Kate's photo 'was altered three times' before release by Palace

THE Princess of Wales was today said to be “saddened” over the doctored photo which engulfed the royal family in fresh controversy.

- Robert Jobson and Robert Dex

Palace insiders insisted the “entirely innocent” mistake was an attempt to make the family portrait the best it could be and said she now hopes the row will die down after she apologised. A source told the Evening Standard: “It is all very sad. She is still recuperating from abdominal surgery. She was just trying to make the photo look better.”

Her tweaking of the photo taken by Prince William led to picture agencies “killing” the image when the manipulation was discovered. It is understood to have been altered three times before it was officially released on Sunday by Kensington Palace.

Kate has publicly taken the blame and yesterday issued a personal apology for the “confusion” which has been dubbed “Kategate” and “Sleevegate”. She wrote on social media: “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.” The photograph of Kate and her children was the first to be issued since the princess’s surgery and was released by the palace to mark Mother’s Day. It followed online concern over her health and showed the princess sitting with her arms around Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, with Prince George standing behind.