Princess of Wales photograph: Six telltale signs that family portrait was edited

Britain’s Princess of Wales has apologised for the “confusion” over a digitally altered family photograph released by Kensington Palace on Mother’s Day.

The image, which showed Kate Middleton, formally known as Catherine, with her children George, Charlotte and Louis, was recalled on Sunday night after picture agencies raised concerns that it had been doctored.

What are the telltale signs of manipulation in the image?

1. Charlotte’s sleeve: Part of the left sleeve does not line up, or some of the area is missing.

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2. Blurred outlines: The outline of Charlotte’s knees is blurred when it should be much crisper.

3. Detail not matching: The detail on the upper arm area of Louis’ jumper, below his right shoulder, does not match up. Catherine’s right hand around Louis is also blurred.

4. Zip misaligned: The zip on Catherine’s jacket seems to be askew.

[ ‘I do occasionally experiment with editing’: Kate Middleton apologises over edited family portrait ]

5. More misalignment: The wall and floor tiling around Louis’ legs is also misaligned.

6. Charlotte’s hair: The way Charlotte’s hair seem to sit, or end, is very unnatural.

The level of foliage in the background of the image also raises questions about when the photograph was taken.

The photograph was the first of Catherine (42) to be released after her abdominal surgery two months ago. She has not appeared in public since her hospitalisation in January.

In a tweet on Monday, Catherine said: “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.”

Major newswires are now facing questions about how the image seemingly passed editorial standards before being withdrawn at a time when fabricated content, including material generated by Artificial Intelligence (AI), is undermining public trust in journalism and visual media.

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