NO BUDGING
Palace REFUSE to release unedited version of Kate’s Mother’s Day pic after facing calls to ‘quash conspiracies’
Piers Morgan said the original needed to be released to stop conspiracy theories being spread
THE palace has refused to release the unedited version of Princess Kate's Mother's Day picture.
Kensington Palace posted the cute picture of Kate and Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis on Sunday - which fans were quick to claim had at least four "editing fails".
3
3
3
Royal fans were thrilled to see Kate following weeks of conspiracy theories about the status of her health.
It was the first time the mum-of-three spoke out since her abdominal operation in January.
The image, which was put out by Kensington Palace, was claimed to have been digitally altered - with photo agencies forced to order a "kill notice" on the pic.
Sky News says metadata shows it was saved in Adobe Photoshop and it was edited twice.
read more on THE royals
Kate has today been forced to apologise for her attempt at doctoring the snap, and the "confusion" it's caused.
She said in a statement: "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."
Most read in Royals
Kensington Palace said it would not be reissuing the original unedited photograph of Kate and her children.
It comes after Piers Morgan called on the palace to release the original.
Just hours before Kate's apology for the amendments was issued, Piers said on X/Twitter: "The Palace should release the unedited photo of Kate & the kids asap.
Kate's uncle Gary Goldsmith gives his verdict on Mother's Day picture as he speaks out after CBB eviction
"If it’s just a small bit of harmless retouching gone wrong, nobody will care.
"If they don’t release the original pic, the conspiracy theories they were trying to kill, will get way worse..."
After the Princess apologised, Piers doubled down on the Palace releasing the original image.
He posted: "OK, but the only way to quell the conspiracy theories is to release the original pic…"
He also quoted the apology post on X and said: "Can we see the original?"
The sweet Mother's Day picture was shared on X/twitter after weeks of speculation surrounding Kate's health - as she recovers from abdominal surgery.
Photo ‘editing’ backlash comes as:
- Princess Kate apologises for “confusion” caused by inconsistencies in family image
- Piers Morgan calls for the Palace to share the unedited photo to quell internet sleuths
- Kate’s uncle Gary Goldsmith gives his verdict on Mother’s Day picture as he speaks out after CBB eviction
- Photo agencies release ‘kill notice’ on Princess Kate’s Mother’s Day picture
- Twitter’s warning over Princess Kate photo inconsistenciesKing Charles releases video message saying he’ll ‘continue to serve you, to the best of my ability’ amid cancer battle
- Princess Kate is pictured with Prince William leaving Windsor Castle this afternoon in a black Land Rover
- Prince William brushes off Kate’s Photoshop drama as he arrives for Commonwealth Day celebration without his wife
The original X post now has a warning on it that reads: "Major news agencies, including the Associated Press, Getty Images, and Reuters, note inconsistencies that suggest digital alteration by Kensington Palace."
The warning from Twitter appeared in response to a flood of comments from users pointing out the editing fails.
And five large news agencies - AP, Getty Images, Reuters, AFP and PA - all withdrew the snap over fears it had been 'edited at the source'.
Fans questioned why Kate wasn't wearing her wedding ring and noticed that her other hand was blurry.
Others said Charlotte's cardigan sleeve seemed to disappear and her skirt was fuzzy.
Fans also claimed there appeared to be an odd cut in the skirting board.
In a colour corrected and lightened version of the image, Kate's zip appears not to line up.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
Meanwhile, others reckoned the colour of the tree's leaves are wrong for this time of year.
Why were 'kill notices' issued?
News agencies ordered a "kill notice" on the picture late Sunday night.
The removal orders were sent after "manipulation" on the image was discovered.
AP's order said the reason for killing the story was: "At closer inspection it appears that the source has manipulated the image."
The order then directs those who have used the photo to remove it from all platforms, including social.
Agence France-Press ordered the "mandatory kill" due to an "editorial issue" and directed that the image may no longer be used.
Reuters said the photo “has been withdrawn following a post publication review.”
Getty Images said: “For editorial reasons, please remove the following image(s) from your system and do not use in any manner.”
Getty said its picture desk "identified a problematic image" provided by the palace and removed it from its site "in accordance with our editorial policy."
PA said: "Like other news agencies, PA Media issued the handout image provided by Kensington Palace of the Princess of Wales and her children in good faith yesterday.
"We became aware of concerns about the image and we carried a report about it last night, and made clear that we were seeking urgent clarification about the image from Kensington Palace.
"In the absence of that clarification, we are killing the image from our picture service."
Each of the news agencies have their own editorial guidelines which govern how they treat images.
AP says that pictures "must always tell the truth" and that it does not alter or manipulate the content of a photograph in any way.
Its guidelines say: "The content of a photograph must not be altered in PhotoShop or by any other means. No element should be digitally added to or subtracted from any photograph."
However, AP says minor adjustments are allowed, they include cropping, colour adjustments, and light adjustments.
Topics