Pentax 17 vs. Alfie Cameras TYCH: a frame half full or a frame half empty?

Film photography devotees, rejoice. There’s not one, but two brand new film cameras on the market. And they’re both unlike anything you’ve ever seen before; well almost.

What’s old and outdated is now new-fangled, again. Back in 1959 through 1983, Olympus Kogaku (Olympus Corporation) experimented with a line of petite cameras that exposed 35mm film in a roughly 24x17mm frame. This exposure technique was nicknamed “half-frame” format. Olympus named this new lineup of half-frame shooters, Pen cameras. According to legendary film camera historians, James M. McKeown and Joan C. McKeown, this naming convention was based on a camera “…that could be carried and used as easily as a writing instrument…” Coupled with the development of high-quality 35mm films, this newly anointed format became very popular for around two decades.

Where does that trip down memory lane take us? Smack dab into today’s photographic marketplace. No less than two manufacturers are the primary contenders in a modern half-frame format revival. There’s the new kid on the block, Alfie Cameras, versus the 1919-founded granddaddy of them all, Asahi Optical Company, better known as Pentax and currently owned by Ricoh Imaging Company (Corporation).

Yes, there are several cameras that also offer the half-frame format, but these aren’t contenders, rather they are pretenders. Why? The ability to shoot half-frame photographs with these pretenders can only be obtained by adding inserts, frames, or masks into the camera’s light box prior to loading the film. These pretenders are shown in Figure 2. Whereas both of the half-frame contenders, that are the subjects of this article, are native half-frame cameras. ‘Nuff said.

The Alfie Cameras offering is called TYCH. While the Ricoh Imaging Corporation camera smugly flexes its Asahi heritage with the Pentax 17 name. The TYCH is priced at $383.00 (see: https://alfiecameras.com/product/tych-half-frame-35mm-film-camera-2?currency=USD) and the Pentax 17’s price is $499.95 (see: https://us.ricoh-imaging.com/product/pentax-17/) (see Figure 3).

There is another, premium version of the TYCH, that costs $640. This costlier model adds a couple of upgrades plus the inclusion of a fourth, glass lens that is housed in the awesome TYCH rotating lens barrel.

Yes, that’s correct, the TYCH has a three-lens rotating barrel affixed to the camera. It is very tempting to get into a “spitting contest” citing the unique features that separate the TYCH from the Pentax 17(see Figure 4). For example, the Pentax 17 has a built-in flash and zone-focusing system while the TYCH has a digital display and three fixed focus lenses. But camera specs don’t even come close to telling the full story (see Figure 5 & Figure 6).

The real proof is in the imagery that each camera is capable of producing. As an experiment with these two cameras, a set of step-up adapter rings (see: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/997648-REG/sensei_sur_40_558_40_5_58mm_step_up_ring.html) (and: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/809766-REG/Sensei_sur4658_46_58mm_Step_Up_Ring.html) were used with a pair of Vivitar conversion lenses (see: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1105792-REG/vivitar_vi_58_t_58mm_telephoto_lens.html) (and: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1150436-REG/vivitar_v_58w_58mm_0_43x_wide_angle.html) (see Figure 7). Results from this experiment are pictured, below.

Now, compare the following photographs taken with the TYCH and Pentax 17 and judge for yourself. May a brand new/old era of half-frame photography begin.

After reviewing these sample photographs, you could surmise that the Alfie Cameras TYCH is the ideal romantic photographic companion, while the Pentax 17 is the perfect everyday chronicler. And, in the end, based on this conjecture, it is up to you to determine whether these cameras represent a frame half full or a frame half empty.