All The Inconsistencies and Editing Mistakes in Kate Middleton’s Photo

Mar 12, 2024

Matt Growcoot

Errors on Kate Middleton photo

Kate Middleton is at the center of 2024’s biggest photo controversy after admitting to editing an image of herself posing with her children.

There’s no doubt the photo has been manipulated — especially after the world’s biggest picture agency put out a “kill notice” on it. But where exactly has it been edited? We take a closer look.

Of note, analysis of the photo’s metadata by Sky News found that it was taken with a Canon 5D Mark III and a 50mm prime lens. It was saved in Adobe Photoshop twice on an Apple computer — but the British news station says it’s unclear whether both times were on the same device.

All of the Edits on the Kate Middleton Family Photo

A chunk of Princess Charlotte’s sleeve is missing

Misaligned zip — With the levels boosted, a strange line appears in the photo that also shows Kate’s jacket zip misaligned.

misaligned step — Most photographers will be familiar with this error. You’re merging two images and a straight line doesn’t match (in this case a step). It should be quite simple to get rid of. But for whatever reason, it wasn’t.

Charlotte's hair — Hair is notoriously difficult to cut out of an image and Charlotte’s hair does appear to stop abruptly.

Kate’s hair is blurred on the right and sharper on the left. Also shows evidence of being cut out.

Charlotte knee — Charlotte’s knee is washed out and the actual outline appears to be missing. Suggesting it was cut out.

No wedding ring — Okay, this isn’t an editing mistake but Kate Middleton is rarely seen without her wedding ring and yet here she is without one.

Facial expressions — Expressions. Any family photographer knows how difficult it is to capture a single photo of three children with smiling faces. It’s certainly cause for doubt.

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

— The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) March 11, 2024

Aside from the glaring errors, how much the photo was actually edited remains a mystery. Kensington Palace is refusing to release the original file which is only intensifying speculation and the doctored photo remains Kate’s only official public appearance since last year.