Photoshop Faux Pas: Rumors Swirl That Kate Middleton's Face in Mother's Day Portrait Was Edited in From Old Cover Shot
Kate Middleton has remained out of the spotlight since undergoing abdominal surgery earlier this year but reemerged on Monday just hours after admitting that she edited the new photo with her kids released on Mother's Day.
The Princess of Wales owned up to altering the picture in a statement shared via social media. She did not clarify exactly what was modified and how, leading to several theories online, including one that has quickly gained traction amid concerns about her well-being.
In the snap shared by Kensington Palace, Kate sat in a chair surrounded by her three children — Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 8, and Prince Louis, 5.
"My analysis of the Kate Middleton photo saga is that they took her face from the Vogue cover she did years ago and edited it in," Ruby Naldrett, who works in social media at the Daily Mirror, posted via X, formerly Twitter, alongside a photo of the 2016 image.
Kate flashed a similar smile with her prominent dimples on the cover featuring "Her Royal Highness, The Duchess of Cambridge" at the time.
The post put the Mother's Day shot, which was said to have been captured during the March 10 holiday in the U.K., alongside the image taken eight years ago.
"Good find. Seems to be a step above a basic free trial photoshop," one person replied after seeing the photos juxtaposed, RadarOnline.com has learned. "It's the sloppiness that surprises me. If true, this is amateur work. The Palace usually controls Kate's image so tightly, to risk backlash over a simple family photo seems like a huge miscalculation," a second commented.
Others, however, weren't convinced. "Wait…are you saying a photo of Kate Middleton looks like another photo of Kate Middleton? I have no words to describe my shock at this revelation."
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Some of the photo faux pas that were noticed by eagle-eyed fans included Princess Charlotte's arm seeming to be missing, Kate's zipper appearing to be doctored, and the edges in various parts of the photo looking distorted.
Another theory taking over X is that Kate's new photo was from Nov. 2023 and the clothes were just altered to make it look fresh.
Meanwhile, Kate was spotted leaving Windsor Castle today with Prince William after issuing an apology over the photo controversy.
"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 via the official Prince and Princess of Wales account.
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"I hope everyone celebrating had a very happy Mother’s Day. C."