7,767
Followers
7,281
Following
1,631
Posts
N/A
Reels
7
Highlights
11/1
Photos/Videos in last 12
Bio
Photojournalist • filmmaker • drone pilot at the San Francisco Chronicle 📸🎥 Telling stories in the Bay Area & beyond Montana raised, Oakland based📍
-
Avg likes
-
Avg comments
-
Engagement
0.5/wk
Posting
Likes and comments are still being collected for this account. Check back shortly.
Recent posts
My short films, “The New Housing Crisis” and “Answer to Our Ancestor’s Prayers” were honored with Emmy awards in the @emmysftv 55th annual ceremony in Sacramento. A huge thank you to my editors and colleagues at the San Francisco Chronicle including the “Burned” series team @neilsonian @meganmuncie @sara_dinatale @joytakesphotos @sarahrosemcgrew @maggiebeidelman @photofruge and @emilyjan for believing in me to get the job done. My family and friends who love and support me through each story and my entire career. You all help me stay in this.
My deepest gratitude to @keeya.wiki, @gmwiki, @rpwiki, @amybowersyurok, @rekwoilove, the @paddletribalwaters and @riostorivers for letting me be a student in your world and trusting me with this story. The memories made on the Klamath will stick with me forever.
Thank you @maggierneilson for being a prominent voice in the “New Housing Crisis.” Your courage and those in the Grizzly Flats, Palisades and Altadena communities helped us hold the powerful accountable sparking a wave of investigations and policy reform so wildfire survivors can have transparency and protection when disaster strikes.
It’s an honor and a privilege to do this work and I feel incredibly grateful. Thank you everyone for the sweet and encouraging messages. My heart is full 💛
24 Aug 2026
I can’t believe I am even typing this, but our @sfchronicle investigation series “Burned” won the Pulitzer Prize (@pulitzerprizes) for explanatory reporting!!
Last year I was a part of a Chronicle investigation series that exposed a broken system that is keeping California homes underinsured.
The state’s biggest insurance companies used faulty algorithms and flawed processes that routinely underestimated what their clients would need to rebuild after a disaster.
What we found were people unable to rebuild after their homes were destroyed. We found families displaced, unable to live in their communities. We found people living in trailers on scorched land where their homes once stood. This is a quiet crisis that only reveals itself after disaster strikes. And millions don’t know they are at risk but find out at the worst possible time.
I couldn’t be more proud and inspired by my colleagues Susie Neilson (@neilsonian) Megan Munce (@meganmuncie), Sara DiNatalie (@sara_dinatale) who carried this entire investigation. They took an intensely challenging story and turned into a GREAT piece of journalism. They combed through thousands of documents, made hundreds of calls and sent even more emails. They chased every lead, we traveled hundreds of miles and knocked on dozens of doors.
We were six months into the investigation when the LA Fires struck, but Susie, Megan and Sara continued to provide the information these communities needed to stay informed in real time and even now. A special shout out to my colleague Stephen Lam (@stephenlamphoto) who shares this honor too. I continue to be blown away by Stephen’s imagery in some of the most high stress situations. Massive congratulations to @sarahrosemcgrew, @alishajucevic and @joytakesphotos whose incredible talent contributed to this series.
This was an entire newsroom effort from editors, designers, data, climate and copy editing teams. It truly takes a village.
Since the publication of the investigation there has been proposed legislation designed to protect wildfire survivors from insurance industry practices that can stall rebuilding and recovery.
THIS IS WHY JOURNALISM MATTERS! WE DID THAT!
04 May 2026
My short film, “Answer to Our Ancestors’ Prayers” also received a first place honor in the National Headliners Awards.
I’m thrilled the judges recognized exactly what this story is all about - celebration, healing and joy. In the five years at the Chronicle and over 10 years in journalism unfortunately many of my stories have taken place in the worst moments of a person’s life. But not this time. This time I got to witness a new chapter for a renewed river and the people who have called it home for generations.
Judges’ comments:
“The storytelling in this contextual, multifaceted video combined stunning visuals, historical perspective, and a broad range of voices to give viewers an exhilirating, emotional journey. It also gave them something that is often in too-short supply: joy.“
Thank you @maggiebeidelman for your incredible support while telling this story.
28 Apr 2026
Last Tuesday, Vanessa Trinidad found only two walls remaining where her tiny house once stood in West Oakland. The roof was gone and her two cats were nowhere to be found.
The tiny home was one of two demolished during an encampment sweep last week. Both had been built by Oakland School of the Arts students and donated to unhoused mothers years ago.
Trinidad, her 7-year-old son and partner had been living in the tiny home since the pandemic. But when Trinidad became pregnant, she and her family were moved into a shelter in Richmond. Trinidad said she planned to return to the tiny home if they had to leave the shelter or if they couldn’t find permanent housing. If they did find housing, she said, the tiny home would be given to her mom, who is also unhoused in Livermore.
Trinidad said losing the home left her without a backup plan. “I’ve been going through a lot of fear,” she said. “It’s scary not to have a Plan B.”
City officials defend the action of the encampment sweep, saying they had given ample notice and that it needed to respond to concerns of crime and unhealthy conditions.
The demolition comes after Oakland City Council passed a new abatement policy in April allowing the city to sweep camps without providing shelter alternatives.
Trinidad said she frequently checked the home to care for her cats, who were not allowed at the shelter, and added she was aware the city was planning to clear the camp. But she said the notices were confusing and were not clear when exactly the city would come making it hard for her to find help to move the tiny home.
While Trinidad was able to recover some items from the rubble, she said she lost several sentimental belongings like the impression of her son’s first handprint and footprint.
“I always felt comfortable having the tiny home as a second option,” Trinidad said. “I had never been to a shelter before, so I always feel like I’m walking on eggshells…if it doesn’t work out over there or something happens, we’d have somewhere to come to.”
30 Sep 2026
Thousands of fans celebrated the final day of Portola Festival with big names and a big moon at Pier 80 in San Francisco.
28 Sep 2026
We are excited to welcome Brontë Wittpenn to speak at the Women in Visual Journalism conference! Her work shows stories of rural America and the people who call it home. She seeks out character-driven stories about individual lives, circumstances, and struggle. In addition to her award winning work, she’s also an amazing endurance runner who will be doing a 100K right before the conference!!
22 Sep 2026
Pride & joy in San Francisco.
This year’s theme, “Resistance in Action,” drew hundreds of thousands to Market Street during the 56th annual SF Pride Parade in the city’s core.
28 Jun 2026
After a pandemic-era pause, San Francisco’s Senior Prom is back in Golden Gate Park.
Over 300 people ages 55 and older danced the afternoon away at the County Fair Building.
The dance, hosted by Citywide Senior Programs at the Recreation and Park Department, has been a city tradition since 1985 but was shuttered for six years after the COVID-19 pandemic.
“You can stay in your pajamas all day if you want and watch Hallmark Channel,” said Pat Wiley, 80. “But this is a chance to see old friends and hear live music. I still feel young, even if I’m old.”
13 May 2026
My short film, “The New Housing Crisis” was awarded first place by the 2026 National Headliner Awards and I couldn’t be more thrilled to share the honor with some of the best in the business.
It’s been over a year since the Los Angeles fires and almost five years since the Caldor Fire. Families in both communities are still unable to rebuild and still navigating insurance issues, mental and physical health impacts since. This is why I’m relieved this story continues to circulate and be seen nationwide.
Judges’ comments:
“The wildfires in California are a natural disaster, but the challenges of rebuilding of communities are more often the result of mismanagement and indifference. In this film, the San Francisco Chronicle chronicled how widespread underinsurance has stymied the recovery of Grizzly Flats, destroyed in the 2021 Caldor Fire in Northern California. The film uncovers how the faulty algorithms and flawed processes used by California’s biggest insurance companies routinely underestimate what their clients will need to rebuild. Then the film visits Los Angeles to show how survivors of the 2025 wildfires are navigating these challenges in real time. Beautifully filmed with compelling and emotional interviews, the film combines the best of cinematic filmmaking and traditional journalism to identify a major culprit that robs communities of their most precious asset: their resilience.”
I share this incredible honor with my team @maggiebeidelman, @neilsonian & @meganmuncie. Thank you all for being my champions throughout this investigation. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
28 Apr 2026
It was such a gift to be able to share my work and experience covering dam removal and a renewed Klamath River to a packed and sold out event at Local Economy (@yourlocaleconomy) on Friday in Oakland.
What was even more special was that I got to witness a crowed completely moved & inspired by @amybowerscordalis as she spoke about her new book, “The Water Remembers,” her work with @ridgestoriffles and her family’s generational fight to protect the Klamath River and the salmon who’ve long called it home.
But the best part for me? Amy and I got to speak to the importance of uplifting Indigenous voices in news and in storytelling. Amy brought us back in time and into the future. She brought to life incredibly special places like Rek-woi and the Klamath River Basin.
It has been an honor of a lifetime to get to know Amy and her family over the past three years of documenting this story. It was an honor to sit and listen to her that night in Oakland too. I think we all walked away with a new sense of respair - a word Amy taught us that night and a word that has only ever been recorded in the early 1500s. Definitely look it up!
And I couldn’t recommend enough to hear Amy speak! Follow her for future speaking engagements and definitely check out her book!
A huge shout out to Local Economy owners Alexis Madrigal (@alexismadrigal) and Sarah Rich for seeing the vision and supporting this work! To my editor Wendi (@wendijonassen) who lit the spark and encouraged me to see my work live beyond just newspapers. To Sarah (@thefelds) for your light, your energy and your constant belief in what we do at the Chronicle! And to Margaret (@msketchup) thank you for your care and your ability to keep a room engaged and thinking more deeply about our world through your thoughtful questions.
And lastly to my incredible community of friends who came out to support me and those who sent me beautiful messages. Thank you for your support of my craft and the balance you all bring to my life so I can keep doing this work!
My heart is so full!
The gallery will remain at Local Economy in Oakland for a month! For those who couldn’t make it, be sure to check it out!
26 Apr 2026
Join me and Yurok author and attorney Amy Bowers-Cordalis (@amybowerscordalis) for a night of film, photography and discussion on changing narratives and elevating Indigenous voices in storytelling at Local Economy in Oakland on Friday, April 24 at 6pm!
Amy, who is also the Executive Director of Indigenous-led conservation group Ridges to Riffles (@ridgestoriffles), will speak about her family’s history fighting for the Klamath River in her new book, “The Water Remembers.”
The event will also feature a gallery of images during my time documenting Amy’s family in the final years of the largest dam removal project in U.S. history as well as my short film, “Answer to Our Ancestors’ Prayers” which follows a group of Indigenous teens as they become the first people in over 100 years to kayak the entire length of the river.
I’m so looking forward to listening to Amy talk about her family, her work on the river and in environmental justice. We will also be discussing our collaboration while working on the Chronicle story and my approach to working with Indigenous communities.
So join us in this @sfchronicle and @yourlocaleconomy in Oakland during Earth Week!
See link to register in bio.
06 Apr 2026
Peak waterfall season in Yosemite is underway, but it won’t last long.
A lack of snow in the Sierras and a quick melt-off mean less water to plunge over celebrated giants like Bridalveil, Yosemite and Ribbon falls (pictured here.)
In fact, the biggest flows at Yosemite National Park’s top drops this spring may have just happened in the past few weeks, nearly two months sooner than usual. Another crest, perhaps as high as those in late March, could come within the next week or so, depending on snowmelt and lingering storms. But after that, waterfalls are expected to start slowing down.
This winter was one of the least snowiest in California in modern times and the mountains in Yosemite have not been spared. Weather stations in the park are generally reporting snow levels this week at 40-50% of what is typical.
Because of the low and quick melting snowpack, the Merced and Tuolumne rivers, which run through Yosemite and feed many of the park’s falls - serve as a proxy for other waterways with drops - are projected to carry only about half of their average April-to-July flow, according to runoff estimates by the California Department of Water Resources.
“Less snow means less water,” said Cory Goehring of the nonprofit Yosemite Conservancy. “But during these peak time, we’re still getting beautiful waterfalls.”
05 Apr 2026
Follower tracking
We have started recording @brontewittpenn, but only 1 observation so far — not enough to show a trend yet. Track it daily →
Download @brontewittpenn's data
Everything below is derived from this account, priced on the counts shown. Delivered as CSV by emailed link.
You only pay for rows we deliver. Counts are the maximum available today; if an export comes back smaller, the difference is refunded automatically. Counts as last collected 2 days, 13 hours ago.
Tracking
A monthly plan, not a download: we keep reading @brontewittpenn and email you what changed.
Other reports
Not downloads of this account: they take their own inputs.
Similar accounts
Accounts we track that share hashtags, mentions or bio topics with @brontewittpenn.
@jachristian
8,739 followers
Also mentions @wendijonassen
@dwaynewigginsofficial
27.2K followers
Also mentions @sfchronicle
@esthermob
13.9K followers
Also mentions @sarahrosemcgrew
@claramokriphoto
5,316 followers
Also mentions @emilyjan
@flotakesphotos
1,594 followers
Also mentions @emilyjan
@pgannawayphoto
6,105 followers
Also mentions @photofruge
@jenniferrwalsh
14.9K followers
Also mentions @alishajucevic
@johnsheahey
511 followers
Bio mentions “chronicle”