The 12 questions raised by sweet family picture that sparked a royal furore
KATE admitted she does ‘experiment with editing’. Here the Mail examines the tell-tale alterations which reveal that the picture at the centre of yesterday’s controversy had been doctored:
1 Disappearing sleeve: In one of the most obvious signs that the image has been edited, part of Charlotte’s red sleeve and wrist appear to be missing. It was this inconsistency that first alerted picture agencies to the digital manipulation.
2 Wonky zip: When magnified, the zip on Kate’s black top is clearly misaligned which experts say is another sign that someone tried – badly – to clean up the image.
3 Charlotte’s skirt: The eight-year-old’s tartan skirt appears to be blurred and sticking out in an unnatural and unusually straight angle over her cardigan.
4 Uneven background: The edge of the stone ledge looks distorted and blurred in places while the end of the step beneath it appears to be disrupted. Experts say this indicates a duplication of images.
5 Louis’ jumper: The pattern on the smiling five-yearold’s jumper seems askew on his right arm.
6 Charlotte’s hair: The Princess’s hair ends abruptly on her right shoulder, appearing to be almost shoulder length on one side but much longer on the other. 7 Charlotte’s knee: The edge of her knee and thigh appeared to be blurred with a green tinge which experts suggest could be the result of a clone tool being used to edit out and retouch the grass in the background.
8 Kate’s hair: The mother-ofthree’s hair on the right side of her face is blurred, appearing almost airbrushed.
9 Louis’s hand: The youngest royal’s right thumb is blurred against his trouser which experts say suggests use of a clone tool which is used to copy content such as patches of colour. 10 Kate’s hand: The royal’s right hand which is placed around her youngest’s waist is heavily out of focus and blurry.
11 Missing wedding ring: This is the first official photograph of the Princess of Wales since she had abdominal surgery in January, but surprisingly she appears in the image without her wedding ring.
12 Shrub: Social media users have questioned why a shrub in the background appears to be in full leaf, despite it being early March.