The winners of the LCE Photographer of the Year competition were announced live at The Photography & Video Show 2026, and one of the runners-up snapped a real-life scene of Tom and Jerry.<\/p>\n
But unlike in the cartoons where clever Jerry always bests cunning Tom, Aaron Whiteaway<\/a>‘s photo, which was a runner-up in the After Dark category of the LCE awards, depicts a more ominous scene.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The image, aptly entitled Tom & Jerry, shows a mouse trying to climb a step while in the background, a lurking cat has its gaze fixed on the mouse, ready to pounce.<\/p>\n Article continues below <\/p>\n You may like<\/p>\n I love this image, especially the way in which the perfect amount of depth of field has been used to tell the story.<\/p>\n At first glance, it\u2019s not obvious that the out-of-focus object in the background is a lethal cat on the hunt. But a moment later, it becomes clear, as does the peril that the mouse faces, and I\u2019m gripped by angst, knowing this is likely its last moments.<\/p>\n ‘Tom & Jerry’ \u2013 Finalist in the After Dark category<\/p>\n Commenting on his image, Whiteaway said: \u201cAfter a night out testing my latest 300mm lens, as I returned home, I stumbled upon a cat playing with its prey in the street.\u201d<\/p>\n Whiteaway was shooting on a Nikon Z8<\/a> with a Nikon<\/a> VR 300mm f\/2.8G telephoto prime lens. He used 1\/40sec shutter speed and a wide-open f\/2.8 aperture, but still needed ISO 6,400 to ensure sufficient exposure.<\/p>\n \u201cI managed to lay the lens down on the floor with its tripod foot for stability, angled the screen upwards on the camera and shot off a burst of shots,\u201d said Whiteaway.<\/p>\n The other brilliant aspect of this image is that it leaves the ending up to the imagination. Whiteaway said: \u201cI unfortunately never did find out how it all unfolded that night between the cat and mouse, but what a bittersweet moment it was to experience.\u201d<\/p>\n While I\u2019d like to imagine the mouse making a smart escape just like in the cartoons, something tells me the real-life scenario played out in a more deadly way.<\/p>\n What to read next<\/p>\n The LCE POTY 2026 awards are now in their third year, and this year there was over $13,300 (\u00a310,000 \/ AU$19,000) in prize money up for grabs. The 2026 overall winner was an amateur photographer whose \u2018playful portrait<\/a>\u2019 beat over 14,500 entries.<\/p>\n See the whole lineup of finalist photos from the LCE POTY 2026 awards<\/a><\/p>\n You might also like\u2026<\/p>\n Browse the best low-light cameras<\/a>, and the best telephoto lenses.<\/a><\/p>\n Looking for competitions to enter? Here are 10 global photo contests now open for entries from March to July.<\/a><\/p>\n