New mechanical panoramic film camera from Jeff Bridges

Jeff Bridges has unveiled the WideluxX, a new handmade film camera built to take extra-wide photos on old-school 35mm film, and the comment section wasted zero time turning the launch into a full-blown price meltdown. The camera is being pitched as a modern creative tool, not a dusty collector’s toy, with a moving lens that captures one long sweeping image in a single shot. Translation for non-camera nerds: it makes dramatic panoramic photos the hard, beautiful, mechanical way.

But the real plot twist is the cost. At $4,400 plus $175 shipping, one longtime fan basically went through all five stages of grief in public, joking that the shipping fee had better come with a Jeff Bridges Cameo video. That set the tone fast: admiration mixed with sticker shock. People clearly respect the craft, the years of work, and Bridges’ deep history with these cameras — commenters even brought receipts, linking to his old Widelux photos from the set of Tron.

Then came the gear snobs, the history buffs, and the doom prophets. Some argued the price actually fits right in with other ultra-wide film cameras that have become absurdly expensive. Others said they’d still rather buy a different model with less image warping. One commenter even dragged the whole trend back to 1864, reminding everyone panoramic photography is older than their grandpa’s grandpa. The vibe? Beautiful object, brutal price, endless debate.