This photo shows signs of image manipulation, as circled (Picture:: The Princess of Wales/Kensington Palace/Getty Images)
This photo of the late Queen Elizabeth II with her grandchildren was an iconic image of last year, released to mark what would have been the monarch’s 97th birthday.
Previously unseen, it was taken by Kate Middleton in Balmoral in 2022, the Queen’s beloved royal residence in Scotland and the place where she died.
No questions were raised about the photo at the time, and it was published across the British press.
But after a Mother’s Day photograph of the Princess and Wales and her three children was pulled by news agencies due to image manipulation, other photographs released by Kensington Palace have also been examined more closely.
Global photo agency Getty Images has now raised concerns about a second famous photo, saying that the photo of the Queen with ten of her grandchildren and great grandchildren also bears signs of editing.
The company said: ‘Getty Images has reviewed the image in question and placed an editor’s note on it, stating that the image has been digitally enhanced at source.’
What are the signs of editing in this photo?
Twelve areas of the photo look to be edited (Picture: Kensington Palace/Getty)
1. Black area behind Prince George’s shoulder where Lady Louise Mountbatten-Windsor’s blue dress should be
The black area behind Prince George’s shoulder appears edited (Picture: Kensington Palace/Getty)
2. Floral pattern of Princess Charlotte’s dress repeated where it shouldn’t be
The red flowers are duplicated right next to one another (Picture: Kensington Palce/Getty)
3. A curl of Mia Tindall’s hair repeats exactly indicating the section of the photo has been ‘cloned’
A strand of her hair is duplicated exactly (Picture: Kensington Palce/Getty)
4. There is a dimple in the green sofa without a button, looking blurry
This dimpled area is too undefined, with no button (Picture: Kensington Palace/Getty)
5. Part of the sofa doesn’t line up
Just to the left of the button, you can see a tell tale vertical line (Picture: Kensington Palace/Getty)
6. The pattern on the Queen’s skirt does not match up, which is most visible if you look at the white line of her tartan
The tartan does not line up: the white line suddenly jumps (Picture: Kensington Palace/Getty)
7. Prince Louis’s hair appears to have been cut out and superimposed
Look closely at the outline of his face and hair (Picture: Kensington Palace/Getty)
8. There is a lighter triangular area on Savannah Phillip’s hair which seems to be a discrepancy
There is a light area in the middle of the circle (Picture: Kensington Palace/Getty)
9. Another area of her hair shows a patch of black that does not match up
There is a patch of black in her hair which seems unexplained (Picture: Kensington Palace/Getty)
10. Another dimple in the sofa shows a strange line
(Picture: Kensington Palace/Getty)
11. There is unnatural shading on the arm of the green sofa
Look underneath the bottom right of the arm (Picture: Kensington Palace/Getty)
12. One of the most obvious signs is that a black cable looks ‘cut’ before it goes behind the sofa
The black loop of cable circled has a bit missing (Picture: Kensington Palace/Getty)
Why was the photo edited?
With 12 grandchildren and great grandchildren in the photo, including a baby, it would have been difficult to get all of them smiling and looking in the same direction simultaneously.
Her Late Majesty is joined by Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis for the group picture, along with Mia, Lucas and Lena Tindall, and Savannah and Isla Phillips.
Standing at the back are the Queen’s grandchildren Lady Louise Mountbatten-Windsor and James, Earl of Wessex – the son and daughter of the now Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh.
The only missing grandchildren are Harry and Meghan’s grandchildren Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.
Editing could, therefore, have been done simply in an attempt to get everyone posing together without thought to the questions it would raise.
After a furore over the edited Mother’s Day photo, Kate tweeted: ‘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’
That photograph was given a ‘kill notice’ by agencies, who have strict rules about doctored images to ensure credibility.
Phil Chetwynd, the global news director at Agence France-Presse (AFP), said the portrait ‘violated our rules’ and led to Kensington Palace no longer being considered a ‘trusted source’.
Metro.co.uk has contacted Getty and Kensington Palace to ask for further clarification on the exact nature of the edits to the Queen’s portrait.
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