know how it goes!
 

steph72276

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Thanks, guys! Vesper, that is kind of what I was thinking. Just see how it goes and if and only if he likes it, let him do it and whatever he makes goes straight into his college fund. I just have visions of that little tiaras show or whatever it is where the parents are crazy and would never want to be like that!
 

neatfreak

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If the kid was old enough to WANT to do it AND they didn''t miss school because of it-sure why not. But the second they weren''t interested or didn''t want to do it anymore we would be done.
 

megumic

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I think an important thing too would be to not make it about money for the child. While he''d be earning, I would not indicate how much nor would I make it available to him. I''d merely put it in an account for him and leave it at that.

When I was about 12 I did a little modeling, print ad stuff and I have to say, it was fine and fun, but it was taxing. Between the photo shoots to get head shots, no call-backs for go-sees, or comments to dress a certain way or have my hair a certain way, it can be more stressful than you realize initially. I also think we kind of went along with everything and fell into the trap so to speak and continued pursuing it beyond where we were comfortable b/c you get "blinded" by it...
 

divergrrl

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My son modeled for a year as an infant/toddler.

It was fine, not a lot of money (but I did it for fun, something to do, not the $$) the most he made was $267 for a shoot with Hannah Anderson children''s clothing.

Most shoots pay about $60 (for Fred Meyer) and take about 15 mins. I''m not in a major entertainment market (Portland, OR) so the biz, so to speak, is slow here.

He liked it, loved to smile for the camera & ham it up.

The director of the agency told me to have a girl to bring to her. I now have a daughter, but I just don''t feel like doing it again. Plus my daughter has a different look than my son. He is really striking in a very different way. Like...he has a grown up face? Does that make sense? Almost black hair black eyes, dark eyebrows, red lips, and pale ivory skin. Never had a chubby baby face. He''s always looked like what he''s going to look like at 20.

And while I think my daughter a little beauty, (what mom doesn''t right?) my son just has some strange quality to him that''s a little unusual.

And I think my daughter would eat the photographers alive. She''s my ballbuster. LOL. Love her.
 

packrat

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I echo the others-I''d let them do it until they didn''t want to do it anymore, it wasn''t fun, or interfered w/school etc. I think it would be neat to try it anyway!
 

dreamer_dachsie

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Date: 11/22/2009 8:44:59 AM
Author: robbie3982
I''d be ok with it, even with commercials/acting as long as I could be there to supervise and DS wanted to do it. The second he didn''t want to anymore we''d be done.
Ditto. I acted as a child and loved it. Just don''t be a stage mom
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Maria D

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I would be OK with it under the same circumstances that everyone else already mentioned: as long as the child is interested. My daughter had the opportunity to model for a print ad for the company my husband worked for when she was around the same age. She was not interested *at all*. While a lot of little girls would love to be dressed up and have their picture taken, my daughter was not one of them. I think you''ll know right away if the experience is enjoyable for your son, so why not give it a try?
 

Mara

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as the others have said, if he doesn''t dislike it and it might be something fun, why not try it.

we have some friends who have twin boys and they are on one of those reality teen tv mom shows where the teens think they are ready for kids so they have to care for a baby. the twins are ''one'' of the kids on the show that the teens have to care for. hehee. the mom and kids travel to LA a lot while the dad works locally, and it seems like they all like it, but i don''t think i''d be into the whole tv thing. local print ads might be fun, plus you could show them to him when''s older!
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Mrs Mitchell

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I don''t think I would, to be honest. Not because I think any harm would be done to the child, but because I would not like her image to be used for something that I don''t think is ethically sound. I''m thinking of kids clothing stores / catalogues for companies that use child labour in developing countries or supermarket chains, for example. I would need to know exactly how the images were to be used and I suspect that I would be too much of a PITA for advertisers to bother with at that point. I don''t really want anyone to use my child to make money either (even if she was paid a fee), which let''s face it, is the point of advertising.

It''s a choice only you and your DH can make, and feel free to ignore me if you think I''m talking rubbish!
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Plenty of people do it and a college fund is a college fund.

If you decide to do it, good luck. He looks like a sweet boy with a lovely smile, so I''m sure he''d be a big hit.
 

MichelleCarmen

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I wouldn''t do it. My kids don''t have a lot of free time and usually my husband doesn''t get home until after 6 pm and is gone part of either sat or sunday and I feel that family time is more precious than the small amount of money made from having our kids modeled.
 

Pandora II

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Yes, I''ve been asked to send some photos of Daisy to an agency this weekend - again. I''ve been thinking about if for some time and hadn''t got round to taking the photos that are needed - a face close up and full-length - and D had a black eye so we''ve been waiting for that to finally go away (has taken over 4 weeks!) to take the new ones.

I live in Central London so it''s easy for me to travel for castings, and she''s a very happy confident baby who loves people, smiles all the time and already poses for the camera so I think she''d enjoy it.

I am no stage mommy and having done a lot of modelling when I was younger I am perfectly prepared that my little darling may not be picked etc. The money isn''t huge, but anything she does make will either go in her Trust Fund (we have government ones over here) or will go towards paying for her education if she makes a fair amount - we''d like to educate her privately but it''s very expensive here - and I think that is the best investment any child can have!

Also if she gets any work it will be fun for here to have the photos when she''s older.

So, I would say to go for it, for as long as he is enjoying it.
 

partgypsy

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I''d do if your child was willing and you had enough time to devote to it, because what I''ve heard from others it can be very time consuming. When we were little my mother was approached to have my sister and I model (wer''e twins) but my mom said no because she had 3 kids under 5 and was getting a masters at the time. There has been a couple other times in our lives where my sister and I were together asked to model (for photo or art) but I was self-conscious when I was in my 20''s and didn''t do it. Now that I''m older I kind of wish I did because it might have been neat.
 

somethingshiny

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I would just do a trial run and see what comes of it. He may enjoy it and it would be a great way to start a college fund.

A photographer approached me a few months ago about JT. He gave us a free photo session and free prints so he could use JT''s image in his displays and possibly his studio''s advertisements. The photo shoot was fun and the guy was really nice. I don''t know if we''ll do any more, but it''s definitely a neat experience with some great perks!
 

MonkeyPie

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Date: 11/22/2009 10:30:23 AM
Author: neatfreak
If the kid was old enough to WANT to do it AND they didn''t miss school because of it-sure why not. But the second they weren''t interested or didn''t want to do it anymore we would be done.

Ditto this. And the college fund is a BIG plus!
 

TravelingGal

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Nope, and it''s not an option anyway. My kid is not photogenic in the slightest.
 

Kaleigh

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I know it can be very time consuming, so if he's 5, he could miss some school. I did print work when I was little, but it was before I was 5. My brother did commercials, but was an adult, so a whole different story.

I'd show your son a catalog with kids in it, and say is this something you'd like to do?? If he says yes, try it once. But before he's booked, he'll have to have head shots ( and if you are dealing with a really reputable agency... YOU don't pay a dime for them ). See how he goes from there... If he likes having his pictures taken for the head shots, then perhaps you sign up and see how it goes. If he gets booked for a shoot, some will allow you to be with your child the whole shoot, others take your kid and you sit in a waiting area. Things may have changed ... But am telling you from what I know.

I did take DD on auditions for Pampers and Huggies, it was my brother, that was behind all of this.
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We got many call backs, such a pain, because we had to travel to NYC each time.. She was so close to getting the Pampers commercial,. She made it to the 4th call back, but in the end, they said she walked too well, and didn't have that toddler waddle... Her legs aren't fat enough.
The agent wanted her to go for other work, I said nope, we are done. I really only did it, to make my brother happy since he was in many commercials.
 

Tacori E-ring

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If she wanted to and enjoyed it I would. I don''t think I would be comfortable with her missing school so I guess once she hit kindergarden she would be retired. I honestly don''t think she would be good at it. She doesn''t like to sit still and she now has a really fake smile when she sees the camera.
 

iluvcarats

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My son did a shoot for baby clothes when he was 10 months. It was a riot - he kept crawling off of the white paper! I don''t think I''d seek it out though, unless my child asked me too.
 

steph72276

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Thanks, girls....you''ve given me a lot to think about, especially those who have gone through the process themselves or with their children. I am still on the fence about it, but I know I do not want to be going back and forth for auditions and call backs. And don''t worry about the school thing, I was a kindergarten teacher, so I take education very seriously and there is no way on Earth I would let him miss school for this. If anything, we might try it out in the summer and see how he likes it. Thanks again!
 

Hudson_Hawk

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I''d be ok with it if the hours were decent and it didn''t get in the way of the ''fun'' activities my kid wanted to do.

congrats BTW, that''s pretty cool.
 

monarch64

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If my children are cute, I will totally pimp them out.
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iheartscience

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Date: 11/23/2009 11:51:44 AM
Author: monarch64
If my children are cute, I will totally pimp them out.
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Ha, ditto! My brother''s friend has three gorgeous kids and I know some or all of them did print work for some big names like Baby Gap/Gap Kids. As long as the kid likes it and it doesn''t interfere with school, why not?
 

mrssalvo

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I'd let my kids do it if I were asked but wouldn't pursue it on my own. I did commercials and voice overs and some print work when I was a kid and did make some good money and I actually didn't really miss much school. I think if the kid is having fun and it's not too stressful it could be a good experience but if you son doesn't seem to want to do it than I wouldn't push it.
 
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