# So whats the deal with Ken Rockwell?



## Conner41

I forgot how I first heard about Ken Rockwell, but I learned very quickly there are some good articles: Ken Rockwell   and there are some that are: Buyer Beware: Ken Rockwell | Anthony Hereld Photography 

My intention isn't to stir up anything, more so I'm just interested in the facts.  Does anyone know this guy on a personal level?  Hard to believe anything online these days.


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## Alpha

Honestly, not much is up with Ken Rockwell.


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## o hey tyler

Ken Rockwell is a douche canoe. Everything he states is personal opinion. 

That's all you need to know. 

You're welcome.


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## MTVision

Conner41 said:
			
		

> I forgot how I first heard about Ken Rockwell, but I learned very quickly there are some good articles: Ken Rockwell   and there are some that are: Buyer Beware: Ken Rockwell | Anthony Hereld Photography
> 
> My intention isn't to stir up anything, more so I'm just interested in the facts.  Does anyone know this guy on a personal level?  Hard to believe anything online these days.



Read the disclaimer on his site..,,


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## Conner41

I'm going to check his disclaimer out.  LOL


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## MTVision

" I offer no warrantees of any kind, except that there are many deliberate gaffes, practical jokes and downright foolish and made-up things lurking. While this site is mostly accurate, it is neither legally binding nor guaranteed. The only thing I do guarantee is that there is plenty of stuff I simply make up out of thin air, as does The Onion."


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## Bitter Jeweler

Search posts about him on this forum.

You'll wish you hadn't created this thread.

http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/...amera-does-matter.html?highlight=Ken+Rockwell

http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/...era-doesnt-matter.html?highlight=Ken+Rockwell

http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/...-rockwells-advice.html?highlight=Ken+Rockwell

http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/...en-rockwell-facts.html?highlight=Ken+Rockwell

http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/...ghts-ken-rockwell.html?highlight=Ken+Rockwell


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## pgriz

Learn from history, or be condemned to repeat it.   Yah.  And as Rumsfeld once remarked:  there are the things you know.  There are the things you know you don't know.  And then there are the things that you don't know you don't know.  But he forgot to mention:  there are things you know that you wish you did not know.  Such as disclaimers.


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## Derrel

Conner41, in the words of a famous TV character, *"NO SOUP FOR YOU!!!!"*


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## ann

MONEY  (and heaven only knows why people would send him money) but then of course there was Thomas Kenkaid.

Some folks are very good at marketing.


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## zcar21

It's just his opinion, no facts. Still, I believe some of the stuff he says, for example, he recommends "The art of photography" as the best book to read. I have read many photography books, and I would place it in #2 afte a Langfor's basic photography textbook.


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## table1349

o hey tyler said:


> Ken Rockwell is a douche canoe. Everything he states is personal opinion.
> 
> That's all you need to know.
> 
> You're welcome.



Is that a personal opinion???


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## o hey tyler

gryphonslair99 said:


> o hey tyler said:
> 
> 
> 
> Ken Rockwell is a douche canoe. Everything he states is personal opinion.
> 
> That's all you need to know.
> 
> You're welcome.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Is that a personal opinion???
Click to expand...


Yes, therefore I am as credible as Ken Rockwell in that regard. 

Take it or leave it.


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## table1349

o hey tyler said:


> gryphonslair99 said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> o hey tyler said:
> 
> 
> 
> Ken Rockwell is a douche canoe. Everything he states is personal opinion.
> 
> That's all you need to know.
> 
> You're welcome.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Is that a personal opinion???
> 
> Click to expand...
> 
> 
> Yes, therefore I am as credible as Ken Rockwell in that regard.
> 
> Take it or leave it.
Click to expand...


:lmao:


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## Sw1tchFX

Rockwell is a genius troll


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## Derrel

Sw1tchFX said:


> Rockwell is a genius troll



Well, yeah...sort of...he has some good stuff, and some bad stuff. Some very solid, practical advice, and some EXCELLENT lens recommendations, and some excellent "How-To Use Your Camera" guides for a number of Nikon models, all written in plain, simple English, for people who want to understand how to configure their Nikon d-slr cameras. He likes film photography. He used to really hate on digital, back in the early 2000's...but his tune has changed...I think he has some of the best "how-to" and some of the best real-world comparisons of equipment that one is likely to find written from a user's point of view, and not from the POV of say, a dispassionate, lab-coat-wearing European or UK internet testing geek. He cuts through a lot of bull$h!+, and yet, at the same time, spews a bit too much bull$h!+ and personal opinion to be considered a 100% trusted source...

On "some" topics, Rockwell's advice makes sense; he does a mostly good to excellent job of reviewing Nikon lenses, and especially older "forgotten" or "sleeper" types of lenses. On some topics, his deep-seated biases make his writings appear a bit, well, nutty, to me. He is like the proverbial two-edged sword...like the boy who cried wolf...like that skanky chick you knew in college....like that slime-bag boyfriend you had sophomore year, like that preacher who is also kind of a kinky little devil outside the congregation's view...


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## Josh66

He does have some stuff on his site that is actually good, usable information.  There's a lot of crap too though.

If you can't tell the difference, you should probably stay away from his site.


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## GeorgieGirl

I have not read one word of this thread but for the OP's posts about Ken Rockwell...

KR does a decent job of putting his findings in place with data and photos and I put him in the mix with all the other sites for data and findings... he does a decent job IMHO.


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## Sw1tchFX

Derrel said:


> Sw1tchFX said:
> 
> 
> 
> Rockwell is a genius troll
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Well, yeah...sort of...he has some good stuff, and some bad stuff. Some very solid, practical advice, and some EXCELLENT lens recommendations, and some excellent "How-To Use Your Camera" guides for a number of Nikon models, all written in plain, simple English, for people who want to understand how to configure their Nikon d-slr cameras. He likes film photography. He used to really hate on digital, back in the early 2000's...but his tune has changed...I think he has some of the best "how-to" and some of the best real-world comparisons of equipment that one is likely to find written from a user's point of view, and not from the POV of say, a dispassionate, lab-coat-wearing European or UK internet testing geek. He cuts through a lot of bull$h!+, and yet, at the same time, spews a bit too much bull$h!+ and personal opinion to be considered a 100% trusted source...
> 
> On "some" topics, Rockwell's advice makes sense; he does a mostly good to excellent job of reviewing Nikon lenses, and especially older "forgotten" or "sleeper" types of lenses. On some topics, his deep-seated biases make his writings appear a bit, well, nutty, to me. He is like the proverbial two-edged sword...like the boy who cried wolf...like that skanky chick you knew in college....like that slime-bag boyfriend you had sophomore year, like that preacher who is also kind of a kinky little devil outside the congregation's view...
Click to expand...

Just don't take him seriously...He doesn't even take himself seriously! 

Quote from the first few lines of his site:

_"I've been real careful this past week: no driving (the biggest hazard adults face), staying away from windows (amateur snipers; pro snipers see through walls, "a.k.a. most obscurrants," with deep-IR sights), and etc., and I made through to today! Yes!"

_You just gotta know what's real and what's BS. He even says so himself on the About section


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## Garbz

The only real problem with Ken Rockwell is that he's not consistent in anything. If you want to be a serious review site, then be a serious review site, if you want to be The Onion of the camera world, then by all means do so. 

The sad part is that people visit his site to learn. They find pages with good writeups and then think he's a genius yet they lack the experience to identify which of his pages are just practical jokes. This makes his site dangerous and this is why I warn people to stay clear of it. 

There should be a big disclaimer on his site saying "warning this site has professional oriented content. "Yes I have been taking photos for over 18 years" / "No I have not yet come of  photographic age""


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## KmH

It's unfortunate many people today can't decern the difference between a serious review, and satire.

I see no problem with mixing the 2 on a single web site, particularly when the author himself mentions the site contains both types of content.


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## The_Traveler

KmH said:


> It's unfortunate many people today can't decern the difference between a serious review, and satire.
> 
> I see no problem with mixing the 2 on a single web site, particularly when the author himself mentions the site contains both types of content.



Well I look at lots of photos posted and I'm never certain if the OP is kidding or not.


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## jwbryson1

I used to read KR daily.  Now I read it less often and spend most of my time here.  I think KR's website is good for certain things.

I also like to read the information on Thom Hogan's website found here:

Thom Hogan's Nikon Field Guide and Nikon Flash Guide


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## MTVision

The_Traveler said:
			
		

> Well I look at lots of photos posted and I'm never certain if the OP is kidding or not.


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## jake337

You have to understand his humor, have common sense and read between the lines.


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## harriknight

He has a few decent pages, but the majority of it is subtle trolling. Also, he has weird crap like this scattered around his website...

http://www.kenrockwell.com/ri/WhereDoBabiesComeFrom.htm
http://www.kenrockwell.com/analprobe/index.htm


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## GnipGnop

Ken Rockwell's trash can on his desktop is a link to EXPLORE page on flickr.


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## chuasam

Ken Rockwell is the FOX News of Photo related writing.
Here is a list of _facts_ about Ken Rockwell:


Ken Rockwell is the Chuck Norris of photography 
Ken Rockwell's camera has similar settings to ours, except his are: P[erfect] Av[Awesome Priority Tv[Totally Awesome Priority] M[ajestic] 
Ken Rockwell doesn't color correct. He adjusts your world to match his. 
Sure, Ken Rockwell deletes a bad photo or two. Other people call these Pulitzers. 
Ken Rockwell doesn't adjust his DOF, he changes space-time. 
Circle of confusion? You might be confused. Ken Rockwell never is. 
Ken Rockwell doesn't wait for the light when he shoots a landscape - the light waits for him. 
Ken Rockwell never flips his camera in portrait position, he flips the earth 
Ken Rockwell ordered an L-lens from Nikon, and got one. 
Ken Rockwell is the only person to have photographed Jesus; unfortunately he ran out of film and had to use a piece of cloth instead. 
When Ken Rockwell brackets a shot, the three versions of the photo win first place in three different categories 
Before Nikon or Canon releases a camera they go to Ken and they ask him to test them, the best cameras get a Nikon sticker and the less good get a Canon sticker 
Once Ken tested a camera, he said I cant even put Canon on this one,thats how Pentax was born 
Rockwellian policy isn't doublethink - Ken doesn't even need to think once 
Ken Rockwell doesn't use flash ever since the Nagasaki incident. 
Only Ken Rockwell can take pictures of Ken Rockwell; everyone else would just get their film overexposed by the light of his genius 
Ken Rockwell wanted something to distract the lesser photographers, and lo, there were ducks. 
Ken Rockwell is the only one who can take self-portraits of you 
Ken Rockwell's nudes were fully clothed at the time of exposure 
Ken Rockwell once designed a zoom lens. You know it as the Hubble SpaceTelescope. 
When Ken unpacks his CF card, it already has masterpieces on it. 
Rockwell portraits are so lifelike, they have to pay taxes 
On Ken Rockwell's desktop, the Trash Icon is really a link to National Geographic Magazine 
Ken Rockwell spells point-and-shoot "h-a-s-s-e-l-b-l-a-d" 
When Ken Rockwell went digital, National Geographic nearly went out of business because he was no longer phyically discarding photos 
For every 10 shots that Ken Rockwell takes, 11 are keepers. 
Ken Rockwell's digital files consist of 0's, 1's AND 2's. 
Ken Rockwell never focus, everything moves into his DoF 
Ken Rockwell's shots are so perfect, Adobe redesigned photoshop for him: all it consists of is a close button. 
The term tripod was coined after his silhouette 
Ken Rockwell never produces awful work, only work too advanced for the viewer 
A certain braind of hig-end cameras was named after people noticed the quality was a lot "like a" rockwell 
Ken Rockwell isn't the Chuck Norris of photography; Chuck Norris is the Ken Rockwell of martial arts. 
Ken Rockwell never starts, he continues


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## GnipGnop

I remember reading that a long time ago and laughing at the ducks comment. Then I came here and laughed even more.


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## newb

o hey tyler said:


> Ken Rockwell is a douche canoe. Everything he states is personal opinion.



I actually lol'd at this.

I usually look at his reviews because they come up with searches for things Im interested in. I dont seek them out, and trust them to be the end all review. He was right about my Pro Optic fish eye though.

I like the buyer beware link, specifically the "Inconsistent Reviews" part. Just grabbing for straws there.


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## Bitter Jeweler

chuasam said:


> Ken Rockwell is the FOX News of Photo related writing.
> Here is a list of _facts_ about Ken Rockwell:
> 
> 
> Ken Rockwell is the Chuck Norris of photography
> Ken Rockwell's camera has similar settings to ours, except his are: P[erfect] Av[Awesome Priority Tv[Totally Awesome Priority] M[ajestic]
> Ken Rockwell doesn't color correct. He adjusts your world to match his.
> Sure, Ken Rockwell deletes a bad photo or two. Other people call these Pulitzers.
> Ken Rockwell doesn't adjust his DOF, he changes space-time.
> Circle of confusion? You might be confused. Ken Rockwell never is.
> Ken Rockwell doesn't wait for the light when he shoots a landscape - the light waits for him.
> Ken Rockwell never flips his camera in portrait position, he flips the earth
> Ken Rockwell ordered an L-lens from Nikon, and got one.
> Ken Rockwell is the only person to have photographed Jesus; unfortunately he ran out of film and had to use a piece of cloth instead.
> When Ken Rockwell brackets a shot, the three versions of the photo win first place in three different categories
> Before Nikon or Canon releases a camera they go to Ken and they ask him to test them, the best cameras get a Nikon sticker and the less good get a Canon sticker
> Once Ken tested a camera, he said I cant even put Canon on this one,thats how Pentax was born
> Rockwellian policy isn't doublethink - Ken doesn't even need to think once
> Ken Rockwell doesn't use flash ever since the Nagasaki incident.
> Only Ken Rockwell can take pictures of Ken Rockwell; everyone else would just get their film overexposed by the light of his genius
> Ken Rockwell wanted something to distract the lesser photographers, and lo, there were ducks.
> Ken Rockwell is the only one who can take self-portraits of you
> Ken Rockwell's nudes were fully clothed at the time of exposure
> Ken Rockwell once designed a zoom lens. You know it as the Hubble SpaceTelescope.
> When Ken unpacks his CF card, it already has masterpieces on it.
> Rockwell portraits are so lifelike, they have to pay taxes
> On Ken Rockwell's desktop, the Trash Icon is really a link to National Geographic Magazine
> Ken Rockwell spells point-and-shoot "h-a-s-s-e-l-b-l-a-d"
> When Ken Rockwell went digital, National Geographic nearly went out of business because he was no longer phyically discarding photos
> For every 10 shots that Ken Rockwell takes, 11 are keepers.
> Ken Rockwell's digital files consist of 0's, 1's AND 2's.
> Ken Rockwell never focus, everything moves into his DoF
> Ken Rockwell's shots are so perfect, Adobe redesigned photoshop for him: all it consists of is a close button.
> The term tripod was coined after his silhouette
> Ken Rockwell never produces awful work, only work too advanced for the viewer
> A certain braind of hig-end cameras was named after people noticed the quality was a lot "like a" rockwell
> Ken Rockwell isn't the Chuck Norris of photography; Chuck Norris is the Ken Rockwell of martial arts.
> Ken Rockwell never starts, he continues



Ok, these were kinda really funny!


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## molested_cow

Conner41 said:


> Hard to believe anything online these days.





So what's the point of this thread?


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## Archer

What's wrong with shooting ducks


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## GnipGnop

If you're going to eat them, then nothing.


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## spacefuzz

Lol

If it matters I hear he is a nice guy IRL


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## adversus

The deal with Ken Rockwell is the same deal with everybody else on the Internet.  Take everything with a grain of salt.


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## Forkie

I like him.  












So there.


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## Dillard

adversus said:


> The deal with Ken Rockwell is the same deal with everybody else on the Internet.  Take everything with a grain of salt.



Exactly. If you ask for a photographers review, do you expect anything else besides his personal opinion? If you ask a NFL quarterback what the best route is, are you going to call him a hoax because he said a slant and thats just his opinion? I don't fully agree with everything he says, but I do feel its a reputable site (for most things). But I honestly feel that if you are going to go to that much trouble to write an article bashing him, you're only helping his site's visitor count


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## NutzuThePawnbroker

o hey tyler said:


> Ken Rockwell is a douche canoe. Everything he states is personal opinion.
> 
> That's all you need to know.
> 
> You're welcome.




Yep. That's pretty much all that needs to be said about the guy. He's a chump who pretends to know a lot more than he actually does.

Oh, and for all you new folks to the hobby; this is what old Ken thinks of you: How to Spot an Amateur

Insulting the same people he's begging for money... genius.


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## The_Traveler

Let's see.
Your first post is a flame of a 4 year old zombie thread.
What impression are you giving here?


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## NutzuThePawnbroker

The_Traveler said:


> Let's see.
> Your first post is a flame of a 4 year old zombie thread.
> What impression are you giving here?




The impression that I read a thread I wanted to respond to, and did so? 

P.s. My comment wasn't a "flame." I was concurring with a previous poster. 

For reference:

"*Flaming* is a hostile and insulting interaction between Internet users, often involving the use of profanity."

I did no such thing.


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## The_Traveler

Too often people want to make a big entrance, to sort of make their mark.
Often that doesn't turn out well.
I suggest you might just go to the Introductions Forum, tell us about what kind of stuff you shoot, your experience, you know, the kind of stuff you do when you meet a bunch of like minded people.


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## NutzuThePawnbroker

The_Traveler said:


> Too often people want to make a big entrance, to sort of make their mark.
> Often that doesn't turn out well.
> I suggest you might just go to the Introductions Forum, tell us about what kind of stuff you shoot, your experience, you know, the kind of stuff you do when you meet a bunch of like minded people.



That's terrific. I've already explained to you exactly what occurred here (although I'm still perplexed as to why it was necessary) and I can assure you it has nothing to do with marking things, or making a "big entrance." Frankly, I find the insinuation ludicrous. This is a message board... why would anyone care about making an entrance? I certainly didn't think my concurment with a fellow poster would cause such a fuss. Perhaps you feel the need to defend Ken Rockwell for some reason? The irony is you accused me of "flaming"while attempting to flame me with your condescending attitude. I suggest not jumping to conclusions, accusing people of things you clearly don't understand, and keeping your attitude under wraps when talking to someone you don't know yet. You know, the kind of stuff you do when encountering someone for the first time. Thanks.

Nice photos by the way. I particularly enjoy the banyan tree, and the barn wall. Are you originally from the Ukraine?


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## table1349




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## thereyougo!

Making big entrances tends to mark you out as someone to be suspicious of.

Especially when it's about an emotive subject...


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## otherprof

o hey tyler said:


> Ken Rockwell is a douche canoe. Everything he states is personal opinion.
> 
> That's all you need to know.
> 
> You're welcome.


Agreed. But everything I state is the God's honest truth . . .


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## Derrel

chuasam said:


> Ken Rockwell is the FOX News of Photo related writing.
> Here is a list of _facts_ about Ken Rockwell:
> 
> 
> Ken Rockwell is the Chuck Norris of photography
> Ken Rockwell's camera has similar settings to ours, except his are: P[erfect] Av[Awesome Priority Tv[Totally Awesome Priority] M[ajestic]
> Ken Rockwell doesn't color correct. He adjusts your world to match his.
> Sure, Ken Rockwell deletes a bad photo or two. Other people call these Pulitzers.
> Ken Rockwell doesn't adjust his DOF, he changes space-time.
> Circle of confusion? You might be confused. Ken Rockwell never is.
> Ken Rockwell doesn't wait for the light when he shoots a landscape - the light waits for him.
> Ken Rockwell never flips his camera in portrait position, he flips the earth
> Ken Rockwell ordered an L-lens from Nikon, and got one.
> Ken Rockwell is the only person to have photographed Jesus; unfortunately he ran out of film and had to use a piece of cloth instead.
> When Ken Rockwell brackets a shot, the three versions of the photo win first place in three different categories
> Before Nikon or Canon releases a camera they go to Ken and they ask him to test them, the best cameras get a Nikon sticker and the less good get a Canon sticker
> Once Ken tested a camera, he said I cant even put Canon on this one,thats how Pentax was born
> Rockwellian policy isn't doublethink - Ken doesn't even need to think once
> Ken Rockwell doesn't use flash ever since the Nagasaki incident.
> Only Ken Rockwell can take pictures of Ken Rockwell; everyone else would just get their film overexposed by the light of his genius
> Ken Rockwell wanted something to distract the lesser photographers, and lo, there were ducks.
> Ken Rockwell is the only one who can take self-portraits of you
> Ken Rockwell's nudes were fully clothed at the time of exposure
> Ken Rockwell once designed a zoom lens. You know it as the Hubble SpaceTelescope.
> When Ken unpacks his CF card, it already has masterpieces on it.
> Rockwell portraits are so lifelike, they have to pay taxes
> On Ken Rockwell's desktop, the Trash Icon is really a link to National Geographic Magazine
> Ken Rockwell spells point-and-shoot "h-a-s-s-e-l-b-l-a-d"
> When Ken Rockwell went digital, National Geographic nearly went out of business because he was no longer phyically discarding photos
> For every 10 shots that Ken Rockwell takes, 11 are keepers.
> Ken Rockwell's digital files consist of 0's, 1's AND 2's.
> Ken Rockwell never focus, everything moves into his DoF
> Ken Rockwell's shots are so perfect, Adobe redesigned photoshop for him: all it consists of is a close button.
> The term tripod was coined after his silhouette
> Ken Rockwell never produces awful work, only work too advanced for the viewer
> A certain braind of hig-end cameras was named after people noticed the quality was a lot "like a" rockwell
> Ken Rockwell isn't the Chuck Norris of photography; Chuck Norris is the Ken Rockwell of martial arts.
> Ken Rockwell never starts, he continues



I figure if *a brand-new TPF member* can dig up a four-year-old zombie thread for *his VERY FIRST post*, I might as well read through the old, dead, rotting post and quote one of the more enjoyable replies found buried inside the body of the zombie post...


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## chuasam

Nothing wrong with zombie threads. At least it is better than not using the search function.


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## beachrat

Enough of this nonsense.
Let's get back to beating up Ken Rockwell.


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## table1349

Even Better..........................


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## Solarflare

chuasam said:


> Ken Rockwell is the FOX News of Photo related writing.
> Here is a list of _facts_ about Ken Rockwell: [...]
> 
> Ken Rockwell spells point-and-shoot "h-a-s-s-e-l-b-l-a-d"


Now finally I know how Hasselblad ended up making the Stellar.

They read a bunch of Chuck Norris turned Ken Rockwell jokes and thought they are serious.


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## Solarflare

What impressed me recently about Rockwell is how happy he looks in his test shots with the Ricoh Theta S 360º Camera ... he clearly is somebody who enjoys photography. A lot. 

Cant provide a permalink, its currently on the top of his news page: Ken Rockwell's Photography News


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## unpopular

Running around on MIR with a Ricoh Thea? I'd be pretty happy, too.


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## xenskhe

NutzuThePawnbroker said:


> Yep. That's pretty much all that needs to be said about the guy. He's a chump who pretends to know a lot more than he actually does.
> 
> Oh, and for all you new folks to the hobby; this is what old Ken thinks of you: How to Spot an Amateur



I like his articles such as the one you linked to. I agree with him  I've haven't the impression he pretends much to know about more than he does. Sometimes I disagree with his subjective views on certain things, which is fine. I like reading it all and the web is better for it.


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