A west Fife GP who has turned his hand to photography is showing some of his work at an exhibition at the RSPB Vane Farm reserve near Kinross.
Ian Mason, who works at the Charlestown practice, suffered a stroke in January but is enjoying getting involved in taking wildlife photography.
The photographs in the exhibtion include a squirrel, puffin, owl, geese and deer.
Dr Mason who won a highly commended prize for a photograph last year at the British Wildlife Photography Awards said his interest in photography first began when he was on holiday in the Zambia in 2005.
“I’ve always had an interest in photography and discovered digital and now I’ve taken it on from there,” he said. “Now it is a hobby and I will have 24 photographs on show at the exhibition, with some also on display at the surgery in Charlestown.
“I learnt through peer review of my images over a number of years. I have been persuaded to share some of the images gathering dust on my computer and hopefully will raise some money for charity.
“The photographs are all for sale, with the proceeds going to two stroke charities, Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland and The Stroke Association. So far some £1000 has been raised through sales to friends and patients.
“I hope to expand on this over the coming months by working with fund-raising teams from both charities.”
He added, “The stroke has certainly made it more difficult to get out into the field and I am often restricted to shooting from the car or very close to it. Thankfully I can still work the controls.”
Dr Mason has been practising as a GP in Charlestown/Limekilns for 14 years and was practising in Dunfermline for about 18 years before then.
He is a member of the web-based Nature Photographers Network, the Edinburgh Photographic Society and the Zoological Photographic Club.
Visit his website at www.ianmasonnaturephotography.com