A month or two ago I became aware that a new film camera was about to launch. As with most new film cameras these days, this was not to be an SLR, rangefinder, or fully-featured compact point and shoot, but something rather more basic in the shape of the Reto Ultrawide & Slim.

There have been a number of other back-to-basics cameras launched in the last year or two, but these have mostly been in the form of re-useable disposable cameras (if that makes sense – basically the same features as a standard disposable film camera, but with the facility to re-load with normal rolls of 35mm film. More cost effective and flexible in the long term, and also better for the environment.).

In terms of build, the Reto Ultrawide & Slim (UWS) is probably no more advanced than the aforementioned cameras. It’s almost completely made of plastic, including its lens. But in this case, it’s the lens that matters because, while most other cameras of this ilk use 35-40mm focal lengths, the Reto UWS packs a very wide by comparison 22mm lens, making it something of a stand-out amongst it’s competitors.

The camera itself is not a new design. It’s a clone of the Vivitar Ultrawide & Slim which was released back in the 1990s, manufactured by Chinese company Sunpet and marketed under the Vivitar brand. The Reto version isn’t even the first clone and another version produced under the Superheadz brand was also available for a while. Despite the different variants, all the cameras appear to be identical in terms of functionality, with the only differences being cosmetic.

In terms of specs, the camera uses the aforementioned 22mm lens – this is an uncoated 2-element design fixed at f/11 and constructed of resin. The shutter is likewise fixed to a single speed of 1/125 sec. The focus is fixed and reaches from 1m to infinity. Controls on the camera consist of a shutter button, a film-advance wheel, a film-release button, the rewind crank, and a switch to open the camera back for loading and unloading the film.

The fixed aperture and shutter speed are likely to dictate the film you choose to shoot. On bright days then a 200 or even 100asa film is probably fine (all the shots here are on 200asa colour negative film), but faster film will be a necessity when the light isn’t as good, probably going beyond 400asa in the conditions we often find here in the UK.

The build quality of the camera isn’t something that inspires confidence. The almost fully plastic build is very lightweight (the camera feels like it would blow away in a light breeze) and I’ve seen a number of places advising that it’s best to limit film to 24exp rolls as longer lengths can put unwanted strain on the advance mechanism (which I presume is also mostly plastic). I guess that time will tell as to how well it’s construction fares – so far I’ve put two rolls through mine, a 24exp roll and then, being the daredevil that I am, a high-risk 36exp roll. Neither posed any problems, although I could feel the tension (literally!) when winding on the final few frames from the longer film.

In terms of use, there’s not a lot to say. Loading film is easy – the rewind ratchet is a very simple design and is basically held in the camera by a plastic lug, but it works well enough. The shutter button is responsive and the shutter itself makes a quiet but satisfying click when fired. The advance wheel also works well, with the caveat that it did feel much tighter towards the end of the 36exp roll of film I shot, and I expect this might be a potential point of failure. Rewinding the film is likewise straightforward. The door release switch works fine, but I find that it doesn’t spring the door open and I have to pick at it with a fingernail to get inside.

So, most importantly, what are the photographs like? Well, that will always be a subjective opinion, but in my case I’m very happy with them. The lens has some notable shortcomings in the amount it vignettes (although nothing like as much as a Holga 120 or something like that), and also the drop off in sharpness at the edges of the frame. Both these things could also be said to add charm to the resulting images though. In the centre of the frame the lens is plenty sharp enough and equals some more advanced and fully featured point-and-shoot cameras I’ve used. It’s the 22mm focal length that is the big draw here though. Coupled with the f/11 aperture and deep depth of field, it can allow interesting compositional choices to be made and I expect that I will continue to use it for this reason.

Beyond the build quality there are a couple of other downsides to be aware of however. The first is the viewfinder. While it’s bright and easy to use, even for a spectacles wearer like myself, its coverage does not represent the full field of view of the lens, meaning that it’s very easy to get unwanted elements creeping into the edge of your compositions. This includes fingers! The lens is also very prone to flare apparently, although I deliberately chose my shots to try and minimise this. I have also found that the first roll of film I had developed had scratches on a number of frames but, giving the benefit of the doubt, I’ll wait to see if it’s repeated on the next roll before laying the blame on the camera for this. The scratches were rectified easily enough in Photoshop.

Is the camera worth buying? Again that’s a very subjective question. If you live for crisp, sharp, high quality results with a range of controls and features to aid your photography, then probably not. If you enjoy the simple creative options that ‘toy’ cameras such as this offer, then you’ll be fully in your element. At £30 it’s relatively cheap to buy (although that doesn’t mean it’s actually worth that amount) and problably more affordable than the older Vivitar version which seemed to have been fetching much higher prices due to its popularity. I’m so far happy with mine and glad I bought it.

There are undoubtedly a lot of reviews and first impressions of this little camera popping up online, but here are a couple from my fellow bloggers Jim Grey and adventurepdx that are worth reading.

Reto Ultrawide & Slim & Agfa Vista Plus 200. Lab developed.

Taken in March 2022