Royal Author Sums up the Problem With Releasing the Original Kate Photo in 1 Sentence
Kate Middleton’s Photoshop fail of a Mother’s Day photo has raised calls for the release of the original. (At the time of writing, the original hasn’t been released.) According to an author, it’s not as simple as going public with the unaltered image of the Princess of Wales and her children. Ahead, their explanation for why releasing the original’s complicated.
Kensington Palace isn’t releasing the original photo of Kate
After Kensington Palace released a family photo of the Princess of Wales and her three children on March 10, 2024, to mark Mother’s Day in the U.K., calls quickly began for the original.
Signs the snap, which Prince William took, had been edited made the rounds online. Photo agencies even pulled the photo showing Kate smiling alongside Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 8, and Prince Louis, 5, from their databases due to manipulation claims.
Later came an apology from Kate for “editing” the photo. Through all the drama and the cries to see the original, Kensington Palace didn’t release it.
Speaking to PA Images, the palace confirmed they “would not be reissuing the original unedited photograph of Kate and her children,” (via Express). So, the edited version lives on. At the time of writing, the photo remains on William and Kate’s social media accounts.
Question sums up the complicated nature of releasing Mother’s Day pic: ‘Is it lots of different images?’
Speaking to Newsweek about the photo drama, royal biographer Robert Jobson explained why it’d likely be complex were the palace to release the original.
“Absolutely, they should release the original image,” the Our King author said. “But is there an original image or is it lots of different images?”
The editing technique used in the photo appeared to be blending, per a Photoshop expert. As in, multiple snaps were pieced together to create one image. Were the palace to release the original, they could potentially unleash a series rather than a single image, continuing the saga.
“Someone should have spotted this or realized the photographs had been doctored. And in doing so realized that in this day and age when people are so hot on AI—and rightly so—that you can’t put out doctored pictures,” Jobson said.
Calling it a “genuine mistake” made by Kate. “She’s recovering from surgery, but not using professional photographers leaves you open to this sort of mess.”
The Kate photo sacrificed ‘authenticity’ for getting the ‘best picture’
“I think she [Kate] was trying to do her best to get all the kids in the picture looking smiley and make sure it’s the best picture possible. But if you’re an amateur at this,” he explained, “You can, in trying to make it look the best, forget the most fundamental thing that matters—which is authenticity.”
“This leads to people doubting the integrity of the institution and the palace in terms of what they put out. Not just in photographs but in information,” the William at 40 author explained.
“It’s not a great day for the royal family. But at the same time, most people will forgive Kate [for] the mistake. I’m not sure so many people would forgive the communications department.”
