Our Story

Tom and Scott started collaborating on the Warbler Guide in 2009 to make learning about birds easier and more fun.  Aggravated with the cumbersome process of learning from current books, they decided to make a guide from the ground up that catered to what bird watchers needed, instead of what tradition demanded.  A few years later came The Warbler Guide, and it was a success!  

After that, there was a lot of demand for a series of guides on other bird groups.  Instead, Scott and Tom decided to keep pushing boundaries, this time in the digital world.  The Warbler Guide App challenged what a bird app could be - not just a book converted into digital form, but a tool that leveraged the real power of our smartphones and tablets to help birders like never before.  

Where to go next?  Birdgenie, of course.  Over time they'd realized that one of the hardest things for people to learn is sound, so they made an app to help.  Birdgenie not only analyzes and identifies birds from recordings, it also helps the user visualize sound, and encourage them to explore that very rewarding sonic world that birds (and people!) live in.  

​What now?  There are several projects in the works, and be assured that they will not follow the beaten path, but will instead continue to push for a better way to learn and connect with the natural world.  

​The Authors

Scott Whittle and Tom Stephenson work with Princeton University Press to create innovative tools
​that help bird and nature enthusiasts learn more and have fun!

Scott Whittle has over 25 years of experience as a professional photographer and educator.   He has an MFA in Photography from the School of Visual Arts, is a fellow of the MacDowell Colony, has held the New York State Big Year record, and has birded throughout the United States.  He has been published in many magazines, newspapers and books.  He lives in Cape May, NJ where he pursues his passion for birds.

Tom Stephenson's articles and photos have appeared in Birding and Bird Watcher's Digest, at Surfbirds.com, and in the Handbook of the Birds of the World.  He has guided groups across the United States and Asia.  A musician, he has had several Grammy and Academy Award winners as clients, and was Director of Technology at Roland Corporation.  He lives in Brooklyn, NY.