The Thypoch Eureka 50mm f2 is billed not as a replacement to the Leica 50mm f2 collapsible — but as an alternative and ode to it. And in many ways, I liken it to being as incredible as the time that Green Day covered the Misfits. Is it the same lens? No. Doesn’t it take inspiration from the past? Sure. But is it so much better for modern photographers? Absolutely. If the Thypoch Eureka 50mm f2 puts a smile on my face that would make the stars jealous of how brightly it shines.
Table of Contents
Declarations of Journalistic Intent
The Phoblographer is one of the last standing dedicated photography publications that speaks to both art and tech in our articles. We put declarations up front in our reviews to adhere to journalistic standards that several publications abide by. These help you understand a lot more about what we do:
- At the time of publishing this review, Thypoch is not an advertiser with the Phoblographer. However, they have spoken to us about a campaign after we tried to return the lens to them.
- Note that this isn’t our absolute final review of the lens. Sometimes, things can change based on findings that we make as time goes on. Perhaps it’s when we test the lens with a higger megapixel camera, etc.
- This review, and none of the reviews on the Phoblographer, are sponsored. That’s against FTC laws and we adhere to them just the same way that newspapers, magazines, and corporate publications do.
- Thypoc loaned the Thypoch Eureka 50mm f2 and accessories to the Phoblographer for review. There was no money exchange between Thypoch and the Phoblographer for this to happen. Thypoch and several other manufacturers trust the Phoblographer’s reviews, as they are incredibly blunt.
- Thypoch knows that they cannot influence the site’s reviews. We’ve even told them to modify their loaner agreements so they can fully understand this. If we don’t like something or have issues with it, we’ll let folks know.
- Thypoch shipped the lens to the Phoblographer in NYC to loan the lens to us. Our home office is based in New York.
- The Phoblographer’s standards for reviewing products have become much stricter. After having the world’s largest database of real-world lens reviews, we choose not to review anything we don’t find innovative or unique, and in many cases, products that lack weather resistance. We’ve also steered away from Micro Four Thirds and APS-C as they’re dying formats. This is a conclusion that even the other members of TIPA agree on. Unless something is very unique, we probably won’t touch it.
- At the time of publishing, the Thypoch Eureka 50mm f2 is the only lens like this from a third-party manufacturer that we’ve tested and are aware of.
- In recent years, brands have withheld NDA information from us or stopped working with us because they feel they cannot control our coverage. These days, many brands will not give products to the press unless they get favorable coverage. In other situations, we’ve stopped working with several brands for ethical issues. Either way, we report as honestly and rawly as humanity allows.
- At the time of publishing, the Phoblographer is the only photography publication that is a member of Adobe’s Content Authenticity Initiative. We champion human-made art and are frank with our audience. We are also the only photography publication that labels when an image is edited or not.
More can be found on our Disclaimers page.
The Big Picture: Thypoch Eureka 50mm f2 Review
The Thypoch Eureka 50mm f2 is a fun lens to use. It has a collapsible design, but honestly, I don’t really think that it needs it. This design was made to keep a camera’s overall package more compact. But if you’re adapting it to another camera, that’s kind of irrelevant. If you’re putting it on an M-mount body, then that’s perfectly understandable.
This lens oozes character, beautiful color, nice bokeh, and enough sharpness to make both Panasonic and Leica’s focus peaking work well. Mind you, it does that without electronic contacts. On a Leica M-mount body, the lens is rangefinder coupled, so focusing will be easier.
At the same time, the lens isn’t catering to clinical sharpness. To that end, it might not satisfy those who look at photography as a mathematical game of numbers. Instead, it will snuggle up to the hearts of those who like all the romance that can’t be measured in numbers or in a lab.
Of course, I’ve got my complaints. I wish that it had focusing contacts, and it would be incredible if this lens had weather resistance. How they’d achieve that with the design is beyond me. And sure, they’d have to raise the price. With that said, I still truly think that anyone who would buy this lens understands the quality of Leica-grade lenses. Thypoch could still charge more money and not reach Leica’s prices.
The Thypoch Eureka 50mm f2 receives four out of five stars. Want one? Check it out on Amazon.
Pros
- Great image quality
- Nice colors
- Beautiful bokeh
- It’s a more unique lens than lots of what’s on the market
- Collapsible design
- Sharper than we’d expect without being too sharp
Cons
- Not weather resistant
- Lacks focusing contacts
Gear Used
We were loaned the Thypoch Eureka 50mm f2 from Thypoch directly. We tested it with the Panasonic S9, Panasonic S5 II, and the Leica SL2s. Both Panasonic cameras are long-term loaner units while the Leica is our own camera. To adapt the lens, which is a Leica M-mount lens, we used a Fotodiox adapter. We bought this a while ago, and are truly just too lazy to purchase the Leica one — which is far superior.
Innovations: What Makes the Thypoch Eureka 50mm f2 Worth It?
Sure, Voigtlander has a 50mm f2 collapsible lens. Theirs is an f3.5, while this is an f2. At the time of publishing, there isn’t much like this on the market.
Hardware
When you look at the Thypoch Eureka 50mm f2, you would probably be mistaken to think it was made by Leica. However, it’s made by a Chinese company for sure. The uninitiated would think that this is the pinnacle of build quality. In their experience, it truly would be. However, I’m every bit as confident that Leica could make something even sturdier.
When you hold this lens in your hands, you’ll realize that it’s not really something that you’re supposed to handhold for a really long time. It’s kind of like using an extended pancake lens. All the controls are on the extended part of this lens. With that said, it’s best to zone focus out to a scene and simply just shoot. In fact, that’s what the original lens was designed to do.
Of course, it lacks things like weather resistance and focusing contacts. But if you’re using it on an M-mount camera, that won’t be too much of an issue unless you really want something 6-bit coded. Then, you’d get all the exposure information into the EXIF data.
Protect Your Camera Gear
For years, here at The Phoblographer we’ve done tests on cameras, lenses, bags, computers, lights, and more. And we know that your warranty doesn’t always cover the damage. Plus, accidents can happen on set.
This is why we’ve created a Photography Care Program in partnership with Full-Frame Insurance. Now, photographers across the United States looking for extra security can get various protections to cover their craft. The Photography Care Program provides peace of mind; now you’ll know you can bounce back from a photoshoot gone awry, on-site or inside. We’re making it super easy to get it done, too! Better yet, there is coverage outside of the US and Canada when the photographer is traveling for short periods of time for business.
We’re able to do this through our partnership with Full-Frame Insurance, a company specializing in Small Business Insurance. Are you a Freelance Photographer? We’ll cover you. What about a freelance multi-media journalist? We’ve got you. The Photography Care Program will protect you.
Transform your focus from worry to creativity with the Photography Care Program. Whether it’s a light stand tumbling down, a telephoto lens shattering, or an unforeseen mishap, you don’t have to face the financial burden alone. Experience the freedom to capture stunning shots, knowing you’re protected. Whether you’re an amateur or a professional, secure your peace of mind – and protect your photography gear – with our affordable Photography Care Program today.
Ease of Use
One of the best things about the Thypoch Eureka 50mm f2 is that it’s sharp enough that the focus peaking from both Panasonic and Leica allows for precise focusing — better than the original vintage optics. If you’re not used to shooting manual focus or zone focus lenses, though, then this will be a bit of a challenge for you.
Also note that this lens has smooth apertures, not clicked ones. To that end, the aperture ring might move a bit more than you like. The same goes for the focusing ring — you’ll constantly need to check both to ensure that it’s where you want it to be. Because of this, the Thypoch Eureka 50mm f2 can sometimes get in the way of making a better, absolutely candid image when shooting street photography.
But if you’re constantly checking the lens and focusing, you’ll be fine.
Focusing
The Thypoch Eureka 50mm f2 manually focuses. When using focus peaking and magnification, you’ll be just fine. To recap what we’ve stated, you’re best off zone focusing with this lens when shooting street photography. But if you’re using the viewfinder or LCD screen and carefully focusing it, you won’t run into much of an issue here.
Image Quality
This isn’t a lens that feeds into the outdated experience of test charts and such. So we’re not going to talk about it. Instead, we’re going to talk about how the Thypoch Eureka 50mm f2 lets us fall deeper in love and like with our surroundings. Using Panasonic’s Real-Time LUT feature, this lens gave us beautiful images that continued to inspire us. The combo together made seemingly mundane things look gorgeous. It could be as simple as the way that the light filters through the leaves, shadows, the way the sun backlights a person, We combined this with either shade or flash white balance to embrace a golden glow in our photos. And we were consistently never disappointed with it.
We had a lot of fun getting experimental with it. Because it’s a vintage optic, we sometimes stopped it down, focused a distance away, and let the shutter speed get really slow. Then, we’d photograph things like the way the wind tosses tree branches around. The result is something painterly and otherworldly. Surely, images like this couldn’t really be concocted by more clinical lenses.
When we needed to really separate a subject from the background, the bokeh and sharpness did quite a nice job. The pop isn’t as strong as you’d get from a Leica 50mm f2 Apochromatic lens. Truly, you’re not going to beat that. But it’s still very nice. At times, it will mean that you need to really search for the subject that’s in focus — and you can see that in some of our images.
Regardless, this lens produces a look I want and adore.
Extra Image Samples
The Phoblographer has been huge on transparency with our audience since day one. Nothing from this review is sponsored. Further, many folks will post reviews and show lots of editing in the photos. The problem then becomes that anyone and everyone can do the same thing. They’re not showing what the lens can do. So, we have a section in our Extra Image Samples area to show edited and unedited photos. From this, you can decide for yourself.
Unedited
Edited
Thypoch Eureka 50mm f2 Tech Specs
These specs are taken from our first coverage of this lens.
- 0.9m close focus distance
- Classic Appearance Design in the 1950s
- Collapsible structure for easy pocket storage
- Double Gauss structure ensures edge-to-edge sharpness
- A fast f/2 aperture with a 12-blade diaphragm going to f16
- Simulating vintage coating to create a unique old-time flare
- 6 Lens elements in four groups
- Leica M-mount
- Eureka 50mm f/2 comes with a front cap, a rear cap, a UV filter and a photo book.
- The Aluminum Version weighs 120g is priced at 579 USD / 549 EUR
- The Brass Version weighs 218g at 859 USD / 809 EUR.
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