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Another royal family portrait is now drawing attention, with multiple agencies saying it was digitally edited

Mar 20, 2024, 15:09 IST
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A family portrait of Britain's late Queen Elizabeth II with some of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren, with indications by Reuters of areas that appear to have been digitally altered by the source.THE PRINCE AND PRINCESS OF WALES/KENSINGTON PALACE/Handout via REUTERS
  • Kate Middleton's portrait of Queen Elizabeth II was digitally altered, Getty Images said.
  • The image, released in April by Kensington Palace, shows the late queen surrounded by young royals at Balmoral Castle.
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An old portrait of the late Queen Elizabeth II with some of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren posing around a couch was digitally manipulated, Getty Images now says.

"Getty Images is undertaking a review of handout images and in accordance with its editorial policy is placing an editor's note on images where the source has suggested they could be digitally enhanced," a Getty Images spokesperson told Business Insider.

The Telegraph first reported the news on Monday. The photo can no longer be downloaded from Getty Images.

The photo in question was released by Kensington Palace in April, on what would have been the Queen's 97th birthday.

The Prince and Princess of Wales also shared the image on social media at the time. The caption says the image was taken by Kate Middleton at Balmoral Castle the year before.

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On Tuesday, Reuters said it inspected the image and found "eight places where the picture had been clearly altered by digital cloning." Digital cloning involves "copying pixels to either move or mask objects or areas in a photo," Reuters said.

Reuters said it was unable to determine why the alterations were made.

"Reuters is updating its procedures related to vetting images from Kensington Palace after confirming a second altered photograph. Consistent with the Thomson Reuters Trust Principles, Reuters requires that photos meet its editorial standards for image quality, accuracy and reliability," a statement from a Reuters spokesperson read.

CNN separately analyzed the photo and found as many as 19 instances where the photo had been altered.

Some of the inconsistencies include a misalignment of the pattern on the Queen's skirt and a misalignment in the sofa's upholstery, per CNN. Strands of Princess Charlotte's hair appeared to be cloned, while the lighting on multiple royals is also inconsistent with the overall lighting of the image.

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Kensington Palace declined to comment when reached by Reuters and CNN about the photo.

Representatives for Kensington Palace and Reuters did not immediately respond to requests for comment from BI sent outside regular business hours.

This is the second time this month the royal family has come under scrutiny for editing its photos. Interestingly, some people have long speculated that the photo of the queen with her grandchildren was edited.

Earlier this month, multiple photo agencies issued a "kill" alert on a Mother's Day portrait of Kate and her three children over concerns that it was digitally altered.

The photo was released amid speculation about Kate's health following her "planned abdominal surgery" in January and her lack of public appearances.

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In response to the Mother's Day photo fiasco, Kate issued a statement on Kensington Palace's X account.

"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," she said.

Kate has not been seen in public since Christmas. Her continued absence from the public eye, the royal family's PR-crisis style, and the confusion around the recent photograph have fanned the "Katespiracy" flames.

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