About Me
Learn about me, Rich Giannola, and how my love for birds and photography started and what I do to enjoy these two hobbies.
Bio
Rich Giannola, a birder and photographer, and his wife, Joann, reside in southern Delaware. Birding and photography are his passionate hobbies. His main interest is taking photographs of birds, although he also photographs other animals, insects, landscapes, and anything else that is interesting. He is a member of the Sussex Bird Club and the Coastal Camera Club, and is also a member of the camera club’s Wildlife Special Interest Group.
His interest in all things skyward began early in his life. As a child growing up on Long Island, Rich received a telescope as a Christmas gift. He started gazing skyward and became enamored with the stars and planets. This early passion with astronomy continued into his teenage years and into college, leading to a B.S. degree in Astronomy from Villanova University. Many hours were spent “looking up into the sky” through the big telescopes in the school’s observatory.
Although still interested in astronomy, Rich shifted his focus in graduate school to meteorology and received M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Atmospheric Science from Drexel University. After a one-year post-doctoral position at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Camp Springs, MD, he worked as an atmospheric scientist during his entire 36-year career at The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, MD, utilizing both his meteorology and astronomy backgrounds, while still “looking up into the sky.”
Shortly before he completed graduate school in 1981, Rich’s interest in birding was sparked by a visit from a high school friend. They went to what was then known as Tinicum National Environmental Center, now known as John Heinz at Tinicum National Wildlife Refuge, in Philadelphia, PA. From that day on, Rich was hooked on “looking up” at the birds flying and perching in trees, even “looking horizontally” as the case may be. Rich introduced his wife to the hobby, and they have been birding together ever since.
His interest in photography can be traced back to his undergraduate days when he enjoyed doing astrophotography. The powerful telescopes at Villanova zoomed in on the moon, planets, galaxies, and nebulae which fascinated him. He photographed these objects using his Praktica film camera and telecope adapter. He also learned to develop his own photographic prints in the Astronomy Department’s darkroom.
The first digital camera he used to photograph birds as a hobby started wth a Sony Cyber-shot DSC- HX300 purchased in 2014. It was a lightweight and easy to use point-and-shoot camera, but it didn’t have the resolution or flexibility needed to create sharp images of flying birds or birds at a distance. Looking for a more professional grade camera, in April 2020 he bought a Canon EOS Rebel T7i digital single lens reflex camera and a Tamron 100-400mm f/4.5-6.3 zoom lens. He has taken thousands of pictures with this upgraded equipment and has posted some of his favorite shots on this web site. Rich continues to learn the features of this new camera and is always striving to become a better photographer. Taking the next step forward, Rich upgraded his gear and bought a Canon R5 mirrorless camera in December 2023. There are many new features with this camera, so he has much to learn again. Photography is a lifelong learning process.
Besides his camera, Rich uses several other pieces of equipment to identify birds while in the field, the largest being a 20-60 X 85 Diamondback Vortex spotting scope on a tripod. Although not expensive as spotting scopes go, it is worth its weight in gold for identifying ducks and shorebirds as well as perching birds at a distance. He also has a smaller 16-48 X 65 Diamondback Vortex spotting scope for more lightweight travel. Next in line is an old but reliable pair of 7 X 35 Bushnell binoculars. Again, not very pricey, but it gets the job done. Optics aside, Rich believes that two of the most important pieces of “equipment” for identifying birds are your eyes and ears. It is generally easy to spot large birds on the water and to catch movements of birds flying. However, the keen eye can distinguish a small bird perched in a tree from a pinecone, detect a bird’s silhouette in a tree, and catch stealthy wading birds in the marsh. Using your ears to identify birds is just as important as your eyes. Many birds are heard but often not seen and it takes experience to become familiar with their sounds.
He also carries a belt pouch while birding that contains a small notebook for recording species seen, pens, perhaps a trail guide and bird checklist, and always a bird book. Although he has many bird books in his collection, he always uses the Peterson Field Guides, Eastern Birds or Western Birds, in the field because of their convenience and familiarity with them over the years.
After returning home from his birding adventures, Rich spends a lot of time downloading, viewing, processing, sorting, and backing up the digital photographs he took on that day. Rich also logs the species seen that day into his bird diary as many birders do. All new bird species seen are entered into his “life list” book. Besides the bird species, he includes in his diary a record of the location, date, time, weather, and who accompanied him on the trip. Rich feels that blogs of his birding adventures on this website are a fun way to share his birding and photography experiences with you.
Rich hopes that your birding and photography experiences are just as rewarding as his. Keep your eyes and ears open. Happy birding and photographing!
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