Inspired by the birds and landscapes of Ceredigion, John Ibbotson encounters with wildlife from in west Wales can be seen in a new exhibition at RSPB Ynyshir.

The free exhibition is open during visitor centre opening times.

John is a photographer and wildlife enthusiast based near Aberystwyth.

During the pandemic, photography and wildlife watching became much more than just a hobby as he was able to engage so much more with the nature around us.

As well as daily photographs taken in his garden during the lockdowns, he worked on a project to capture the wildlife and landscape of Cors Fochno through the seasons.

This led to a couple of local exhibitions entitled A Year on the Bog.

John Ibbotson cheque
John uses his photographs to make calendars and sells them to raise money for charity (Picture supplied)

The photographs chosen for the current display at RSPB Ynyshir are more representative of wildlife to be found close to Ynyshir, along with some of John’s favourite encounters from further afield in west Wales.

John turns his photographs into calendars to raise money for charity.

Since the pandemic, donations have been made each year to the Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales and Mind Aberystwyth.

His 2023 calendars raised £2,048.80 which was shared between the two charities, and the total raised over the years since he has being doing this now stands at just over £20,000.

John’s exhibition at RSPB Ynyshir runs until Sunday, 2 July.