About - Jon Ortner / Biography

One of the world's leading photographers, Jon Ortner is the acclaimed author of 8 internationally published fine-art books on such wide-ranging topics as the icons and architecture of Manhattan, the beauty of the human form, the sacred places and people of Southeast Asia, the landscapes and geological wonders of the Desert Southwest, and American Wilderness.

Jon's achievements as an artist, scholar, and adventurer are sepcially reflective of a life committed to passionately exploring the wonders and treasures of the natural world. His intrepid youth, largely spent fascinated by the study of diverse flora and fauna, forged him into an avid, erudite naturalist and wilderness hiker. Following academic pursuits in Ecology and Eastern Philosophy, he established a highly successful commercial photography studio in New York City with his wifee and business partner, Martha McGuire.

Jon's boundless curiosity, insatiable thirst for knowledge about people and places, and deep-seated reverence for nature's exquisitness soon manifest itself in his photography. In 1971, with a creative intellect on fire and the urgent purpose felt only by true artists, he embarked on a photographic and spiritual journey to record and celebrate the world's most remote and astonishingly beautiful sites. 

For twenty-five years, he and Martha trekked thousands of miles throughout the ancient lands of Southeast Asia, in many cases gaining rare access to forbidden sites. Against the backdrop of the magnificent Himalaya Mountains, they explored the geological wonders, sacred palces, and people of Bhutan, Nepal, Ladakh, and Tibet. In India, Thailand. Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, China, Bali, and Java. they immersed themselves in the mysteries of some of the worlds most spectacular and profound reoigious and cultural sites.

The gorgeously produced large-format photography books emerging from these singular experiences have for years, and for reprint after reprint, ignighted the imaginations of thousands of readers. They include Where Every Breath is a Prayer, A photographic Pilgrimage into the Spiritual Heart of Asia, Angkor, Celestial Temples of the Khmer Empire, and Buddha, each unparalleled in it's thematic, compositional, and technical artistry, and rich with Jon's deeply personal and scholarly writings on Hindu and Buddhist art, spiritual pilgrimage, and the role of sacred places in our lives.

Following his clebrated and widely published book Canyon Wilderness of the Southwest - praised by National Georgraphic as "exquisite, a visual feast, and "a layered work of complexity" - Jon Ortner takes us home once again with his lastest work, Visions of Paradise, a passionate tribute to the American Wilderness that serves as an urgent call for it's continued protection and stewardship. He celebrates Americas most humbling natural scenes - from the deserts and canyons of the Southwest to the botanical paradise of the vast decidious forests of New England, and to the towering, ancient groves of California's giant redwoods - by unfolding in soul-stirring images and words a spare and elegent story of a shared yet vulnerable national heritage.

Based in the Berkshire Mountains on the border of New York And Massachusetts, Jon and Martha currently divided their time between their worldwide journeys of discovery and commercial photography assignments. Jon's advertising work has been featured in print and online by top international corporations that incude Fuji, Kodak, and Nikon. His award-winning images and enlightening narratives have appeared in magazines such as GEO, Architectural Digest, Travel & Leisure, Outdoor Photographer, and National Geographic, and he has presented his work at the Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art, The Explorers Club in New York City, and for many of the National Parks. Interviews and portfollios from his recent book Visions of Paradise have been featured in numerous world-wide photography and luxury lifestyle blogs including On Landscape, About Photography, Shadow & Light, The Eye of Photography, and Vie Magazie.

One of thOne of the  world’s leading photographers, Jon Ortner is the acclaimed author of eight internationally published fine-art books on such wide-ranging topics as the icons and architecture of Manhattan, the beauty of the human form, the sacred places and people of Southeast Asia, and the landscapes and geological wonders of the American Southwest.

Jon’s achievements as an artist, scholar, and adventurer are especially reflective of a life

committed to passionately exploring the wonders and treasures of the natural word. His intrepid youth, largely spent fascinated by the study of diverse flora and fauna, forged him into an avid, erudite naturalist and wilderness hiker. Following academic pursuits in ecology and Eastern philosophy, he established a highly successful commercial photography studio in New York City with his wife and business partner, Martha McGuire.

One of the world’s leading photographers, Jon Ortner is the acclaimed author of eight internationally published fine-art books on such wide-ranging topics as the icons and architecture of Manhattan, the beauty of the human form, the sacred places and people of Southeast Asia, and thJin landscapes and geological wonders of the American Southwest.

Jon’s achievements as an artist, scholar, and adventurer are especially reflective of a life

committed to passionately exploring the wonders and treasures of the natural word. His intrepid youth, largely spent fascinated by the study of diverse flora and fauna, forged him into an avid, erudite naturalist and wilderness hiker. Following academic pursuits in ecology and Eastern philosophy, he established a highly successful commercial photography studio in New York City with his wife and business partner, Martha McGuire.

Jon’s boundless curiosity, insatiable thirst for knowledge about people and places, and

deep-seated reverence for nature’s exquisiteness soon manifested itself in his photography. In 1971, with a creative intellect on fire and the urgent purpose felt only by true artists, he embarked on a photographic and spiritual journey to record and celebrate the world’s most remote and astonishingly beautiful sites. For twenty-five years, he and Martha trekked thousands of miles throughout the ancient lands of Southeast Asia, in many cases gaining rare access to forbidden sites. Against the backdrop of the magnificent Himalaya Mountains, they explored the geological wonders, sacred places, and people of Nepal, Bhutan, Ladakh, and Tibet. In India, Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, China, and Bali and Java, they immersed themselves in the mysteries of the some of the world’s most spectacular and profound religious and cultural sites.

The gorgeously produced large-format photography books emerging from these singular

experiences have for years, and for reprint after reprint, ignited the imaginations of thousands of readers. They include Where Every Breath Is a Prayer: A Photographic Pilgrimage into the Spiritual Heart of Asia, Angkor: Celestial Temples of the Khmer Empire, and Buddha, each unparalleled in its thematic, compositional, and technical artistry and rich with Jon’s deeply personal and scholarly writings on Hindu and Buddhist art, spiritual pilgrimage, and the role of sacred places in our lives.

One of the world’s leading photographers, Jon Ortner is the acclaimed author of eight internationally published fine-art books on such wide-ranging topics as the icons and architecture of Manhattan, the beauty of the human form, the sacred places and people of Southeast Asia, and the landscapes and geological wonders of the American Southwest.

Jon’s achievements as an artist, scholar, and adventurer are especially reflective of a life

committed to passionately exploring the wonders and treasures of the natural word. His intrepid youth, largely spent fascinated by the study of diverse flora and fauna, forged him into an avid, erudite naturalist and wilderness hiker. Following academic pursuits in ecology and Eastern philosophy, he established a highly successful commercial photography studio in New York City with his wife and business partner, Martha McGuire.

Jon’s boundless curiosity, insatiable thirst for knowledge about people and places, and

deep-seated reverence for nature’s exquisiteness soon manifested itself in his photography. In 1971, with a creative intellect on fire and the urgent purpose felt only by true artists, he embarked on a photographic and spiritual journey to record and celebrate the world’s most remote and astonishingly beautiful sites. For twenty-five years, he and Martha trekked thousands of miles throughout the ancient lands of Southeast Asia, in many cases gaining rare access to forbidden sites. Against the backdrop of the magnificent Himalaya Mountains, they explored the geological wonders, sacred places, and people of Nepal, Bhutan, Ladakh, and Tibet. In India, Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, China, and Bali and Java, they immersed themselves in the mysteries of the some of the world’s most spectacular and profound religious and cultural sites.

The gorgeously produced large-format photography books emerging from these singular

experiences have for years, and for reprint after reprint, ignited the imaginations of thousands of readers. They include Where Every Breath Is a Prayer: A Photographic Pilgrimage into the Spiritual Heart of Asia, Angkor: Celestial Temples of the Khmer Empire, and Buddha, each unparalleled in its thematic, compositional, and technical artistry and rich with Jon’s deeply personal and scholarly writings on Hindu and Buddhist art, spiritual pilgrimage, and the role of sacred places in our lives.