I Am A Craigslist Photographer

Genuinely curious to hear of the last documented case in the US where a teenager has been taken to court over an "out-of-mum-and-dad's-home-business" deal gone wrong - photography based or otherwise.

It's really not uncommon for parents to be sued for the actions of their children. A simple google search will show you that. As far as how many of those are based on a home business, no idea. But it's not that much of a stretch.

Wow, I saw the title of this thread and knew it would be a instant classic when I saw Craigslist in it

About the best you guys can hope for is that somewhere down the line he'll listen, but it isn't going to be soon.

I think some of the replies are a little harsh for this kid. Hes starting out. He doesnt need people telling him about business taxes and DBA's. He is just starting out. When I was his age I was mowing peoples yards. Ask me if I paid taxes.... The game has changed. Some of us threw newspapers, some cut grass and some walked dogs. You are forgetting what it means to be a kid with a dream, and wanting to make a little scratch.
Lets be honest about something. His rates are dirt cheap, and he is a KID. Do you think the people that are willing to hire him are going to decide to sue him if they dont like the pictures? Come on. Hes going to be shooting senior portraits, and relationship pictures most of the time. The weddings he will get at his level are going to be cheaper backyard, at my brother waynes house type of shoots.
The chances of him getting sued at this level are laughable. You may as well tell him he needs insurance against leprechauns stealing his equipment. That is more likely to happen.
Building a portfolio is important, but if people are willing to pay you to shoot them you would be a fool not to take it, provided they understood the level of photographer they are wanting to hire.
Give him a break.

mikel1291979 wrote in post #11117310
The chances of him getting sued at this level are laughable. You may as well tell him he needs insurance against leprechauns stealing his equipment. That is more likely to happen.
Building a portfolio is important, but if people are willing to pay you to shoot them you would be a fool not to take it, provided they understood the level of photographer they are wanting to hire.
Give him a break.

Hes not cutting grass or throwing newspapers here or any of the other jobs most of us did as kids, he is capturing a one time (hopefully) deal..
You mess up cutting grass... what...you run over a few flowers...ruin the wrong somebodys wedding pictures even at his prices..and see how fast they will probably sue in todays world..
Check some of the other older posts on here and see what some photographers have had to deal with even when their photos were great..Unfortunately its not a stretch him getting sued...he himself said he would be 18 shortly..that changes the game doesnt it..

If he is going to do it, then at least get a contract that spells out specifically what the couple is getting..so there are no misunderstandings later.....I mean we all know that never happens ..right

Hiding your income is about the worst advice I think you can give. It can come back to bite you, and the IRS bites hard.
You may have read in one of the op's posts that he will be 18 in a week or so.
What's wrong with starting out the right way and having a legitimate profitable business?
I mowed lawns and delivered newspapers. I also filed taxes.

jfbrodeur wrote in post #11115413
is it just me or it smells troll? I mean, is it possible someone like that?

That's all I could think about when I read this thread. I mean I am 20 and I think this kid is a complete moron for some of the things he said. I don't remember myself being that dumb even when I was about 13.

digirebelva wrote in post #11117902
Hes not cutting grass or throwing newspapers here or any of the other jobs most of us did as kids, he is capturing a one time (hopefully) deal..
You mess up cutting grass... what...you run over a few flowers...ruin the wrong somebodys wedding pictures even at his prices..and see how fast they will probably sue in todays world..
Check some of the other older posts on here and see what some photographers have had to deal with even when their photos were great..Unfortunately its not a stretch him getting sued...he himself said he would be 18 shortly..that changes the game doesnt it..

If he is going to do it, then at least get a contract that spells out specifically what the couple is getting..so there are no misunderstandings later.....I mean we all know that never happens ..right

People paying $200 for their wedding photography aren't as concerned about getting the best photos possible as some on this forum tend to believe, and those kinds of weddings typically aren't the uber-planned shindigs that make the day a fairytale. It's usually basic snapshots and a few acceptable portraits in the back yard or VFW.

My own sister's wedding photos suck compared to what I can do, but the photographer was inexpensive and all they wanted (and got) was a few wallhangers. Nobody got sued even though I personally consider them sub-par (because I'm anal retentive like most other folks here on POTN) and she wishes I was into photography back then so I could have done them.

Americans are only sue crazy when they know there are deep wallets at the defense table.

cdifoto wrote in post #11120681
People paying $200 for their wedding photography aren't as concerned about getting the best photos possible as some on this forum tend to believe, and those kinds of weddings typically aren't the uber-planned shindigs that make the day a fairytale. It's usually basic snapshots and a few acceptable portraits in the back yard or VFW.

Americans are only sue crazy when they know there are deep wallets at the defense table.

Again, you only have to piss off the wrong person...regardless of the amount involved...and his parents could very well have deep pockets..

Thanks again for all the replies! I really was surprised when reading some comments about my "terrible" attitude and being a "complete moron". I don't think I have a bad attitude or that I'm unintelligent. D;

And my parents don't have deep pockets. At all. XD

I don't know what to say and how to respond further, I've been kind of overwhelmed by the amount of responses.

Thanks to all those pointing out precautions I should take and thanks to those offering more optimistic points of views!

HOPE YOU'RE ALL WELL! : D

digirebelva wrote in post #11120739
Again, you only have to piss off the wrong person...regardless of the amount involved...and his parents could very well have deep pockets..

I guess you live in a more sadistic area than I do. Around here, when people go cheap they know what they're getting into. They don't do it just to set someone up for a lawsuit.

Even if you do get sued for $200 it goes to small claims, where you can easily represent yourself. You'd probably win because a sane judge will likely tell the bride that she should have known that when the local professionals charging thousands of dollars, a 17 year old amateur isn't going to beat them on quality for only $200.

To the OP, please read this:

I skimmed over this thread and am amazed it hasn't been locked for one reason or another yet. Most of the posts here have been either from older guys/gals that have been in the business for a long time as a pro or have been doing it as a side hobby.

I'm fairly young (23) and can relate to what the op is feeling. I was stoked to get side jobs here and there for anything! that wore off after the first month and I got serious about photography as a side business.

I realized that what I was doing wasn't a real business but a side hobby that paid crap. I went back to the drawing boards and started from scratch. I now offer contracts that cover me, insure my gear and myself and have the proper gear for what I'm shooting. I will be the first to admit that I made a mistake shooting a wedding and not having a contract to fall back on as well as not having back up equipment. Thanks to the help on here, I quickly changed that. Luckily nothing bad came from it and everything worked out but I couldn't imagine if I ruined it because of some freak accident.

I suggest that you shoot your friends/family for another 6 months to get an idea of your style and to hone your skills a bit more as well as picking up a pt job to get more equipment. Believe me, those couple of months will give you enough time to get past this rush. You will then hopefully grow to realize your mistakes and learn from them before you put yourself at risk even more. I still do small side jobs for friends like car shoots but I also know that I'm not open to the risk of a lawsuit compared to screwing up a big event/venue like a wedding.

Do us all a favor and take a deep breath and realize that a few months from now, you'll laugh at this thread and realize why we reacted the way we did. I look back at my pictures from a year ago and see how much I've grown and learned as a photographer and can't help but chuckle at the little mistakes I made that seem so dumb now. The same thing goes for my "business" plan when I was younger. Learn from those of us who've made these mistakes before you make them yourself.

digirebelva wrote in post #11120739
Again, you only have to piss off the wrong person...regardless of the amount involved...and his parents could very well have deep pockets..

Still keen to hear a precedent for this actually happening.

SunnyOctopus wrote in post #11120790
Thanks again for all the replies! I really was surprised when reading some comments about my "terrible" attitude and being a "complete moron". I don't think I have a bad attitude or that I'm unintelligent. D;

And my parents don't have deep pockets. At all. XD

I don't know what to say and how to respond further, I've been kind of overwhelmed by the amount of responses.

Thanks to all those pointing out precautions I should take and thanks to those offering more optimistic points of views!

HOPE YOU'RE ALL WELL! : D

Do not take what those on here say as personal. As I previously stated, you are at least taking the pre-cautions to ask and hopefully it will help you be more successful. Best of luck.

Wow, that was a great read from the start. Threads like this are fun to read, you learn by reading them and you make yourself an opinion out of it. If you decide to share it, be ready as not everyone has the same.

I'm 19, have a full-time job and do photography as a hobby. I can understand him wanting some more spare change. What if he wants to shoot a portrait session for free but has the chance to make 100$ out of it? Depending of the situation I'd take it. That does not mean I want to run a business out of photography.

But there's one thing. I would not approach a weeding with a ten feet pole.

EDIT: He his the perfect description of a craigslist photographer. You know how it ends.