The professional photographic archive of freelance photojournalist Jon Brenneis of Berkeley, California. Covering a wide range of news, popular culture, and human interest stories, chiefly from 1948 into the 1980s, particular strengths are science and technology, high tech companies of the San Francisco Bay Area, and corporate and business history focused on Bay Area companies.

Jon Brenneis (1921-2013) was a freelance photojournalist and commercial photographer based in Berkeley, California. Born John Martin Brenneis, Jr., he was an alumnus of the University of California at Berkeley (class of 1942). He served in the U.S. Marine Corps as a photographer during World War Two (1942-1946), and continued in his profession upon returning to civilian life. His first civilian assignment was for Life magazine in 1946, photographing chinchillas. The same year, he began doing work for Standard Oil of California. Time Inc. and Standard Oil continued to be clients for decades. In addition, Brenneis produced work for countless other national publications and California companies. In the late 1940s, he collaborated with former Marine Corps photographers to form “Cal-Pictures” (originally “Cal Pix”), building a darkroom and lab to process their own film. Brenneis was a successful photographic innovator, finding ways to make compelling images of cutting edge advances in science and technology, particularly in his frequent contributions to Scientific American. He often photographed internationally for clients such as Chevron. In the 1980s, Breinnes’s work shifted toward travel photography, but his work for corporate clients continued on a limited basis. Jon Brenneis retired in 1993.

124,000 photographs (57 boxes (negatives), 14 boxes (photographic prints and transparencies), 3 oversize boxes (photographic prints), 1 box (transparencies))

Jon Brenneis's copyright in this material has been assigned to the Regents of the University of California, for the benefit of The Bancroft Library.

Collection is open for research; access requires advance notice.