Photo: Getty Images
The social media photo in which Kate Middleton, Princess of Wales, broke her months-long silence following a mysterious surgical procedure has been recalled by several photo agencies amid fears of being digitally "manipulated," the Mirror reported Sunday (March 10) night.
The photo shared on Middleton's social media accounts shared with her husband, William, Prince of Wales, which shows the princess and her three children celebrating Mother's Day in the United Kingdom, was withdrawn by the Associated Press, Reuters, Getty and AFP.
“At closer inspection, it appears that the source has manipulated the image," a "kill notification" reportedly released by the Associated Press states. Sources with knowledge of the situation told the Mirror that the photo of Middleton, 42, her sons George, 10, and Louis, 5, and daughter Charlotte, 8, had been edited after several social media users pointing out issues, which included the sleeve of Princess Charlotte's arm not lining up and Prince George's right hand being out of focus.
"Professional photographer here. Look closely at Princess Charlotte’s wrist. This is what happens when you composite layers in Photoshop. I’m not speculating on why the photo was edited like this, but it’s weird," portrait photographer Martin Bamford wrote on his X account.
The reported withdrawal came months after the royals shared a edited Christmas card in which Prince Louis was missing a middle finger, which Kensington Palace refused to address. The royal couple frequently opts to take their own photos to mark holidays and special occasions, rather than follow prior royal customs of hiring a professional photographer.
Middleton was reported to have spent two weeks in the London Clinic hospital in January following what was described as "planned abdominal surgery" and recover privately until after Easter (March 31), Kensington Palace had previously announced. The reason for the princess' surgery was, however, unknown and her time out of the public eye led to speculation and conspiracy theories.
Middleton was initially spotted publicly in a paparazzi photo shared on March 4 in which she was traveling in a car with her mother, Carole, near Windsor Castle. Gary Goldsmith, Middleton's uncle who had previously appeared on the reality television show 'Celebrity Big Brother,' said his niece was receiving "the best care in the world" while addressing the situation via Time.com.
Kate's reported surgical procedure preceded her father-in law King Charles III's cancer diagnosis, which led to him postponing public engagements while undergoing treatment, in February.