Slow shutter speed and sky-high ISO for wildlife photography – you must be kidding? “It’s the picture that counts,” says award-winning photographer of this stunning image of a black panther at night

A nighttime shot of a silhouetted prowling black panther against red light from a nocturnal lamp. — (Image credit: Andy Rouse / courtesy of MontPhoto Contest)

Keeping your ISO as low as possible seems to be a fixed mantra for many photographers, but what if you don’t have the time nor the light to adjust your exposure? Do you skip the shot, or risk ungodly grain and motion blur?

“It’s the picture that counts,” not the settings, says wildlife tour leader and multi-award-winning British photographer Andy Rouse, who was recently named the Honorary Award winner of this year’s MontPhoto Contest, despite using what many would call sacrilegious settings.

Rouse captured his winning frame of a black leopard named Giza at Laikipia, a high-altitude, biodiverse plain in central Kenya, shooting at ISO 51200 and a 1/15-second shutter speed.

According to the photographer, there are “thousands and thousands” of images of Giza and, as he wanted to take “something different,” he cranked the ISO right up, initially planning to capture a portrait of the feline illuminated by a nocturnal lamp.

Andy Rouse’s gear and settings

Sony Alpha 1 II
Sony FE 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS II
Focal length: 122.00 mm
Exposure: 1/15 sec | f/22 | ISO 51200

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Watch: Andy Rouse tells the full story behind capturing his award-winning frame of Giza the black leopard

“When I saw it [Giza] walking, I didn’t have time to change it [the ISO], so I just left it where it was,” said Rouse. “If I’d done it again, obviously I’d have taken the ISO down,” he continued, adding that with the animal now on the move, he had to act quickly.

“You know what, though, it’s high ISO, but I took it out of DxO (post-processing software) and it (the image) won a major award,” said Rouse, adding that his frame “should stop everyone in their tracks” who worries about high ISO.

Rouse said that images you enter into a competition need to be “something special” and believes that by using the settings he chose, he was able to capture a “different take” on a much-photographed subject, impressing the MontPhoto judges.

You can see more of Andy Rouse’s work at his Instagram and access exclusive content on his Patreon page.

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I’m a writer, journalist and photographer who joined Digital Camera World in 2026. I started out in editorial in 2021 and my words have spanned sustainability, careers advice, travel and tourism, and photography – the latter two being my passions.

I first picked up a camera in my early twenties having had an interest in photography from a young age. Since then, I’ve worked on a freelance basis, mostly internationally in the travel and tourism sector. You’ll usually find me out on a hike shooting landscapes and adventure shots in my free time.