John Joseh O'Heron Jr

Here, I write a few words of introduction about this website and myself, and my work through the years in Aviation, Photography and finally, Teaching. It's February of 2012, and by what might be called serendipity, I just returned from Brazil, where I've lived in total, about 12 years, since first coming to South America, in 1984, to take pictures. I've been in and out of Brazil, many times, mostly between contracts, am often with a Brazilian lady, Alzira Maria de Lima O'Heron.

I was born, John Joseph O'Heron Jr., in March 1945, in Marinette, Wisconsin and spent the first months of my life with my mother and grandparents in Stephenson, Michigan, my mothers home town. Apparently I was conceived in Texas, where my Dad was based. Shortly after my birth, in June of 45, my father, John “Jack” O’Heron, Master Sergeant, in the Army Air Corps, was sent aboard the USS M.M. Patrick, in the 21st Army Air Force Photo-Recon squadron, to the China, Burma, India Theater, and when the war was over, he returned to Chicago via Seattle, and was finally discharged in 1946.

My mother, Carol Jean “Bagley” O’Heron, and "Jack" were married in 1943 Bakersfield, California ,where Dad was stationed. They started their family of 4 children, of which I was the first, and we grew up in the suburb of Itasca, just west of O'Hare International Airport, and Chicago, hometown of both, my father and grandfather, John J. O'Heron. As a teenager, photography was a hobby for me, with my dad's canera and an small darkroom. When I was close to finishing high school, another war was going on, in Vietnam. At the time, not interested in college, right away, I enlisted in the Air Force, as my father had served in, 20 years, before.

Aviation

Thus I started my first career, "Aviation", which was a tremendous amount of detailed, meticulous work, and I learned quickly what responsibility was, and the necessity to do things exactly right, which in aviation, safety is of the upmost importance, to life and limb. These basic skills and licenses, and experience that I acquired in the military, and then civil aviation, enabled me to be independent, to study, and travel, and my work in aviation continued, on and off, during my life until about the time of the world cup in 1998, when at Miami International airport, I last signed my name officialy, on a flight release, for a "DHL" aircraft. My flying time now, is with the MS Flight Simulator , and a joystick.The links show "footprints" I left, here and there, in aviation, during the 35 years span, that I was involved.

Aviation Resume  References, Training, Certifications

Photography

"Photography" was the second career I began, after, completing a fine arts program, at the University of Calgary, Canada in 1978. Photography, and Art, and Philosophy, have been major interests for me. I became involved professionally as a photographer in the late 70's, 80's, and into the 90's, and this has continued, even today, with a variety of pictures on this site, from many countries.

(links below show examples of my photographic work)

Travel and Editorial Photography  

Gallery Exhibition, Seattle, Calgary, Edmonton

 Infrared 70mm Photography, John O'Heron

 Comercial and Product Photography

 Wedding Photography

 Theatrical Photography

 Portrait, Actor, Model Photography

My work as a Teacher

While the first two careers overlapped each other in time, another opportunity was presented to me, and I decided to "go for it". In 1986. A scholarship was offered, study, to teach English, as a Second Language, and I completed yet, another university degree, and became a "Teacher". Consequently, between then and 2009, the most recent part of my working life, I have been a teacher, trainer, translator, instructor. (not exacly like "Tinker, Tailor,"Soldier Spy"), but one way, that led me to work during the past 25 years, in and out of the States, in South America, Asia and the Middle East.

Whew! What is it then, that one, including me, is to make of this all?

As I think about my past and now, in general, "Aviation" was the most, exacting, detailed and involved, "Photography" has been a " passion" that was work, but was also, not work, but all the more so, done with zeal, an attempt to strive for some perfection, in my life. The last employment, as a "teacher", was not quite as exacting as the first two, and especially on my latter contracts abroad, I might think of myself as a "legionaire", afar from my native land. But it's been fun and rewarding. That's it folks, enough said, for now.

 Teaching Resume and References