Kate Middleton apologizes for botched post-surgery family photo: ‘Experiment in editing’
Kate Middleton issued an apology Monday after her post-surgery family photo went viral for its numerous Photoshop errors that left people believing it was fake.
“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,” she wrote on X from the official Prince and Princess of Wales account.
“I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day. C.”
“Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing,” she tweeted. Samir Hussein/WireImage
The message came after various photo agencies issued a “kill notice” over the manipulated image. KensingtonRoyal/Instagram
The image, which featured the Princess of Wales sitting in a chair surrounded by her three children — Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 8, and Prince Louis, 5 — fell victim to immediate criticism as eagle-eyed fans noticed botched edits, including young Charlotte’s sleeve disappearing in a blur.
Additionally, fans questioned why George’s right hand was out of focus in the snap.
AP, Agence France-Press and Reuters demanded its clients remove the photo, which featured the Princess of Wales flanked by her kids, from websites. Getty Images
“At closer inspection it appears that the source has manipulated the image,” a message from the AP read. Getty Images
Given the heavy edits, photo agencies such as the Associated Press (AP), Reuters, Agence France-Presse (AFP) and Getty Images issued a “kill notice” to media outlets to remove the image immediately.
“At closer inspection it appears that the source has manipulated the image,” a message from the AP read.
Middleton, 42, shared the family portrait on Sunday to honor Mother’s Day in the UK.
The Instagram post came days after an extremely grainy paparazzi photo showed Middleton in the car with her mom, Carole. Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
Conspiracy theorists quickly dismissed the image, claiming it didn’t look like the mom of three. AFP via Getty Images
“Thank you for your kind wishes and continued support over the last two months,” she captioned the Instagram post.
“Wishing everyone a Happy Mother’s Day.”
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However, it marked Middleton’s first appearance since Christmas (pictured here). Samir Hussein/WireImage
Initially, royal fans were thrilled to see Middleton looking so well after her abdominal surgery in January, but the post quickly fueled conspiracy theories about the royal’s whereabouts.
Although the royal family shared that the mom of three wouldn’t return to public duty until around Easter, many have started to believe that Middleton didn’t actually go under the knife for abdominal surgery and instead suggested she had plastic surgery.
Adding fuel to that fire was an extremely grainy paparazzi photo from a few days ago that showed Middleton and her mom, Carole, driving in a car.
Some theorize the Prince and Princess of Wales are divorcing, as she didn’t wear her iconic engagement ring in the Mother’s Day post. Samir Hussein/WireImage
“I mean….if, its Kate Middleton then she did a full face reconstruction, face plastic surgery. Her sinking wrinkles and moles have disappeared,” said one user of the image, which many believed wasn’t actually Middleton.
Others believe she and the Prince of Wales, 41, might be divorcing given she opted not to wear her iconic sapphire engagement ring in the Mother’s Day image.
Kensington Palace had no comment has to why she didn’t wear her sparkler.
