Kate Middleton, Britain’s Princess of Wales, on Monday apologised for “any confusion” caused by a family portrait released by Kensington Palace of her posing with her three children.
The 42-year-old took to the official Palace X handle, formerly Twitter, to clarify that the discrepancies which led major photo agencies to withdraw the image from circulation were the result of some amateur editing by her.
The image released on Sunday, which is celebrated as Mother’s Day in the UK, showed a smiling Kate with Princes George, 10, and Louis, 5, and Princess Charlotte, 8.
The palace said it had been taken by Prince William at Windsor Castle earlier in the week.
“Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing,” reads the statement by Catherine, Princess of Wales, which is signed as C.
“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,” it said.
Royal sources indicated that the picture was an amateur photograph taken by William, Prince of Wales, as the royal family wanted to offer an informal picture of the family together for Mother’s Day.
They added that the princess made some "minor adjustments" to the image and that the family spent Mother’s Day together and had a wonderful day.
Earlier, in a rare move, major international photo agencies issued a so-called “kill” notice on the official royal photograph over concerns it was "manipulated" by "the source".
The agencies, which have strict rules on digital manipulation of images, said they had spotted a number of inconsistencies in the photograph, including the alignment of Princess Charlotte's left hand. Several people also took to social media to point out that Kate Middleton was not wearing her wedding ring, which was unusual.
Kate, who has been on official leave as she recovers from an abdominal surgery in January, has not been seen in public for weeks which had led to some social media speculation over her recovery.
Kensington Palace, the office for the Prince and Princess of Wales, have repeatedly said that she is doing well and that health matters are private.
The release of the photograph was intended to allay fears of any serious health concerns, but it triggered its own set of speculation and conspiracy theories instead.
AFP said it had "come to light" that the image of the "Princess of Wales and her kids had been altered" and was therefore removed from its systems.
An AP statement read: “The Associated Press initially published the photo, which was issued by Kensington Palace.
“The AP later retracted the image because at closer inspection, it appears that the source had manipulated the image in a way that did not meet AP's photo standards. The photo shows an inconsistency in the alignment of Princess Charlotte's left hand." Reuters said it withdrew the picture following a "post-publication review" with a spokesperson saying the agency is "reviewing the matter".
Royal experts indicated that editing photographs after they have been taken for professional purposes is a common practice. Therefore, it was believed Kensington Palace may have only been trying to improve the photograph if it was indeed altered.
Meanwhile, it is unlikely to quell social media rumours over the health of the Princess of Wales as details of her medical condition have not been released by the palace except to say it is not cancer-related. Kate is not expected to return to official royal duties until after Easter next month as she recuperates.