Kate Middleton has blamed her poor photo editing skills for the family photo SNAFU that led multiple photo agencies to drop an image of her and family yesterday, sending the UK press into meltdown.
Prince William and wife Middleton’s Kensington Palace X account just posted a message from Middleton saying: “Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing. I wanted to express my apologies for any confusion the family photograph we shared yesterday caused. I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day. C.”
Four major news agencies — Associated Press, Getty Images, Reuters, and AFP — had pulled the photo from their libraries amid concerns it was manipulated by Kensington Palace.
The Prince and Princess of Wales released the photo on Sunday, wishing followers a happy Mother’s Day, and the image was purportedly taken by Prince William this year.
Royal commentators initially said the image would combat weeks of fevered speculation about Middleton’s health after she disappeared from public life following abdominal surgery in January.
But the image further fueled conspiracies after eagle-eyed social media users spotted defects in the photo that suggested it had been altered.
Chris Ship, ITV News’ royal editor, said there were “serious questions” for Kensington Palace after it appeared that elements of the image, including Princess Charlotte’s sleeve, were doctored.
The debacle dominated front pages around the world and Middleton’s statement has attempted to put the speculation to bed.
Kensington Palace announced in mid-January that Middleton had had abdominal surgery in London and wouldn’t be seen in public for around three months. However, speculation had been rising in recent weeks as to her whereabouts and that of William, who had also been absent from certain engagements. William’s father, King Charles III, is currently recovering from cancer and has also been seen in public less.
