Annie Leibovitz, Creditors in Settlement Talks
The photographer now lose her homes and rights to all her artwork.
Sept. 9, 2009— -- Famed photographer Annie Leibovitz and her creditors are involved in ongoing settlement talks, even though a deadline to repay a $24 million loan has passed, a source familiar with the discussions told ABC News.
The celebrity photographer, whose high fees and expensive shoots made her almost as famous as the stars she shot, risks losing her four homes and the rights to every photograph she has ever taken and even those she plans to shoot in the future if the talks are not successful.
If the talks fail, it is possible that Leibovitz would file for personal bankruptcy, but none of the parties are -- at least publically -- discussing that option.
Montieth Illingworth, a spokesman for Art Capital Group, the company that is owed the money, declined to comment Wednesday saying the lender had nothing to say at the moment.
Leibovitz's spokesman Matthew Hiltzik only said, "'Annie is working to resolve the situation." In the past, he accused the company of harassing Leibovitz.
Click Here to See Leibovitz's Famous Vanity Fair Cover Shots
It isn't exactly clear where all of Leibovitz's money has gone. She was once rumored to have a so-called contract for life from magazine publisher Conde Nast that paid anywhere from $2 million to $5 million a year. For individual photo shots she was reported to charge $100,000 to $250,000 a day.
Regardless of exactly how much she took in, with iconic photos on the cover of Rolling Stone and Vanity Fair and posh clients such as Louis Vuitton, The Peninsula and American Express, Leibovitz wasn't exactly poor.
But Leibovitz, 59, apparently has never been too good at keeping tabs on her money, either.
A detailed look at her finances, published last month by New York magazine, noted that her shoots often ran over budget and in her own personal life she often spent generously on those she loved. When her partner Susan Sontag was being treated for cancer, she chartered a private jet to transport her around the country.
Annie Leibovitz's Financial Downfall
She also liked to live large, taking trips, hiring a staff that reportedly included a chef, housekeeper, yoga instructor and a live-in nanny.
Leibovitz has three children who may now have to also adjust their lifestyle: Sarah Cameron Leibovitz, born when Leibovitz was 51 years old, and twins -- Susan and Samuelle -- who were born to a surrogate mother in May 2005.
The depth of Leibovitz's problems didn't surface until the New York Times did a front page feature in February on the company -- the Times called it a "pawnshop" in the headline -- that loaned her the $24 million.
The bulk of Leibovitz's debt apparently comes from extensive renovations at two of the Greenwich Village town houses that she bought in 2002 and ultimately combined into one property. Damage during the renovations led to a $15 million lawsuit from a neighbor.
Annie Leibovitz Could Lose Rights to All Her Celebrity Photos
Around 2004, Leibovitz started taking out a number of loans while she tried to get her financial house in order. She ended up selling some properties -- including a photo studio for $11.4 million -- but she has also borrowed heavily against her other properties and the money apparently wasn't enough.
Finally, in September 2008, she turned to Art Capital Group, the company the Times called a pawnbroker, to consolidate all her loans. The company, which specializes in making loans to owners of high end art work, charges interest rates of 6 percent to 16 percent.
To secure her loan, Leibovitz put up her homes, which are estimated to be worth around $40 million, and -- more importantly -- the rights to her work, also valued at about $40 million.
One possible option is that Leibovitz files for personal bankruptcy, which would leave it up to a judge to sort out her debts and the rights over her work.
In a lawsuit, Art Capital Group alleged that Leibovitz breached her contract with the company by refusing to allow real estate experts into her homes to appraise their value and by blocking the company from selling her photographs.
Her most famous images include a photograph of John Lennon taken hours before he was assassinated and a nude portrait of a pregnant Demi Moore for the cover of Vanity Fair.