A guy I knew in high school is working in the porn biz now. I ran into him a while ago, and he told me about his experiences in lower-budget porn films. He gets paid about $100/day and that's about 12-16 hours of work. He also has, to be blunt, a big dick and can blow his wad almost on cue. Serously, he told me he can wackoff for maybe 15 seconds and blast away -- just like that. Anyway, from what he told me the whole scene sounds really sad. All the girls are on fucked up on X and Coke....I mean, if you had to get fucked up the ass and take cumshots from 10 differernt guys, you'd get fucked up to do it too. A lot of them are single moms as well.
The chicks get paid quite well, usually $1000-$4000 per day. Which is about 90% of the films budget. The director and producers make thier money from gross points. The more popular porn stars (Jenna, Aisa, etc) get paid waaaaaay more, although nobody really knows how much.
So think about about it. The girl is doing 2-3 movies a month, making between $24000 and $144000 a year essentially tax free, in addition to her day job (if she has one). She has enough cash to buy drugs which pretty much destroy the little voice in her head that asks "what the fuck are you doing to yourself?" and she has tons of free time to do the usual shit that young girls like to do; shopping, partying, etc.
My friend said that any girl can get into porn if she wants to. To quote him "If she's got a hole, she's worth money." Classy, huh?
Of course the younger, prettier ones are going to be in more demand and therefore make more money.
Anyway, I like porn as much as the next guy, but I wouldn't want a female family member or close friend involved. It's too dirty a business.