On October 6, 2023, Academy Award-winning actor Jeff Bridges took to Instagram to announce The Widelux Revival Project. The endeavor is supported by a brand-new company, SilverBridges. The collaboration between Bridges, his wife Susan Geston Bridges, analog photography magazine SilvergrainClassics’ editor-in-chief Marwan El Mozayen, and editor Charys Schuler aims to revive the beloved actor’s all-time favorite camera, the discontinued Widelux. Bridges famously used it to document behind-the-scenes of films such as Tron, The Big Lebowski and True Grit. Bridges’ photographs were compiled into two books: Jeff Bridges: Pictures vol 1, published in 2003, and Jeff Bridges: Pictures vol 2, published in 2019. The 2013 Infinity Awards from the International Center of Photography featured a special presentation dedicated entirely to Bridges and his iconic images.
Developed in Japan by Panon Camera Shoko, the swing-lens 35mm panoramic mechanical film camera known as the Widelux was brought to market in 1958 and discontinued in 2000. During that time the company released eight editions of the camera, inclusive of a medium format. In 2005 a fire ravaged Panon Camera Shoko’s factory, forcing them to cease operations and leaving no hope for a relaunch of the iconic camera from the original manufacturers. The discontinued camera has maintained a bit of a cult status amongst the analog photography community. Widelux cameras can be purchased secondhand, with quite the variability in price, ranging from a few hundred dollars to several thousand depending on the condition and model. Since Bridges’ announcement, there’s been an uptick in content creators taking the film camera for a test run and reporting their findings.
The Widelux’s unique rotating lens system moves from left to right with a 140-degree range of motion. This rotation allows images to be captured on a curved film plane that retains a consistent level of clarity and sharpness across the entire photograph. Images taken with the analog camera produces dynamic pictures laced with depth and possess a cinematic feel thanks to the wide-angle lens. Unlike typical ultrawide lenses, there’s a significant lack of distortion in the photographs produced. The Widelux lets your creativity run wild, as the rotating lens allows for endless possibilities when it comes to light manipulation. The Widelux’s thoughtful design includes a bubble level to assist in preventing distortion caused by tilting. The camera pushes the boundaries of new perspectives in photography. Bridges, in an interview with SilvergrainClassics, describes images captured by the panoramic camera as, “The Widelux has this great proportion, or ratio – it’s kind of like how your eye sees, with peripheral vision. And the swing lens, it’s a whole new way of seeing! Between the time when the slit starts moving and when it’s done, the world has changed.”
Not without its challenges, the Widelux’s design results in reduced exposure control, limited shutter speeds, and produces choppy and disjointed lens flares. When shooting subjects in motion, they are either drastically compressed or elongated based on the direction in which they are moving. The viewfinder is not in the center of the camera but rather to the left. The odd positioning leads to inaccuracies in shot framing. There’s even a bit of a learning curve when it comes to something as basic as simply holding the device. The Widelux’s large field of view prevents it from being held like a typical camera. One must take extra care and grip the camera from the top and base to prevent their fingers from being in the shot. You can’t forget difficult dials that may even cause blisters after a long day of shooting. However, Bridges embraces the quirks. In his book Pictures: Photographs by Jeff Bridges, he notes, “The Widelux is a fickle mistress; its viewfinder isn’t accurate, and there’s no manual focus, so it has an arbitrariness to it, a capricious quality. I like that. It’s something I aspire to in all my work — a lack of preciousness that makes things more human and honest, a willingness to receive what’s there in the moment and to let go of the result.”
Two years after Bridges first teased the relaunch of the Widelux, the team behind the project presented a video at the International Association for Panoramic Photography Convention that unveiled the first look at the new and improved Widelux, now known as the WideluxX. The new iteration is based on the final model released by Panko Camera Shoko, the F8. In the video and subsequent newsletter, Schuler showcased the first prototype, 0001, and provided a few crucial details about the updated design and manufacturing process. The WideluxX, whilst remaining true to the spirit of its originator with its mechanical design, harbors a few modern updates, such as reworked film advance knob designs with improved knurling that allow for better grip. A cable release adapter which works without removing the bushing around the shutter release. Most notably sustainability is said to be a top priority. The new model will be plastic free and produced in Germany in factories that utilize green electricity sources.
With its storied history and now new lease on life thanks to the SilverBridges team, the Widelux is a camera that bridges not only motion picture photography and still photography but the past and the future.