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Essentially, everything relating to child pornography is illegal. You cannot possess it or disseminate it if you know or should know what it is. Both possession and dissemination are felonies. Dissemination of child porn carries a sentence of up to 7 years in prison and/or up to a $10,000 fine. If you have previously been convicted of dissemination of child porn, the subsequent offense carries a sentence of up to 15 years in prison and/or up to a $20,000 fine. If you are a registered predatory offender, you can be sentenced up to 15 years in prison. Possession of child porn carries a sentence of up to 5 years in prison and/or up to a $5,000 fine. If you have previously been convicted of possession of child porn, the subsequent offense carries a sentence of up to 10 years in prison and/or up to a $10,000 fine. If you are a registered predatory offender, you can be sentenced up to 10 years. See https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/?id=617.247.
Similarly, it is a crime to use minors in sexual performance. If you actively get a minor to participate in a pornographic work or help others or allow a minor to do so, you may be sentenced to up to 10 years and/or up to a $20,000 fine. If this is a subsequent offense, the fine increases to up to $40,000. See https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/?id=617.246.
Permission from the minor or the minor’s parents is not a defense to any of the above offenses.
Federal sexual exploitation of a minor for purposes of creating or transmitting child pornography is governed by 18 U.S.C. § 2251. This statute also governs parents or those having custody or control of the minor who knowingly allow the minor to engage in such child pornography. Those who knowingly help in the creation, such as printing or publishing, of such child pornography is also guilty of this crime. This offense, for a first time sexual offender, carries a sentence of a minimum of 15 years and a maximum of 30 years in prison. If this is a second sexual offense of certain statutes, the mandatory range increases to 25–50 years in prison. If this is a third sexual offense of certain statutes, the mandatory range is 35 years to life in prison. If the death of a person results, the person may be sentenced to 30 years in prison, life in prison, or death. See https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/2251.
The preceding was a summary of the law. It does not describe all of the elements of the crimes. Laws are also constantly changing. You need to contact a skilled child pornography attorney MN to discuss the offenses in detail and with respect to your own particular case. Nothing in this description or anywhere on this site is legal advice.