Kensington Palace explain why Kate wasn’t wearing her wedding ring in new photo

A new picture of the Princess of Wales with her children has baffled Brits, and as Kate explained away claims of ‘manipulation’, Kensington Palace shed light on another confusing detail

Questions over editing of official Mother’s Day picture of Princess of Wales

Kensington Palace has claimed there was a simple reason why the Princess of Wales wasn’t wearing her wedding ring in a new photo shared on social media for Mother’s Day on Sunday (March 10).

The photograph, which shows Kate embracing her children, Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, nine, and Prince Louis, five, was edited before it was shared with media outlets around the world and posted online, and some of the world’s largest photography agencies issued “kill notices” over fears the image had been “manipulated”.

In a statement issued this morning, Kate admitted she “occasionally” experiments with editing, and apologised for the confusion, which explains many of the apparent oddities in the photo. The palace previously also addressed one particular detail about the image – the reason why Kate wasn’t wearing her wedding ring.

Kate wasn’t wearing her wedding ring in the picture(PA) Other discrepancies were also spotted, like an error with Charlotte’s sleeve(PA)

According to ITV News, Kate’s office simply responded to questions about her ring by stating the royal was “at home” when the photo was taken, and dismissed any speculation about her marriage to Prince William by confirming “it was her husband who took the photo”. It has also been pointed out that Kate recently underwent abdominal surgery and may have had to remove her wedding band ahead of the procedure, and simply hasn’t put it back on yet.

Speculation surrounding the photo was sparked after royal fans spotted apparent oddities with it. Later, Associated Press (AP) Reuters, Agence France-Presse (AFP) and Getty Images all separately issued a “kill notice” to media organisations around the globe, confirming they had each deleted the image from their individual libraries over claims it had been “manipulated”. Following the notice, sources said Kensington Palace would be under “increasing pressure” to explain how the image was produced.

And on Monday (March 11), the Princess of Wales personally apologised for confusion over the family photograph, saying: “Like many amateur photographers, I do occasionally experiment with editing.”

Kate also seemed to have a misplaced zip(PA) While others said George’s finger length seemed odd(PA)

The image became caught up in a social media storm with eagle-eyed royal fans pointing out the issues with the picture online. Perceptive viewers identified several “errors” in the picture, ranging from the positioning of Prince Louis’ hands to mismatched lines and clothing patterns.

Kate has not been officially seen in public since she joined other members of the Royal Family for a Christmas Day walk, and the apparent photo-editing mistakes have fuelled rumours concerning her whereabouts. Peter Hunt, a royal commentator, remarked: “This is bad for the royals. They knew there would be a lot of attention in any pictures they released of Kate. Their concern is that people will now wonder if they can be trusted and believed when they provide the next health report.”