Amateur vs. Professional: The Labeling Dilemma

[w3stcoast]

What is the difference between what many posters label as an amateur model, and a professional one?

It's bothered me for a long time, that posters on these forums label women who are paid to model as amateurs. So I want to ask, what do you all think should be the definition for an amateur model vs. a professional one?

Personally, it all comes down to money.

Did the girl get any direct monetary gain from performing a sexual act or performing nude?

Yes: Professional

No: Amateur

Any girl, regardless of level of fame, expertise, looks etc. who strips down for the camera and/or performs a sexual act and gets dough for doing it is, in my mind, a pro.

Yet, women who fall under the above definition are constantly labeled and found as "amateurs" on these forums and other sites.

(Now if you're paying a site that advertises amateur porn they have every right to deceive you and have girls play the "amateur" role. It's a role many porn viewers find erotic and sexually fulfilling. Even if both the provider and the viewer understand that the actors in question are professionals I find no problem with selling their work as amateur for role playing purposes.)

I'm more focused on things like the Random Amateurs thread and the various "amateur" models threads spread throughout the forum.

Like I said, they get paid, they're pro.

Dictionary definition of Amateur:
n.
1. A person who engages in an art, science, study, or athletic activity as a pastime rather than as a profession.
2. Sports. An athlete who has never accepted money, or who accepts money under restrictions specified by a regulatory body, for participating in a competition.