PRINCESS Kate isn’t the first royal to dabble in digital treatment – with disastrous results.
She apologized for experimenting with editing the Mother’s Day image released by Kensington Palace, which caused widespread confusion among royal fans.
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The controversial shot, which was pulled by a number of picture agencies after revealing “manipulation” of the image, is not the first to raise eyebrows.
Some royal fans have speculated that the late Queen appears to have been treated with minor cosmetic surgery through digital manipulation.
But at least the Princess of Wales has admitted her mistake.
Kate said: “Like many amateur photographers, I sometimes experiment with editing.
“I wanted to express my apologies for the confusion the family photo we shared yesterday caused.”
Here we look at some of the other royal photoshop fails…
Can’t touch it?
When the Welsh released their annual Christmas card in December, observers noticed that there was something odd about Prince Louis.
He appeared to be missing the middle finger on his left hand.
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One fan wrote to X: “Is Prince Louis missing a finger? What the hell is going on with the AI.’
Another wrote: “Not a fan of this pic, look at Louis and his left arm, what’s up with that?”
Fans also noticed another odd detail in the photo, saying that Prince William’s leg appeared to be missing.
One person framed a bare leg in the space below Louis, writing: “Whose legs are these?”
But another came forward to solve the mystery, replying: “William’s leg in long trousers and Louis in shorts.”
While the royals have not officially commented, an insider insisted there was no digital tampering and that Louis’ digit was simply bent.
A helping hand?
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This beautiful portrait of the late Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip appears to have been ruined by some creative Photoshopping.
There’s something odd about the monarch’s clasped hands in the photo, which was released a few years before she died in September 2022.
Eagle-eyed royal fans spotted a strange dark outline around the edge of the Queen’s right hand, which they claimed was cropped from an alternate image.
Some people on social media also questioned whether the image of the couple was digitally edited over a different background showing the front of Windsor Castle.
“Zombie” Kate
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The image of the Princess of Wales has graced magazine covers around the world – but the one on the front of Australia’s Woman’s Day is best forgotten.
It looks like someone retouched the photo of Kate’s face before the birth of Prince Louis in 2018.
Subsequently, Cosmpolitan magazine wrote a scathing review, calling the airbrushing “horrible photoshop with zombies”.
This time the royals couldn’t be blamed because it was clearly none of their business.
A bald intervention
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Prince William has made no secret of the fact that he’s losing weight on top – with the heir to the throne sporting a close-shaven bosom.
In 2014, however, the American edition of Vanity Fair magazine was accused of flattering King Charles’ eldest son by digitally thickening his hair.
In response, the publication insisted that it simply added more colors to make the photo look more “vibrant.”
Cheeky
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Does Prince George need help looking cute? Someone at US Weekly seemed to think so.
The second in line to the throne sported greener eyes, pinker lips, more colorful hair and bigger cheeks when he appeared on the cover of the issue in 2014.
One person on Twitter commented: “You know magazine airbrushing has gone too far when they airbrush a baby.”
The waist is prohibited
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The Press Complaints Commission was called out when Grazia magazine edited a photo of Princess Kate from her wedding day in 2011 to make her waist appear slimmer.
The publication admitted to altering the photo, but claimed it was an inadvertent error when they cropped her husband William out of the image.
It was certainly a bad look for the magazine because it was accused of encouraging women to seek unattainable body sizes.
Why did photo agencies issue ‘kill notices’ on Princess Kate’s Mother’s Day photo?
PICTURE agencies have issued ‘kill alerts’ on Princess Kate’s Mother’s Day photo.
The reason for removing the photo was: “Upon closer inspection, it appears that the source has manipulated the image.”
The order then directed those who used the photo to remove it from all platforms, including social media.
Agence France-Presse ordered the “mandatory kill” due to an “editorial problem” and ordered that the image not be used again.
Reuters said the photo “was pulled after a post-publication review.”
Getty Images said: “For editorial reasons, please remove the following image(s) from your system and do not use it in any way.”
Getty said its photo bureau “identified a problematic image” provided by the palace and removed it from its site “in accordance with our editorial policy.”
Each news agency has its own editorial guidelines that govern how they treat images.
The AP says that photos “should always tell the truth” and that they do not alter or manipulate the content of the photo in any way.
Its guidelines say: “The content of a photograph must not be altered in PhotoShop or otherwise. No element must be digitally added or subtracted from any photograph.”
However, AP says that minor adjustments are allowed, these include cropping, color adjustments, and light adjustments
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