Kate Middleton has responded to speculation her recent Mother’s Day photo with her children was “manipulated” after major backlash.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter) this morning, the Princess of Wales wrote: “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.”
Kate is known to be a keen photographer, and often shares more personal images of her tight-knit family on social media.
This particular photo caused a stir because it was the first photo of her to be released in an official capacity since Christmas Day.
The Princess of Wales stepped back from royal duties to recover from a planned abdominal operation in January, and is not expected to return until after Easter.
However, her Mother’s Day photo drew plenty of extra attention after eagle-eyed fans noted several apparent discrepancies in the image.
A few major photo agencies – such as Reuters, Associated Press, Getty and AFP – suddenly refused to distribute the image, hours after it was first released on Sunday over concerns it had been photoshopped.
Associated Press issued a “kill notification” – meaning an image should no longer be used as all.
It added: “At closer inspection, it appears that the source [the Palace] has manipulated the image, no replacement photo will be sent.”
It asked all clients to “remove it from all platforms, including social, where it may still be visible”.
The original image, taken by her husband Prince William, is still up on the Royal Family’s social media platforms – but a note has been added on X pointing to the apparent digital alterations.